The revised Low Voltage and Electromagnetic Compatibility Directives come into force in April this year. The LVD covers the health and safety risks of electrical equipment while the EMC prevents such equipment disturbing or being disturbed by electromagnetic emissions from other equipment or interfering with radio and telecommunications.
The two Directives were revised to align with the EU’s ‘New Legislative Framework’, which provides greater clarity regarding the obligations of manufacturers, importers and distributors. Consequently the technical provisions and standards used to demonstrate compliance remain broadly unaffected. One key addition is that the new LVD will require the brand name or trade mark to be marked on equipment (on the packaging if this is not possible).
The new Radio Equipment Directive (RED) will be a couple of months behind and will repeal the Radio and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment Directive (R&TTE). However it is not a direct substitution for the old legislation – it covers a wider range of equipment and more of the radio spectrum; has different definitions; and a more complicated relationship with LVD and EMC.
Most importantly for AMDEA members, RED will cover any domestic appliances that have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth communication functionality.
RED covers safety and EMC in addition to radio spectrum usage and so appliances within the scope of RED will have to comply with that Directive instead of LVD and EMC .