Frequently asked questions about construction products

A product the sales of which is allowed in one EU Member State can be legally sold in all EU Member States, unless a separate national decision on limiting or restricting the entry of the product into the market has been made. Companies have the option of submitting a voluntary declaration of mutual recognition to the authorities of the Member States into which the company’s products are imported. With this declaration, the company can demonstrate that the product was placed on the market in compliance with the national regulations of another Member State.  

For more information on the mutual recognition of goods, see the website of the European Commission. 

Declaration of mutual recognition

The type approval of construction products is a voluntary construction product approval procedure used in Finland for products that are included in the scope of a type approval decree by the Ministry of the Environment. A type approval pursuant to the Act on the Type Approval of Certain Construction Products can only be granted by a type approval body approved by the Ministry of the Environment.

In accordance with the EU’s mutual recognition principle, products that have been legally placed on the market in one Member State must be allowed on the markets of all the Member States. Type approvals and certificates from other countries may be used in construction site verification of, in which case the building control authority decides whether the information is sufficient to demonstrate that a product meets the requirements of the construction works. 

Manufacturers must prepare safety information and instructions in a language or languages that the users can easily understand.

The Construction Products Regulation (CPR) does not include any requirements on the language of the CE marking.

The declaration of performance must be prepared in the language or languages of the Member State in which the product is made available. 
A list of languages required by the Member States 

A declaration of performance (DoP) is a document the manufacturer uses to provide information about the essential characteristics of the product in accordance with a harmonised European standard.

If there is a harmonised European standard or European Technical Assessment applicable to the product and the product has not been CE marked, you can report the product to the national market surveillance authority for construction products (Tukes). 

If there is no harmonised European standard or European Technical Assessment applicable to the product, its characteristics must be demonstrated according to the national Act on the Type Approval of Certain Construction Products. 

A construction product’s CE mark is not a safety or approval label.

Henhelpdesk.fi maintains a database including the harmonised European standards for construction products. The CE marking is mandatory for approximately 80% of construction products.

Harmonised European standard (hEN)is a standard developed by a European standardisation organisations (CEN/CENELEC)  for which is cited in the Official Journal of the European Union. It determines the properties required from the product, production quality control requirements and information to be declared in the CE marking.

Not all construction products can be CE-marked, nor is CE marking allowed for all products. The CE marking is mandatory if the product is included in the scope of harmonised European standard or if the manufacturer has obtained a voluntary CE marking for the product through the ETA procedure. 

A construction product is a product or kit that is manufactured and placed on the market for incorporation in a permanent manner in construction works or a part thereof and the characteristics of which have an effect on the essential technical requirements of the construction works. 

“Construction works” refers to buildings and civil engineering works.