Actually, everything should be clear

With the innovations in the new versions of the awning standards (DIN EN 13561) and the roller shutter standards (DIN EN 13659) from 2015, much new technical input has reached industry and specialist companies. Compliance with a harmonized European standard offers manufacturers, and thus also contractors who purchase their products, the great advantage that in this case it can be more or less automatically assumed that the basic requirements of the corresponding standards and directives to which the respective standard refers are fulfilled. So far so good. In practice, and therefore in the real world, things are unfortunately a little different and, above all, different at the moment.

In principle, only the following conditions have to be fulfilled in order for the presumption of conformity in the R+S sector to come into effect:

- There is a harmonized European standard.

- The standard has been implemented in at least one EU member state.

- The standard was published in the European Official Journal (OJEU).

Of course, this cannot or should not be a carte blanche for the industry players to simply plan, manufacture, deliver and assemble in a cheerful manner, according to the motto: the main thing is that a CE mark is on it and it is good.

The contractor as a specialist contractor has a duty towards the client to regularly check whether the requirements of the client and the generally recognised rules of technology with regard to product "and" assembly are complied with. This includes, in addition to the accompanying documents of the corresponding products, of course also the fastening technology.

Everything clear or not?

Since March 2017, there has been a certain problem here and therefore a great deal of uncertainty in the preparation of the necessary accompanying documents and the CE mark. If we take an articulated arm awning with motor, the declaration of conformity (according to the Machinery Directive) must be based on the standard status of DIN EN 13561:2015. For the declaration of performance, on the other hand, the standard DIN EN 13561:2009 must be applied. This applies in particular to the mandated wind property and the specification of the resulting wind resistance classes. One CE certification, two standards to be applied, that is not easy to understand for many manufacturers, but at the moment the bare reality.

The specialist company will almost always follow this topic, as it is usually not actively involved in the changes to the standard processes and is therefore dependent on clear information from its suppliers.

A short-term decision by the responsible persons in the European Commission due to discussions about the wind resistance classes is not to be expected so quickly, at least for DIN EN 13561 (awning standard), since a so-called "delegated act" is necessary here in order to have the changes approved by the EU. Manufacturers should therefore make sure that the current formal requirements of the standard are adhered to. A reference to the 2015 version of the standards in the declaration of performance is expressly not permitted and can even be subject to a fine. What applies to the awning standard also applies to DIN EN13659 for roller shutters, shutters and external blinds.

Five manufacturers, five data to the wind resistance class

If all manufacturers have the declaration of conformity topic under control as far as possible, there are very different approaches to the declaration of performance in terms of how a WRC (wind resistance class) is currently to be stated in the declaration of performance. Of particular interest, for example, are manufacturers who indicate classes 4-6 on their current CE marks and declarations of performance for ZIP systems or side-hemmed conservatory awnings, which are not included at all in the 2009 version of the standard. Here thus completely clearly and with the current information situation by federations, press etc. deliberately against valid rules one offends.

A further procedure popular in the meantime and tolerated by so some test institute is the fact to let ZIP plants examine after the roll shop standard and to determine over it a WRC. Also here a bending of the current rules is present, since ZIP plants are assigned as side seam-guided awnings clearly the DIN EN 13561 and thus not the 13659. ZIP systems must therefore currently be labelled with wind resistance class 0 on the declaration of performance and the CE mark. The load capacity of the product is not defined until the manufacturer himself has recommended the use of wind.

This procedure is common practice in the field of external blinds. Why one or the other manufacturer, although he manufactures both products, is described here.

The IVRSA has for the reasons mentioned above prepared "Wind recommendations" for ZIP systems (and Venetian blinds) in order to counteract precisely these unsightly phenomena.

At the expense of the specialist companies?

One can only guess at the reason why manufacturers proceed so differently with the accompanying therapies for their products. It could be obvious that the marketing departments would assert themselves against the technology in order to indicate high catalogue values and thus be able to outdo the competition. The specialist retailer falls by the wayside because he usually assumes that his supplier delivers and documents correctly. If there is a problem with the product for any reason, the specialist company is the legal contact. And then nothing is really clear anymore.-

Olaf V?gele

The cards have been reshuffled, so it is all the more important to deal with the ETA approvals when attaching the cards, says Karl R?delbronn the chairman of the IVRSA awning group and member of the board.

As early as 2003, the industry had given a great deal of thought to the fastening of awnings and carried out extensive wind tunnel tests. The results have been incorporated into the 2006 guidelines for the consultation, sale and installation of articulated arm awnings. 11/2018 a new guideline was published.

GLASWELT - Mr. R?delbronn, the technical guidelines for the assembly were withdrawn in the summer last yearly and presented now again, why?

Karl R?delbronn - The guideline had to be adapted both to the current standard conditions and to the changed technical rules. This was necessary after more than 10 years and so today there are so-called ETA's (European Technical Approval) for fasteners, which now had to be considered.

GLASWELT - What does this mean for manufacturers and assembly companies?

R?delbronn - Actually not much new. The new edition of the guideline still contains the calculation methods for determining the pull-out loads, but no more product examples or sample calculations.

GLASWELT - Why are the tables for hole distances, dowels etc. omitted?

R?delbronn - Unfortunately it is no longer possible to provide simple solutions for this complex topic. In the meantime there are also performance declarations, e.g. for stones and new fixing substrates, which we could no longer deal with in a blanket table. However, we have planned to publish an annex to the directive with application examples in order to support craftsmen.

GLASWELT - Galvanized screws are completely out of the race?

R?delbronn - Yes, they are. This is one of the necessary changes that we had to integrate into the directive in order to adapt it to the changed technical rules.

CE certifications are clearly regulated, says Martin Bürgel, the technical coordinator at IVRSA and still a member of several DIN committees.

Anyone who thinks that drawing up a declaration of conformity and a declaration of performance is a simple matter can quickly cut their own finger if they don't pay attention to the current standards situation in Brussels.

GLASWELT - Mr. Bürgel, why are there again and again the discussions because of the different standard conditions to conformity and declaration of performance?

Martin Bürgel - According to the Machinery Directive, both product standards have already been published in OJEU (15.01.2016). It follows from this that the declaration of conformity for motorised products must be made in accordance with the new product standard from March 2017. The "new" product standards (EN 13659:2015, EN 13561:2015) may not be used for the declaration of performance or the marking according to the Construction Products Ordinance.

GLASWELT - What does this mean in practice?

Bürgel - In practice, this means that manufacturers must use the 2015 standard for the declaration of conformity and the 2009 standard for the declaration of performance.

GLASWELT - But why then do the declarations of performance of the manufacturers sometimes look so different in the area of the standard version and WRC?

Bürgel - That is difficult to answer. The members of our specialist groups are informed at regular intervals about the current status of the product standards, but there are also quite different statements on this subject from large testing institutes, which then leads to uncertainty among manufacturers and ultimately to different declarations of performance.