Endress + Hauser is one of the leading companies producing measurement equipment for the process industry worldwide. ‘To ensure that a product meets the highest quality in explosion safety, we work with Notified Bodies already from the early stages of product development in order to reduce re-development costs and time-to-market,’ says dr. Gerold Klotz-Engmann, head of the test center and certification department at Endress + Hauser in Maulburg, Germany. ‘The international cooperation with North American and Japanese certification bodies makes KEMA an attractive partner for us.’

The equipment of Endress + Hauser has to fulfil high safety standards, like the ATEX in Europe, FM and CSAin North America, Nepsi in Chinaor IEC internationally. While Endress + Hauser launches 20-30 new products and a multiple amount of upgraded products each year, the company needs more than one certification institute as a partner. Apart from German Notified Bodies, KEMA is chosen as the only alternative European Notified Body, mainly for level and pressure measurement equipment. ‘KEMA has an effective way of certification’, dr. Klotz-Engmann explains. ‘We are satisfied with the quality they deliver and the personal relationship is very good as well.’

Above all, the main advantage of KEMA is the international cooperation with Notified Bodies overseas. ‘ATEX-tests conducted by KEMA are accepted by FM and CSAin North Americaand by TIIS in Japan. That shortens time to market.’ 

IECEx promising scheme.

Dr. Klotz-Engmann stresses the growing importance of international certification. ‘I see a trend that our products have to comply more and more with international requirements. E.g. in the past Chinaaccepted the ATEX certificate and its standards, now they insist on their own national certification scheme.’ 

The IECEx is one of the most promising schemes for international harmonisation, dr. Klotz-Engmann declares. At this moment only Australiahas endorsed the IECEx as the national certification scheme, but all IECEx Member States worldwide accept the test results obtained under the IECEx certification process.

KEMA likes to perform a certification procedure by IECEx as a basic operational assessment procedure. ‘It’s a bit disappointing that an IECEx certification may slow down the process. It’s not what you should expect’, dr. Klotz-Engmann comments. ‘Due to the similarity between IEC and CENELEC standards it should be just a formal procedure to perform a conformance test to products, which comply already with the ATEX. One explanation is the required mutual supervision of approval agencies worldwide. This requires the organizations to compile an even more truly elaborated file while also documenting the test evidence more extensively. In future we expect, that only one test report will be generated which is the basis for the ATEX, IEC Ex and other national certificates as well.