Best practices in the field of specific risk evaluation of pyrotechnic entertainment articles subject to legal and illegal market surveillance

Bogdan Garaliu-Busoi,Claudia Miron,Dan Pintilie,Daniela Carmen Rus,Olga Miclea,G.A Găman

doi:10.1051/matecconf/202235400031

Abstract

The field of pyrotechnic articles is very popular and developed, and as a result, the influx of pyrotechnic articles on the market is abundant. However, it should be noted that in addition to compliant products, which meet the applicable essential safety requirements covered by Directive no. 2013/29 / EU, there are also products on the market that can present a significant level of danger when used, handled, transported or stored. Market surveillance authorities frequently find non-compliant products such as pyrotechnic articles offered to the public, some on the legal market, others traded illegally. The establishment of presumptive risks related to pyrotechnic articles can be achieved by applying documented and accredited procedures at national and European level by specialized laboratories, one of these being found within INSEMEX. Technical-scientific expertise activity aims to verify the level of security for products considered suspicious. We have an international collaboration with European authorities, and at the national level, requests for products such as pyrotechnic articles are sent for expertise by the police, the prosecutor’s office or the courts. It was found that most products considered “suspicious” had serious deficiencies that could lead to major risks, and those traded illegally lead to considerable economic losses.

Highlights

The field of pyrotechnic articles is very popular and developed, and as a result, the influx of pyrotechnic articles on the market is plentiful.The faults that can be identified in pyrotechnic articles may result from the manufacturing process and a superficial quality control at the manufacturer, or may be due to improper storage or handling
The establishment of presumptive risks related to pyrotechnic articles can be achieved by applying documented and accredited procedures at national and European level by specialized laboratories, one of these being found within INSEMEX [1]
The pyrotechnics sector has established an extensive online retail presence making it possible for EU consumers to purchase pyrotechnic articles from web-shops based physically across the internal market. This trend has given rise to an increasing number of reports received by the European Commission indicating that fireworks categorised as pyrotechnic articles were reaching the general public, the Pyrotechnic Articles Directive 2013/29/EU provides that these articles should only be sold to and used by professional users recognised as having specialist knowledge

Summary

Introduction

The field of pyrotechnic articles is very popular and developed, and as a result, the influx of pyrotechnic articles on the market is plentiful. The matter of market surveillance cooperation to address this issue seems to be challenging; for example, as mentioned already, requesting authorities in other countries to remove traders, or identifying the relevant official in the police service or similar relevant authority to commence building a case against an illicit trader have been noted as difficult [2]. For this process to be impartial, testing of pyrotechnic articles must be performed by accredited, third-party laboratories. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the risks presented by the placing on the market and use by unauthorized persons of pyrotechnic articles of suspicious origin

Visually identifiable nonconformities of pyrotechnic articles

Conclusions