ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING I

Module 1.2 Course Notes

STANDARDS

Course Prepared by:

Electrowatt Engineering (UK) Ltd,
Electrowatt House, North St
Horsham,
West Sussex, UK
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CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 3

2. INTERNATIONAL STANDARDISATION 3

3. MEMBERSHIP 3

3.1 IEC (INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION) 4

3.2 OTHER INTERNATIONAL BODIES IN THE ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONIC FIELD 5

4. REGIONAL STANDARDIZATION 5

4.1 CEN (EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION). 5

4.2 CENELEC (EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR ELECTROTECHNICAL STANDARDISATION)

COMIT EUROPEN DE NORMALISATION ELECTROTECHNIQUE. 6
4.2.1 Harmonisation 6
4.2.2 Harmonisation Process 6
4.2.3 Use of CENELEC EN AND HD at national level 7

4.3 OTHER REGIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL STANDARDISATION BODIES. 8

5. NATIONAL STANDARDISATION 8

6. PRIVATE STANDARDISATION 9

APPENDIX 1 12

APPENDIX 2 STRUCTURE OF CENELEC 14

APPENDIX 3 EEC - TERMINOLOGY 15

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1. INTRODUCTION
To secure unambiguous communication of engineering information, reliability and safety of equipment,
interchangeability and mutual compatibility of equipment made by different manufacturers world-wide
and the elimination of unnecessary diversity of components used in the construction of equipment, a need
was felt for standardisation. The aims in the development of standardisation and related activities are to
facilitate international exchange of goods and services and to develop co-operation in the sphere of
intellectual, scientific, technological and economic activity. These standardisation activities take place:
internationally
regionally
nationally
privately/in industries or group of industries

2. INTERNATIONAL STANDARDISATION
The ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) founded in 1947 in London when it had been
decided that a new international organisation was needed whose object shall be to facilitate the
international co-ordination and unification of industrial standards.
The scope of ISO covers standardisation in all fields except electrical and electronic engineering
standards, which are the responsibility of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
ISO brings together the interests of producers, users (including consumers), governments and the
scientific community, in the preparation of International Standards.
ISO work is carried out through some 2,300 technical bodies. More than 20,000 experts from all parts of
the world participate each year in the ISO technical work which, to date, has resulted in the publication of
ISO standards.

3. MEMBERSHIP
A member body of ISO is the national body most representative of standardisation in its country. It
follows that only one such body for each country is accepted for membership of ISO. Member bodies are
entitled to participate and exercise full voting rights on any technical committee of ISO, are eligible for
Council membership and have seats in the General Assembly.
By January 1985, the number of member bodies was 75.
More than 70% of the ISO member bodies are governmental institutions or organisations incorporated by
public law. The remainder have close links with the public administration in their own countries.
A correspondent member is normally an organisation in a developing country which does not yet have its
own national standards body. Correspondent members do not take an active part in the technical work,
but are entitled to be kept fully informed about the work of interest to them. They may attend the General
Assembly as observers. Nearly all the present correspondent members are governmental institutions.
By January 1985, the number of correspondent members was 15.
A proposal to introduce a new field of technical activity into the working programme normally comes
from within ISO, e.g. a member body, but it may also originate from some other international
organisation. Since the resources are limited, priorities must be considered. Therefore, all new proposals
are submitted for consideration by the ISO member bodies. If accepted, either the new work will be
referred to the appropriate existing technical committee or a new committee will be established.
Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been authorised has the
right to be represented on that committee.
An International Standard is the result of an agreement between the member bodies of ISO.

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An International Standard may be used as such, or may be implemented through incorporation in national
standards of different countries.
A draft proposal must pass through a number of stages before it can be accepted as an International
Standard. This procedure is designed to ensure that the final result is acceptable to as many countries as
possible.
If 75% of the votes cast are in favour of the draft International Standard, it is sent to ISO Council for
acceptance as an International Standard. Normally the fundamental technical issues are resolved at
technical committee level; however, the member body and Council voting provide an important assurance
that no important objections have been overlooked.
The greater part of the work is done by correspondence, and meetings are convened only when
thoroughly justified. Each year some 10,000 working documents are circulated.
Most standards require periodic revision. Several factors combine to render a standard out of date:
technological evolution, new methods and materials, new quality and safety requirements. To take
account of these factors, ISO has established the general rule that all ISO standards should be reviewed at
not more than five-yearly intervals. On occasions it is necessary to revise a standard earlier.

