Declaration of Performance(DoP) and CE Marking

Declaration of Performance (DoP) and CE marking

The Declaration of Performance is a key part of the Construction Products Regulation. It provides information on the performance of a product. Each construction product covered by a European harmonised standard or for which a European Technical Assessment has been issued needs this Declaration and has to be CE marked. This helps increase transparency and improves the functioning of the Single Market.

Steps that enable manufacturers to draw up the Declaration of Performance (DoP)

harmonised European Standards
European Assessment Documents (EAD)
European Technical Assessments (ETA)
Technical Assessment Bodies (TAB)
Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Performance(AVCP)
Notified Bodies (NB)

CE Marking for construction products

The CE marking indicates that a construction product is in conformity with its declared performance and that it has been assessed according to a harmonised European standard or a European Technical Assessment has been issued for it.

Harmonized Standards EADs and ETAs TABs Notified Bodies AVCP

Harmonised standards

Harmonised European standards provide a technical basis to assess the performance of construction products. They enable manufacturers to draw up the Declaration of Performance as defined in the Construction Products Regulation, and affix the CE marking.

What are harmonised standards for

Harmonised European standards create a common technical language used by all actors in the construction sector to:

define requirements (regulatory authorities in EU countries);
declare the product’s performance (manufacturers);
verify compliance with requirements and demands (design engineers, contractors).

Supporting testing standards relevant to construction products cover:

resistance to fire, reaction to fire, external fire performance, noise absorption;
construction products in contact with drinking water;
release of dangerous substances into indoor air, soil and (ground)water;

Harmonised European standards on construction products are developed by technical experts from the European Standardisation Organisations (CEN/CENELEC). The Technical Committees of CEN and CENELEC are working on completing the necessary set of harmonised European standards and test standards, and further improving existing ones.

Benefits of harmonised standards for the construction sector

common assessment methods for construction products
a single European scheme for declaring product performance.

These actions remove barriers to trade and thus help improve the competitiveness of the construction sector.

European Assessment Documents and European Technical Assessments

The European Technical Assessment (ETA) is an alternative for construction products not covered by a harmonised standard. It is a document providing information on their performance assessment. The procedure is established in the Construction Products Regulation and offers a way for manufacturers to draw up the Declaration of Performance and affix the CE marking. It contributes to the free movement of construction products and the creation of a strong Single Market.

How the procedure works:

A manufacturer requests the European Technical Assessment for a construction product that is not covered or not fully covered by a harmonised standard. The request is addressed to the Technical Assessment Body for the respective product area – see list of TABs in the NANDO database;
The Technical Assessment Body issues the European Technical Assessment on the basis of a European Assessment Document (EAD) adopted by the European Organisation for Technical Assessment (EOTA);
An updated list of references for the final EADs is published by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The main content of the European Technical Assessment is information on the intended use and performance of a product.

The European Assessment Document

The European Assessment Document (EAD) is a harmonised technical specification for construction products. It is developed by the European Organisation for Technical Assessment (EOTA) for cases where a product is not fully covered by harmonised European standards. EADs are the basis for issuing European Technical Assessments. The document contains:

a general description of the construction product;
the list of essential characteristics agreed between the manufacturer and EOTA;
the methods and criteria for assessing the performance of the product in relation to these essential characteristics;
principles for factory production control to be applied.

Technical Assessment Bodies:

Technical Assessment Bodies (TABs) assess construction products on the base of European Assessment Documents. These bodies are designated by EU countries according to national procedures. A list of Technical Assessment Bodies including their respective product areas is available in the NANDO-CPR database.

The European organisation for Technical Assessment

To facilitate the co-operation of Technical Assessment Bodies, the European Organisation for Technical Assessment was established. The organisation carries out the following tasks:

adopts European Assessment Documents (EAD) and ensures that they are publically available;
coordinates requests for the European Technical Assessment and the procedure adopting a European Assessment Document;
organises the coordination of all TABs.

What is the difference between ETApproval and ETAssessment?

The main difference between an ETA(pproval) issued under the Construction Products Directive (CPD) and an ETA(ssessment) issued under the Regulation (CPR) is the following:

In the CPD context, the ETA(pproval) was a technical assessment of the fitness for use of a construction product for an intended use. All relevant characteristics for the use of the product were assessed. All relevant characteristics and aspects for the use of the product were assessed, amongst others packaging, storage, trasnport, installation, and maintenance.

In the CPR context, the ETA(ssessment) is based on an agreement between the manufacturer and the Technical Assessment Body (TAB) concerning those characteristics for which the manufacturer wishes to declare the performance and which might be relevant for the intended use. It is the documented assessment of the performance of a construction product as it has just been manufactured, in relation to its essential characteristics.

Notified Bodies

Notified Bodies are the only recognised third party carrying out the assessment of performance of construction products. Notified bodies are designated by EU countries. The European Commission ensures co-operation between Notified Bodies.

The tasks of notified bodies include:

assessment of the performance of a construction products;
certification of constancy of performance;
factory production control certification;

Selection of notified bodies

Notified Bodies are also designated by European Economic Area (EEA) countries, as well as by other countries (e.g. Switzerland or Turkey) with specific agreements with the EU. A list of all official Notified Bodies under the Construction Products Regulation is available in the NANDO-CPR database.

The full list of Notified bodies For the power, control and communication cables
The summary list of Notified bodies For the power, control and communication cables

Body type	Name	Country
NB 2661	British Approvals Service for Cables (BASEC)	United Kingdom
NB 0832	BRE Global Limited	United Kingdom
NB 0344	DEKRA Certification B.V.	Netherlands
NB 0366	VDE – Prüf- und Zertifizierungsinstitut GmbH	Germany
NB 2658	SGS Belgium NV-Afdeling/Division SGS CEBEC	Belgium
NB 1783	TURKISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION (TSE)	Turkey

Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Performance (AVCP)

The Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Performance (AVCP) is a harmonised system defining how to assess products and control the constancy of the assessment results. This system safeguards the reliability and accuracy of the Declaration of Performance.

Five different systems are in place for construction products in the Construction Products Regulation. They range from large-scale third party involvement to self-declaration and monitoring by the manufacturer. The European Commission establishes which systems are applicable for:

a construction product;
a family of construction products;
an essential characteristic.

The harmonised technical specifications (harmonised European standards and European Assessment Documents) include the technical details for the implementation of the AVCP system.