SBS welcomes CEN and CENELEC’s recent decision to provide free download of standards which define the safety and quality requirements of medical devices and personal protective equipment used for the prevention of the contagion from Covid-19.

This initiative is a response to the severe shortages of personal protective equipment supplies Europe is facing since the outbreak of the coronavirus. The aim is to ease and accelerate the access to market of these products in view of increasing the European production of masks and respiratory devices. 

By providing free access to this series of standards, the aim is to allow SMEs to consider reconverting their manufacturing installations in order to meet the growing demand for this kind of products while meeting their essential technical requirements. Finally, this action should also support public authorities in their product procurement processes.

The standards are available from the websites of CEN national members: https://standards.cen.eu/dyn/www/f?p=CENWEB:5