3.1 IEC (INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION)

The IEC was founded in 1906. The IEC is the authority for world standards for electrical and electronic
engineering. Its standards are used as the basis for regional and/or national standards and are used in
preparing specification for international trade.
The IEC is composed of National Committees from 42 countries that comprise 80% of the worlds
population and consume, 95% of the worlds electrical energy. Each National Committee is expected to be
representative of all the major electrical and electronic interests in its country including manufacturers
and users of equipment, governments, public services, the engineering profession, research organisations
etc.
IEC world standards are prepared by more than 200 specialised committees by which all National
Committees have the right to be represented, and some 700 working Groups. IEC standards are adopted
and published by consensus of the National Committees.
Some 1,600 standards, comprising over 25,000 pages of technical specifications in English and in French,
have been published so far, spanning all aspects of electrical and electronic engineering. Over 2,000
projects for electrical standards are presently being discussed in committee and will ultimately be
published as future IEC world standards.
The task of drafting a new IEC standard is normally undertaken by one of the Technical Committees or
Sub-Committees, or a Working Group appointed by the Technical Committee or Sub-Committee.
Once a draft has been prepared, there is an established procedure for approval of the document to be
adopted as an international standard. This procedure is as follows:
General Committee agreement - The committee must satisfy itself, usually by putting the question at one
of its main meetings, that there is sufficient agreement within that committee regarding the content of the
draft.
Draft circulated under Six Months Rule - A carefully edited version of the draft in English and French,
is circulated to each of the 43 National Committees who then have six months in which to consult with
the appropriate electrotechnical interests in their countries and register a Yes or No vote with the IEC
Central Office.
Voting results sent to Committee - The IEC Central Office sends the full details of the votes, together
with any comments on the draft made by the National Committees, to the Chairman and Secretariat of the
Technical Committee responsible for the draft. The draft is considered Approved unless one-fifth or
more of the National Committees cast a No vote. If approved, it proceeds to the next stage.
Decision whether to publish - This decision is the responsibility of the Chairman and the Secretariat of
the drafting committee; even if the draft has been approved, they may decide to submit some

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modifications to a further vote in order to achieve an improved standard and so obtain a stronger
affirmative vote under the Two Months Procedure described below.
Report to National Committees - A voting report containing the votes and comments received together
with the conclusions of the Chairman and Secretariat, is circulated to all the National Committees.
If the decision is taken that, as a result of the comments received from the National Committees, some
relatively minor changes should be introduced to the draft standard: a Two Months Procedure is
available to enable the amended document to be approved more speedily. Under this procedure National
Committees may vote for either of the original or amended version and the majority determines which
version to adopt for publication.
On average, it takes some six years to produce a complete IEC standard from conception to publication.
The IEC has taken a number of steps to reduce delays in this process.

3.2 OTHER INTERNATIONAL BODIES IN THE ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONIC FIELD

Whilst the IEC concentrates on world electrical and electronic standardisation, it has close relations with
about 200 other international bodies. Electricity is applied in many non-electrotechnical fields, and liaison
is therefore required to avoid costly duplication of work.
The liaison between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the IEC is an excellent
example: both bodies develop rules or standards for the nuclear field. By agreement, both bodies examine
and discuss each others drafts before a finalised document is published.
As the IECs work also extends to the telecommunications field, close relations are kept with two of the
organs of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) - The International Telephone and
Telegraphic Consultative Committee (CCITT) and the International Radio Consultative Committee
(CCIR).
The International Commission for Conformity Certification of Electrical Equipment (formerly known as
the International Commission on Rules for the Approval of Electrical Equipment and variously
abbreviated to CEE, CEEel or CEE Arnhem) was primarily a European body comprising the national
electrotechnical committees of 22 countries, with Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, South Africa and the
USA as observer members.
Its main objective was to establish a scheme based on mutual recognition of test results as a basis for
certification at national level. The scheme was known as the CB scheme.
Up to now some 7000 CB test certificates have been issued within the CEE for categories of equipment
such as: lampholders, fence controllers, plugs and socket outlets, motor operated appliances, vacuum
cleaners, sewing machines, portable tools, luminaires, etc. It has now been integrated in the IEC under the
IEC System for Conformity Testing to Standards for Safety of Electrical Equipment (IECEE). The
integration of the CEE into the IEC was settled at the meeting of the IEC Council in Montreal in May
1985.
There are a number of other international organizations which produce standards, codes of practice or
rules for certain specific disciplines. One such example is the International Commission on Illumination
Commission Internationale de 1Eclairage (CIE), which is particularly concerned with the application of
lighting technology.
For international organisations concerned with electrotechnical and related standards see Appendix 1.

