15th July 2015

The revised European Standard for manhole covers and gratings should be available from November 2015. From this date both the new version and the current version of the standard will run side by side and both be valid. The current version will then cease to be valid from early 2017.

This is important because it gives rise to the following situations.

A) Customers cannot request CE Marked product to EN124:2015 until at least early 2017. This is because the standard cannot become 'harmonised' until the old standard is withdrawn and it is not possible to CE Mark product to a non harmonised European standard. In fact it is illegal.

B) From November 2015 customers can request Kitemarked steel product but it is unlikely that much will exist at first. Well not beyond the small range of recessed units currently available. This is because manufacturers cannot manufacture to a Eurpoean standard until it is released. It is likely that CE Marked product will start to filter through in 2017.

C) It will still be legal to sell ALL existing product manufactured under the current standard and manufacturers and stockists alike will sell this material first. Obviously it will also be totally legal for contractors to install products already manufactured under the current standard and supplied by stockists. Durey Castings expect to be offering a wider range of Kitemarked product by the end of 2016.

D) There are still legal challenges to the revised European Standard, and much of the wording is disputed. These legal challenges may put back the dates stated above.

In our opinion the way the revised standard has been written and presented has not been great. Many important voices have been ignored in order to get it through publication by certain deadlines. In some cases common sense has been ignored in order to pander to certain trade groups. In fact several recommendations from Durey Castings were rejected by people with far less experience than ourselves. We will no longer fight it, but will accept it when it is published. There will inevitably be some common products that can no longer be made or supplied and some products will have to change design.

What our customers can be sure of though, is that Durey Castings will be right up to date and will stock and distribute correct and certified product when the time comes.

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