Public consultation on the evaluation of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC
Deadline: 16/12/2016
Contact: GROW-MACHINERY@ec.europa.eu
The aim was to collect stakeholders' feedback on the application and performance of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC. In particular, if and to what extent the Directive meets its objectives of guaranteeing the free circulation of products in its scope. Also, to ensure a high degree of safety for users, other exposed persons and environment protection regarding the machinery used in pesticide applications. The evaluation covered other aspects like its fitness-for-purpose to new technological developments. Examples of these developments are 'Industry 4.0' and 'Internet of Things'.
The results of the public consultation provided evidence to assess how effective the Directive has been in:
- achieving its objectives
- cost efficiency
- relevance to the current needs of the market
- coherence with other EU policies
- achieving EU added-value
The consultation consisted of an online questionnaire, split into two parts:
1. for the "public" (i.e. individual citizens/consumers/workers)
2. for the businesses, public authorities and any other organisations who wished to contribute
It was published in 6 official languages of the European Union: German, English, Spanish, French, Italian and Polish. It ran during 12 weeks, from 22 September until 16 December 2016.
Background information
The Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC aims to guarantee the free movement of machinery within the internal market. At the same time, it aims to ensure a high level of protection for users and other exposed persons. The 2009 amendment added a 'protection of the environment' objective, limited to machinery used in pesticide applications.
The Directive applies to various machinery and equipment. It covers machinery with both consumer and professional/industrial applications, including:
- handheld power tools
- gardening machinery
- robots
- 3D printers
- equipment used in oil and gas industry
- construction machinery
After almost 6 years of implementation, the Commission considered it necessary to assess whether the Directive has achieved its goals. And if it has done so in an effective, efficient, coherent and relevant way that still has EU added value. As a result of this, the Commission launched an evaluation to assess the functioning and the performance of the Directive. This evaluation was linked to the REFIT programme.
Results of the public consultation