4. REGIONAL STANDARDIZATION

4.1 CEN (EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION).

Some 23 years ago the standardisation institutes of Western Europe formed the European Committee for
Standardisation which prevented the drifting apart of standards of the European Economic Community
(EEC) often referred to as the Common Market and of the European Free Trade Area (EFTA).

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The scope of CEN covers standardisation in all fields except electrical and electronic engineering
standards, with the aim to remove any differences of technical nature between national standards which
could give rise to trade barriers.

4.2 CENELEC (EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR ELECTROTECHNICAL STANDARDISATION)

COMIT EUROPEN DE NORMALISATION ELECTROTECHNIQUE.
CENELEC is an independent non-profit making association formed by the national standards-making
bodies of the EEC member states and the EFTA countries (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece,
Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, Austria, Finland, Norway,
Sweden, Switzerland).

4.2.1 Main Purpose of CENELEC

To remove, through mutual agreement between CENELEC member committees, any differences of
technical nature between their national standards or between national measures applied to certify
conformity which could give rise to trade barriers. CENELEC cooperates very closely with the
Commission of the EEC in selecting the areas of highest priority for removing technical barriers by
means of the CENELEC harmonisation process. The Commission makes use of CENELEC results in
connection with certain of its Directives designed to remove barriers to trade by the approximation of the
respective laws in the EEC Member States.
The Non-EEC members of CENELEC also follow these priorities in support of a wider European Market.

4.2.2 Harmonisation
The prevention or elimination of differences in the technical content of standards having the same scope
or purpose, particularly those differences that may cause hindrance to trade.
National standards are harmonised when equipment manufactured in one country in conformity with the
national standard of that country will also de facto conform, without modification, with the requirements
of the national standards of the other member countries; therefore it may be freely sold on the market of
any EEC member country.

4.2.3 Harmonisation Process

CENELEC bases its harmonisation work as far as possible on IEC results.
When CENELEC has selected an available international standard as the basic document, all National
Committees stop any national work on the same subject until a decision has been reached within
CENELEC on how to introduce this standard at national level. This is known as the standstill
agreement.
The international standard may be endorsed without any change made to its text, or may be modified as
found to be necessary in order to meet European market needs.
These modifications are prepared by a CENELEC technical committee and agreed by vote of all National
Committees. Thereafter they form part of the commonly agreed standard, which is given one of the
following CENELEC publications references:

European Standard (EN)

Harmonisation Document (HD )

The National Committees then have to take national action.
For approval of the final text of EN or HD the weighted vote procedure shall be applied. Only YES or
NO votes shall be admitted and all votes shall be unconditional. All negative votes shall be accompanied
by full justification.
National Committee Weighting

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France 10
Germany 10
Italy 10
United Kingdom 10
Belgium 5
Greece 5
Netherlands 5
Spain 5
Sweden 5
Switzerland 5
Austria 3
Denmark 3
Finland 3
Ireland 3
Norway 3
Portugal 3
Luxembourg 2
If the number of weighted negative votes is 15 or less, the proposal shall be adopted. Once adopted all
National Committees shall be bound by this decision. If total of weighted negative votes exceeds 15, the
votes of the NC of the EC member countries shall be counted separately. The proposal in question shall
be rejected if:
a) Three or more NC from EC member countries have cast negative votes
or
b) The total number of negative votes cast by the NC from the EC countries exceeds 15.

