ATEX Directive correctly applied: These requirements result for your CE-compliant product

"equipment and protective systems intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres." Compliance with the directive thus authorizes the product for sale (or placing on the market) within the European Union.

This serves to demonstrate the product's conformity with the ATEX Directive and its suitability for placing on the EU market. A CE marking according to ATEX is intended to enable the free movement of products throughout the European Union. Therefore, it must be applied if the product is intended to be placed on the market throughout the European Economic Area.

The manufacturer is responsible for ensuring the conformity of its products with the Directive and for designing and constructing its products in accordance with the essential health and safety requirements and for following the procedures for assessing the conformity of the product.

• All products (equipment and protective systems, electrical and non-electrical) intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres
• All products (safety, control and regulation devices) that contribute to the safe operation of other products with regard to explosion risks
• Also individual components that do not have an autonomous function but operate as part of one of the above-mentioned products (devices or protective systems). Examples of such products include automatic lubrication systems, computers, electric motors, electric fans, heating cables, and burners. Examples of protective systems include flame arresters, rotary valves, etc.

• medical products (however, a CE marking for medical devices is required here)
• Products, equipment and protective systems containing explosive substances or unstable chemical substances
• Products (devices) intended for use in domestic and non-commercial environments
• personal protective equipment (however, CE marking is required in accordance with the PPE Regulation 2016/425)
• Seagoing vessels and mobile offshore units together with the equipment on board such vessels or units
• Means of transport, i.e., road, rail, or water networks, as well as means of transport intended for the carriage of goods by air, on public road or rail networks, or by water. Vehicles intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres are also included.

• to prevent the formation of explosive atmospheres that may be generated or released by the product itself,
• to prevent the ignition of explosive atmospheres, taking into account the nature of any electrical and non-electrical ignition source,
• Should an explosion nevertheless occur which could directly or indirectly endanger living beings or objects, it must be stopped immediately and/or the area of the explosion flames and explosion pressures must be limited to a sufficient level of safety.

Furthermore, the design must ensure that the actual or foreseeable environmental conditions are appropriately addressed and that any reasonably foreseeable misuse is taken into account. To ensure this, organizational measures at the management level are necessary.

In the ATEX conformity assessment, the risk assessment is carried out by classifying the hazardous area into zones. The classification of potentially explosive atmospheres into zones depends on the expected frequency and duration of the presence of an explosive atmosphere.

Safe or non-hazardous areas are areas in which an explosive gas or dust atmosphere is not expected to be present in such quantities that special precautions are required for the design, installation and use of equipment.

• paint spraying systems or storage facilities,
• Gas storage or containment.
• Potential hazardous situations could include surfaces of a flammable liquid directly into the atmosphere.

Zone 1 An area in which "an explosive gas atmosphere consisting of a mixture with air or flammable substances occurs occasionally or regularly during normal operation. Examples of Zone 1 or 2 are:

• chemical or petrochemical plants

Products that could be found in Zone 1 or 2 and therefore require CE marking are:

• Ambulance
• Reach truck
• Pallets
• Individual mechanical seals.

Zone 2: An area in which, during normal operation, an explosive gas atmosphere consisting of a mixture with air or flammable substances is unlikely to occur, or only briefly. An example of a potentially hazardous situation is the connection flange. Pools of flammable liquid that may form rarely or only briefly.

Some examples of Zone 20 are

• Filter
• Cyclones
• Dust transport systems
• Interiors of mixers
• mills
• dryers
• Desiccators

Zone 21 An area in which an explosive dust atmosphere in the form of a dust cloud in the air is likely to occur occasionally during normal operation. For example,

• Areas near filling and emptying points.

Zone 22 Area in which an explosive dust atmosphere in the form of a cloud of dust in the air is likely to occur during normal operation, but which is only present for a short time.

For example

• Areas near equipment that is occasionally opened.
• dust transport systems,
• Interiors of mixers,
• Mills
• dryers,
• A grain mill.

In addition, manufacturers are required to contact conformity assessment bodies or notified bodies to assess their products. These bodies are selected by each European member state.

Second, manufacturers must contact laboratories to conduct appropriate tests. These laboratories must be affiliated with a notified body to conduct the tests. Upon receipt of the report, the notified body issues a certificate confirming the safety of the product. This certificate is required for the product's free movement throughout the EU market.

The certificate shall contain the following information: name and address of the manufacturer, description of the device and/or serial number, reference to relevant harmonised standards, where applicable, reference to the specifications with which conformity is declared, details of the signatory and the last two digits of the year in which the CE marking was affixed.

The manufacturer's technical documentation required by 2014/34/EU must contain a description of the equipment or protective system, design and manufacturing drawings and diagrams, descriptions explaining the drawings and the functioning of the product, proof of conformity of the product with harmonised standards, calculations and tests, test reports and the certificate of the notified body.

Finally, the CE marking is affixed either to the device, the packaging or the instructions.

In the case of products of equipment groups I and II and equipment categories M 1 and 1, the EU type examination (Article 13 (1) a).

For products in equipment groups I and II, equipment categories M2 and M2, either: EU type-examination or conformity based on unit verification for internal combustion engines and electrical equipment. For other equipment, internal production controls or conformity based on unit verification (Article 13(1)(b)).

In the case of products in equipment category 3, either internal production control or conformity based on individual verification (Article 13 (1) (c)).

Some important harmonized standards are

EN 1010-1:2004+A1:2010 (Safety of machinery),

EN 1127-1:2011 (explosive atmospheres)

EN IEC 60079-0:2018 Explosive atmospheres - Part 0: Equipment - General requirements

EN 1127-1:2019 Explosive atmospheres - Explosion protection - Part 1: Basic concepts and methodology

EN 17077:2018 Determination of the burning behaviour of dust layers

EN 14460:2018 Explosion-protected equipment

Harmonized standards for compliance are then developed by European standards bodies. Both operators and equipment designers must be aware of the constant evolution of international standards.