Managing Safety-Related Compliance of Machines in Global Market

Abstract

In global trade a machine manufacturer must localize their products for different customers and market areas and they need to manage large variety of product safety requirements, conformity declarations and product liability issues. The aim of this study is to determine 1) which kind of problems there are involved in managing product safety-related requirements of machines intended for use at work internationally and 2) how globally operating companies designing and manufacturing machines have managed this issue in global market. The study is based on literature review and interviews of representatives of two large internationally operating European companies manufacturing machines intended for use at work. The companies’ representatives experienced that the European integration has clarified the product safety requirements, but the actual practices may still vary between different member countries within the EU. The compliance with European product safety requirements were seen as a good basis for re-engineering the machines to the global market. The typical strategies to localize the products were 1) to meet the requirements locally in the front line, and 2) identify and take into account the local requirements and needs during the initial design and manufacturing of the machine.

Keywords: Product Safety, Requirements, Compliance Management, Global Market

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe100203