4.2.4 Use of CENELEC EN AND HD at national level

EN and HD are either endorsed or published as national standards. The first implementation requirement
at national level for either EN and HD is that its existence must be made known in all the member
countries. Then before the end of an agreed time limit all conflicting national standards must be either
withdrawn or amended in a way to align with the technical requirements of the new CENELEC
document.
EN is an agreed technical text, prepared in the three official languages of CENELEC, which carries with
it the obligation to be implemented at national level unaltered in presentation and content. Therefore, the
full text of an EN, officially published in English, French and German, must be published (or endorsed as
nationally valid) as a new national standard with no additional national amendments or requirements.
HD is a document approved by CENELEC, prepared in the three official languages, the technical content
of which has to be implemented at national level.
To implement an HD, the National Committees are free to choose whether to publish an identical text or a
technically equivalent text as national standard, or not to publish a new standard at all. This last option is
possible on the condition that all existing conflicting national requirements are withdrawn. If a national
standard is produced later on, it must be either identical or technically equivalent to the HD.
When National Committees are not able to adopt all the technical requirements of an HD straight away,
these difficulties are notified in advance and discussed by CENELEC.

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An extra transition period for implementation of HD may be granted to remove national differences. For
information purposes a full list of these differences is issued in a separate document.
For EN there is no allowance for national differences.
CENELEC works separately from but in close collaboration with CEN, which deals with non-
electrotechnical matters.
The highly specialised area of quality assessment for electronic experiments is dealt with entirely by the
CECC, the CENELEC Electronic Components Committee, which has its own General Secretariat.
For the structure of CENELEC see Appendix 2, for EEC terminology Appendix 3.

4.3 OTHER REGIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL STANDARDISATION BODIES.

1. Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden have formed the Nordic Electrotechnical Standards
Cooperation Committee (NOREK). It reviews the work of national organisation and formulates a
regional policy for presentation to the IEC. NOREKs main brief is to ensure that standards
prepared by IEC can be implemented in the Nordic countries with as few modifications or
deviations as possible.
2. In the socialist countries all member countries of the Council of Mutual Economic Assistance
(CMEA) participate in standardisation activities in the field of electrical engineering.
These countries are - Bulgaria, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, German Democratic Republic, Hungary,
Mongolia, Poland, Romania, Vietnam, USSR.
Yugoslavia has a special agreement on cooperation with CMEA. CMEA standards are compulsory
for the signatory states; they are applied in contractual and legal relations between CMEA countries
and in their national economies.
3. Pacific Regional Standardisation
The Pacific Area Standards Congress (PASC) is an organisation comprising representatives mainly
from, but not restricted to, countries bordering the Pacific Ocean.
Active members include: Australia, Canada, Peoples Republic of China, Hongkong, Indonesia,
Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, USA.
PASC is not a regional standards body nor a standards writing body, but endeavours to identify
areas where standards are required to assist the region, and also identify areas where harmonisation
of existing national standards would be of advantage.
The main task of PASC is to put forward to international standards organisations the concerns of
the region and ensure adequate support for the standardisation needs of the region.

5. NATIONAL STANDARDISATION
Most countries have their own national standardisation bodies to promote international and national
standardisation. In many countries different bodies are responsible for different fields. General standards,
electrical, chemical standards etc.

The national standardisation organisations form and participate in regional and/or international institutions.
Some national committees are:
SAA Standards Association of Australia
CSA Canadian Standards Association
AFNOR Association Franaise de Normalisation
UTE Union Technique de 1Electricit
DIN Deutsches Institut fr Normung

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VDE Verband Deutscher Elektrotechniker

DKE Deutsche Electrotechnische Kommission
CEI Comitato Electrotechnico Italiano
CNF Consiglio Nazionale delle Richercho
(implements by law the technical standards in Italy)
JISC Japanese Industrial Standards Committee
NNI Nederlands Normalizatie Instituut
NEC Nederlands Electrotechnisch Comit
SNV Schweizerischer Normen Vereinigung
SEV Schweizerischer Elektrotechnischer Verein
BSI British Standards Institution
BEC British Electrotechnical Committee
ANSI American National Standards Institute
NEMA National Electrical Manufacturers Associations
ASTM American Society for Testing and Materials
IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
ASME American Society of Mechanical Engineers
NFPA National Fire Protection Association

6. PRIVATE STANDARDISATION
Although a great number of international, regional and national standards are available, there is still a
need for industry and Shell Group standards for the following reasons:

1. International standards contain the technical requirements to which a (great) majority of

countries can agree. Many detailed requirements might be left out as no agreement can be
reached on their controversial nature e.g. conflicting with the interests of national industries or
practices.

