RYA warns that CE mark is not to be relied upon for safety!

[steve_l]

In this instance, Electrical Systems", yes, the directive is quite specific. Other areas may not be so specific, eg. fixing of consoles to hulls/decks...
Bavaria yachts are CE marked but keels have been known to fall off those.

And the quoted ISO standards may not be so relevant.
I remember one manufacturer of anti-static floor covering claiming that his product conformed to ISO XXXXX, which it did. However that standard was nothing to do with anti-static performance but only with anti-slip properties.

Another example of sometimes meaningless regulations.

However, creating these directives keeps the boys & girls in Brussels in beer tokens )

 

[Wiggo]

Don't forget that under ISO9001, you can make concrete life jackets as long as you have documented how you do and can show that you do it consistently.

Boats are built by humans and much as we would like it to be otherwise, people cut corners and screw up. It was late Friday afternoon and the guy who fits the consoles was running low on 30mm M8 self tappers and couldn't be bothered to walk to the stores to get more, it could wait till Monday. Just one last boat to get through and then off to the pub. It'll be fine with M6's and some more Sikaflex, surely?

That one boat did not conform to the design which was CE marked, but unless every single product from every single supplier is individually certified this sort of thing can and will happen. That's theoretically what PDI's are for.

 

[misterg]

[ QUOTE ]
The declaration of conformity to Directive 94/25/CE that came with our boat stated that the craft complied with

"the following EC Regulations and Standards:
ISO 12217
ISO 14946
ISO 14945
ISO 10087
ISO 10240
ISO 11591 "


[/ QUOTE ]

ISO12217 - Stability assessment
ISO14946 - Maximum load capacity
ISO14945 - Small craft builder's plate
ISO10087 - Format of HIN number
ISO10240 - Owner's manual
ISO11591 - Field of view from helm postion for power driven small craft

Which of these aspects is your boat deficient in? (I have read your blog)

It would appear that none of your problems stem from lack of compliance to the standards quoted. I'm not having a go at you - the whole thing is a farce. Many of the most important standards (for example ISO12215, the standard for 'scantlings' i.e. structural elements of small craft) are still in the process of being agreed and published, some 10 years after CE marking came in.

If you want to find out how shakey the system is, read the MAIB report on "Big Yellow", a rib that broke up a few years ago.

If you want to read a heartbreaking tale of blatently false CE marking, read the MAIB report on "Mollyanna"

I was in conversation with another Forum member about the ISO standard for keels (as yet unpublished !) in the wake of the "Hooligan V" incident, as the proposed standard didn't recognise established design practices for fabricated structures. He went as far as being invited to contribute to the standards comittee (err... but we don't have the funding for you to travel to meetings...). The standard had been haggled over for years, and the committee seemed reluctant to consider anything new. (The point here is that the MAIB investigation attributed the failure wholly to an unauthorised design modfication. In our opinions, failure was also imminent due to other shortcomings whose significance wasn't recognised in the MAIB report, and weren't addressed by the proposed standard.)

I've got no connections with any of these incidents, or the MAIB, by the way. (The Mollyanna incident was close to home, though).

Otherwise I'm just cynical.

Andy

 

[sadcatowner]

Just a quick addition to the above - the boat we bought required an EC Declaration of conformity to Directive 94/25/CE in order to get it registered as a Greek vessel with the local Port Police.

So the CE mark was 'bolstered' by the declaration as signed by the builder's authorised signatory.

The declaration says that Powercats Ltd :

Declares that *ALL* craft described as:

Powercat 525 GB BLB52573J707

Comply with the following EC Regulations and Standards

and then lists the standards.

So it specifically means that we were entitled to rely on our specific craft being up to CE and ISO standards.

*my emphasis*

 

[sadcatowner]

Just a final post from me on this thread to clarify things. We now have confirmation from Trading Standards (the enforcing authority for this legislation) that each boat with a CE plate and certificate specifying an individual hull number- must be individually compliant.

Anyone who wishes to confirm this information can either contact Cornwall Trading Standards or Hampshire Trading Standards as they are particularly up to speed on CE legislation as it applies to boats and non compliance issues.

 

[pistonbroke]

I'm told by one of my suppliers that Powercat went bust last week!