If you manufacture or import laboratory and test-and-measurement equipment, pressure and flow transducers, analyzers, or process-control equipment for distribution in the European Union, make sure you take note of the updated 2013 standard regulating the products’ EMC emissions and immunity. The EN 61326-1 revision has been driven by the need to address advances in technology and update all of the basic testing standard references.
The deadline to comply will be here before we know it—August 14, 2015—and your products must be retested to some new technical requirements. Additionally, you will need to update your Declaration of Conformity (DoC) and revise your end-user manual. While the technical changes are not numerous, let us review them carefully to ensure compliance.
- Technical changes were made to the “basic environment” requirements in Table 1, specifying minimum immunity requirements. The most important is that the air discharge ESD test level has been increased from 4 kV to 8 kV to bring the standard closer to the real-world environment for ESD.
- Devices susceptible to magnetic fields, such as hall-effect sensors and small relays, will now need to be tested for magnetic-field immunity according to IEC 61000‐4‐8.
- The performance criteria for the immunity testing were revised to make some clarifications and align the requirements with other popular EMC standards.
- Additionally, the new section 9 has added a requirement to include some notifications about EMC in the end-user manual.
Make sure you review your DoC and EMC reports against the new requirements and create a plan for compliance. A competent third-party laboratory can provide the testing services and guidance required to meet the terms of this update.
In his current role as EMC technical and operations manager, EMC East, at TÜV Rheinland, Bruce Fagley is responsible for all technical matters of the company’s five North American EMC facilities and operations of three EMC laboratories in the east. Bruce began his EMC career 30 years ago as international compliance engineer, and his career at TÜV Rheinland spans 20 years. Bruce specializes in EMC project management for large complex industrial systems and fixed installations. He is the author of several articles on EMC matters and is also the EMC notified body representative for TUV Rheinland of North America. Look for his article on stricter EMC rules in accordance with the 4th Edition of IEC 60601-1-2, which aims for a secure healthcare environment, in an upcoming print edition of EE-Evaluation Engineering.