2. Standards are often too general as they refer to all sorts of industrial or domestic activities in
general environmental conditions. In specific industries special situations might be of interest;
dust, explosion risks, vibration, extreme climatic conditions, continuity of supply, etc.

3. Some international or national working groups have a strong representation from scientific
bodies, testing stations, safety and health inspectorate organisations and manufacturers and
hardly, if any, users participation. To cover the practical and economic interests of the industrial
users, specific requirements or a selection out of a number of alternatives might be needed.

4. There are also situations where nationally or internationally insufficient interest exists to start
work on a new standard. However, a particular group of industries or sometimes one major
industry or company might feel the need to develop its own standard. Typical examples are:
Postal services, communication industries, electricity boards, the petrochemical industry etc.
e.g. API (American Petroleum Institute in USA), IP (Institute of Petroleum in UK).
Group standards
Shell policy with regard to standards can be summarised as follows:

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1. Preference is given to the use of existing well-known international or national standards (e.g.
IEC, BSI) or private (e.g. API, IP) codes or standards, where needed supplemented or amended
by Shell requirements.
2. Active cooperation in the committees responsible for the standards used in Shell (nationally and
internationally).
3. Covering further specific needs by the preparation of own standards.
a. Design and Engineering Practices (DEP) ( 190)
b. Standard Specifications ( 30)
c. Standard Drawings ( 1250)
DEPs standard specifications and standard drawings have a wider distribution than in the past.
Traditionally they are used for projects and supplied on a temporary basis to contractors and
manufacturers involved in the projects; they are also supplied to all Shell Operating Companies having a
service agreement with SIPM/SICM.
Shell currently are also involved in joint ventures where the management may be Shell or non-Shell and a
service agreement will not always be concluded with these companies; however, agreements may
sometimes be reached with such companies on a DEP supply service.
At present there are, apart from manufacturers and contractors, the following organisations which may be
interested in DEPs:
1. Group Companies (50% Shell) )
2. Joint Ventures ) with or without a
3. Companies with no Shell Participation ) service agreement
4. Government authorities )
All of the parties with a service agreement receive DEPs as part of this service.
If an organisation not having an SIPM service agreement wishes to use DEPs for its engineering
activities, it may acquire them under a special DEP supply service. Requests from non-Shell companies
for such a service are carefully considered and it must be in Shells long-term interest to enter into such
agreements.
Government authorities are interested in Shell DEPs because they ensure safe design and engineering of
process installations based on the wide experience of an oil company.
SIPM/SICM obviously have an obligation to the Operating Companies in respect of DEPs; this
obligation is moreover explicitly stated under the terms of a DEP supply contract. It is therefore essential
to have an active DEP policy particularly in view of the growing interest of Governments.
In the main, the policy is as follows:
1. A preference of using existing well-known national (e.g. BSI) or private (e.g. API) codes or
standards, supplemented and amended by a DEP with Shell requirements (example BS 5500
Pressure Vessels);
2. Active cooperation in the committees responsible for the standards used in Shell;
3. Keeping DEPs up-to-date (reviewing and, if necessary, revising DEPs after 5 years;
4. Covering still existing gaps by drafting new DEPs preferably as described under 1.
Although all four points need attention and follow-up, emphasis should be on point 3.
It should again be emphasised that due to obligations towards all users, keeping DEPs up-to-date should
be a continuous process, rather than an intermittent effort every 5 years or so. Only in this way can the
quality be maintained at uniformly acceptable levels and the effects of unavoidable interruptions due to
activities which command a higher priority, be minimised.

