SGS Helps Seat Importers Understand Spanish Authorities and Regulations

SOIVRE (Servicio Oficial de Inspección, Vigilancia y Regulación de las Exportaciones) is responsible for ensuring products are safe and compliant with Spanish and European regulations. Seating importers need to make sure their products comply with the right standards to successfully gain access to the market.

SOIVRE was created by Royal Decree 330/2008 and reports to Agencia Española de Consumo, Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (AECOSAN), the primary contact point for RAPEX in Spain, and works closely with AENOR. AENOR is a not-for-profit organization that promotes standardization and certification in all industries. It is a member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC).

Stakeholders should be aware of the standards that their products must comply with to access the market. We include a few highlights to help seat importers, including:

Office Chairs
Office chairs for the workplace or home are defined in EN 1728 as: “chair, with or without arm rests, for use by one adult in the office or home (for example working with a computer), whose upper part, which includes the seat and back, is supposed on a single column and can rotate in the horizontal plane and is at least adjustable in height”

There are two standards that give presumption of conformity to the General Product Safety Directive (GPSD) 2001/95/CE. These are:
• EN 1335-1 Office furniture - Office work chair - Part 1: Dimensions - Determination of dimensions
• EN 1335-2 Office furniture - Office work chair - Part 2: Safety requirements

SOIVRE has announced it will be stricter from next year and will accept only EN 1335-1 and EN 1335-2. Currently, they will accept EN 12520 for some working seat designs not intended to be use in an office, in addition to a report about the gas lift, according to EN 16955.

Please note that a new version of EN 1335-2 will be published in 2018 and will be enforced in Spain six months later.

Children’s Seating
For child seats SOIVRE has applied European Decision 2013/121/UE to give presumption of conformity to the GPSD but this decision does not include any test methods. Because of this, SOIVRE will accept a report based on a protocol or standard, e.g. NF D 60 300-1 and NF D 60 300-2, when the laboratory report shows it covers the requirements under 2013/121/UE.

The European Commission has now mandated CEN to work on a children’s seat safety standard that is based on ED 2013/121/UE. It will cover all children’s seating, including junior office seating and outdoor seating, but exclude institutional seating, . This is expected to be published in the coming year.

Outdoor Seating
With outdoor seating, SOIVRE will accept reports against the requirements to both EN 581-1:2006 and the newer version, EN 581-1:2017. The newer standard is substantially the same as its predecessor, with light revisions and a strengthening of safety requirements.

Domestic Seating
An update to EN 1022 Domestic furniture is expected in 2018, which affects both indoor domestic and non-domestic seating. SOIVRE will allow a six month delay before enforcing the revised standard.

Electrical Furniture
Manufacturers and importers are also reminded that electrically operated furniture must conform to the requirements of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC Edition 2.1 – July 2017, including CE marking of the product and there will be an increase in RoHS inspections in 2018.

SOIVRE has recently reiterated the importance of the laboratory report. Stakeholders should look to ensure traceability in their reports and clearly state what is being tested and the deviation, especially when a full range of products is being tested. They also want to see evidence to prove that the report is authentic.

SGS offers a comprehensive range of services to help furniture manufactures ensure their product complies with relevant market regulations. To learn more about SGS Furniture Services: (www.sgs.com/en/consumer-goods-retail/hardgoods/furniture)

For further information, please contact:

Priscille Galceran
Global Furniture Expert
Tel: +33 4 42 61 64 47
Email: crs.media@sgs.com
Website: www.sgs.com/furniture

About SGS
SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 95,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,400 offices and laboratories around the world.

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This release was published on openPR.