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Standards
for Life Jackets and Buoyancy Aids
Directives, CEN Standards and ISO Standards (Status Novem-ber 2001)
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Directives
are rules, similar to statutes, which are issued by the European Commission
in Brussels. After a certain transitional period, these must become
national laws and thus harmonize European statutory requirements.
A set of new standards has arisen in Europe since 1988/89 under the
directive called "Personal Protection Equipment (PPE)",
by means of which dangers and threats to one's health are to be averted
and prevented. Among these are standards as a protection against drowning,
as a protection against falling overboard, as well as a protection
against hypothermia and from death from freezing in water:
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| PPE |
CEN-Standards |
ISO
Standards |
| for
life jackets and buoy-ancy aids |
EN
393, 394, 395, 396, 399 |
prEN
ISO 12402,
parts 1 to 10
(prEN = draft) |
 |
| for
safety harnesses and safety lines |
EN
1095
|
prEN
ISO 12401
(prEN = draft) |
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| for
immersion suits |
EN
1913, 1-3 |
prEN
ISO 15027
parts 1 to 3
(prEN = draft) |
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In
contrast to the previously valid national standards of the United
Kingdom (BSI) and Germany (DIN) - none of the other European countries
had Standards Regulations in this field in the past - the CEN-standards
(or Euro-standards) are to be embedded into national laws and hence
binding in their usage (violations are even punishable by law!).
For life jackets and buoyancy aids, the transitional period from 'old'
national rulings to 'new' European standards has expired since mid
1995, since then the European Standards have been in force. This also
applies to the standards for safety harnesses and safety lines which
have been valid since the year 2000.
For a number of years now, all CEN-Standards have been drawn up in
a so-called parallel harmonizing procedure as ISO standards (ISO =
International Standardisation Organization). All the standards rulings
cited above are today compiled and revised at this level as draft
ISO Standards.
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| Important
new Euro-Standards for Assurance of Safety from Drowning |
The
European Standards divide buoyancy aids and life jackets into four
categories categories 50, 100, 150 and 275. The yardstick is the load-bearing
capacity in Newton (N). The lowest category is the 50N category, reserved
for buoyancy aids. The categories 100N, 150N and 275N characterize
life jackets. Class 150 could be viewed as the universal life jacket,
whereas the 275 category describes extremes for unusual requirements.
Operational areas are defined for each category. Hence usage of buoyancy
aid 50 ,requires help to always be close at hand and children under
a certain limit (30 kg) to be excluded. Whether or not a life jacket
is able to turn an unconscious person over into a safe position in
the water is dependent on what kind of clothing is worn. For the information
of the customer, all the categories with explanatory notes on their
areas of use are to be named on the sales packaging. Products and
packaging must be clearly marked with comprehensive standardized information.
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| What
does the CE-sign mean? |
The
EU-directives prescribe particular markings which manufacturers must
use. The most significant one is the marking with the European conformity
sign CE (= French - Conformité Européenne). In this
way it is documented that the prescribed Type Approval Test for this
PPE has been undertaken by an independent testing body and that an
approved European test centre has determined that the standards have
been adhered to. After that, for the duration of its life, the product
is subject to manufacturing checks by the aforesaid centre. Manufacturers
must subject every model in their programme range to this ruling.
If they bring a series on to the market, all products must bear the
CE mark as a certification of their conformity with the approved type.
There was never before such a stringent requirement in Europe.
| The
symbol |
Example
of a CE-marking on a life jackete |
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| 0299
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01 |
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0299
is the testing centre number, 01 the year of the Type Approval
Test |
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| A
comparison of European Standards (EN) and previous national standards
(e.g.German standards DIN, British Standards BS) |
The
introduction of European Standards does not mean that a lowering of
safety standards from when DIN or BS-regulations were valid has arisen
in the national markets. The national Standards Institutes take these
standards into their own stock (e.g. DIN EN 396, BS EN 396). Then
a greater number of obligations and requirements as regards quality
(type approval test, certificates of conformity) prevail upon the
manufacturer. The consumer acquires a better overview and comparison
of the safety equipment 'life jacket and buoyancy aid', whose purpose
and technical data must be stated in a clear manner and in the language
of the respective country.
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| For
your orientation: the 4 standards categories |
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| Buoyancy
aids |
Life
jackets |
Life
jackets |
Life
jackets |
| Only suitable
for good swimmers. Only for sheltered water use where help is
close at hand. Only provides support to a conscious person who
can help himself! Not suitable for children (under 30 kg). Not
a life jacket! |
For use
in inshore and coastal waters. Not guaranteed to self-right
an unconscious user (dependent on the type of clothing one is
wearing). |
For all
waters. May not immediately self-right an unconscious user wearing
heavy, waterproof clothing. |
For offshore
and severe conditions. The buoyancy they provide should ensure
they will self-right an unconscious user in the great majority
of cases, even when wearing heavy waterproofs. |
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