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It should be considered unacceptable by all responsible for the technical quality of DEPs that they would
become obsolete for lack of attention. Shell standards should reflect safe, modern, economic design and
engineering practices and must be complete.
Although in the contracts we disclaim all liability for loss, damage, injury, etc., resulting from the use of
DEPs, there are obviously considerable interests at stake.

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APPENDIX 1
International organisations concerned with electrotechnical and related standards

CEE (or CEEel)

International Commission for Conformity Certification of Electrical Equipment
(Commission internationale de certification de conformit de lEquipement Electrique)
310 Utrechtseweg, Arnhem, Netherlands

CIE
International Commission on Illumination
(Commission Internationale de lEclairage)
52 boulevard Malesherbes, F-75008 Paris, France

CIGRE
International Conference on Large-High-Voltage Electric Systems
(Conference Internationale des Grands Rsaux Electriques haut tension)
112 Boulevard Haussman, F-75008 Paris, France

CISPR
International Special Committee on Radio Interference
(Comit International Special des Perturbations Radiolectriques)
3, Rue de Varemb, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland

GATT
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
Centre William Rappard, Rue de Lausanne 154,
Geneva 21, Switzerland

IAEA
International Atomic Energy Agency
PO Box 590, A-1011 Wien, Austria

IEC
International Electrotechnical Commission
3, Rue de Varemb, CH-1211 Geneva 20,
Switzerland

ISO
International Organization for Standardization
Case Postale 56, CH-1211 Geneva 20,
Switzerland
ITU
International Telecommunication Union

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Place des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 20,

Switzerland

UNIPEDE
Internationale, Union of Producers and Distributors of Electrical Energy
(Union Internationale des Producteurs et Distributeurs dEnergie Electrique)
39 Avenue de Friedland, F-75008 Paris, France

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APPENDIX 2 STRUCTURE OF CENELEC

The General Assembly (AG) is the highest body in CENELEC. It comprises:
President
Vice-President
Treasurer
National Committee delegations (max. 5 per nation one of whom is the National Committees
Permanent Delegate to the BT)
The Technical Board (BT) controls all technical activities, including the selection of international
standards for consideration, setting up and monitoring the CENELEC Technical Committees (TC). The
Liaison Committee (LC) deals with matters specifically related to CENELECs cooperation with the
Commission of the EEC.
The General Secretariat (SG) is responsible for the secretariat of the above mentioned bodies.
The Administration Committee (CA) deals mainly with legal and financial matters in an advisory
capacity.
The General Assembly receives regular reports from BT, LC, CA and also from the CECC (Cenelec
Electronic Components Committee) and the MC (Marks Committee).
The BT is assisted for the different standards by SCs (Sub-Committees) or WGs (Working Groups).

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APPENDIX 3 EEC - TERMINOLOGY

EEC
The European Economic Committee of 10 states set up by the Treaty of Rome in 1957 with the task of
establishing a common market progressively approximating the economic policies of the member states to
promote a harmonious development of economic activities, a continuous and balanced expansion, an
increase in stability, an accelerated raising of the standard of living and closer relations between the states
belonging to it.
ECSC
European Coal and Steel Community founded by the Paris Treaty 1951.
Council of the EEC
Body formed by a representative of each EEC member country (normally foreign ministers), deciding on the
final policy on the basis of proposals from the Commission. Office of President held for 6 months in turn by
every member.
CEC
Commission of the European Community, the Communitys bureaucracy initiates legislation and ensures its
implementation.
CEN
Comit Europen de Normalisation, the European standards-making organization.
CENELEC
Comit Europen de Normalisation Electrotechnique, the European committee for electrotechnical
standardisation. This is not an EEC body but consists of the standards-making bodies of the 10 EEC member
states and those of seven other European countries (Austria, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland). Its objective is to produce harmonised standards acceptable to all, thus removing technical
barriers to trade. This harmonisation is based, as far as possible, on established IEC documents.
DECISION
A legal instrument binding in its entirety on those to whom it is addressed.
DIRECTIVE
A legal instrument binding on each member state to which it is addressed but leaving to national authorities
the choice and form of implementation. Two categories: total harmonisation and optional harmonisation.

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