European Standardization Research Articles

European prediction models for building acoustics

About 8 years ago work started in the European standardization organization (CEN) to create prediction models for several acoustic aspects in building: airborne sound transmission, impact sound transmission, facade sound transmission, facade sound radiation, and the noise caused by technical equipment. The main aim is to provide the link between the acoustic performance of products and elements, as measured by standardized laboratory measurement methods, and the performance in the realized buildings. So far the prediction models for the first four aspects are (almost) finished. The work on the part concerning equipment noise has yet to start, handicapped as it is by a lack of available knowledge in this area. The chosen approach for the models on airborne and impact sound transmission applies separate independent transmission paths between rooms, which can be shown to be a first-order estimation of a SEA approach. For these models a new quantity has been introduced to characterize the structure-borne sound transmission at junctions of building elements. Further work is focusing on the description of measurement methods to determine this quantity and on verification of the models in order to indicate more precisely their reliability in predicting the acoustic performance of buildings.

Strategic Standardization in Europe: A Public Choice Perspective

In October 1990, the EC Commission presented a Green Paper in which it outlined a New Approach to European standardization. In particular, standardization was interpreted as a means of furthering the completion of the Internal Market. This paper discusses the impact of the modifications to the process of standard setting, as they have been proposed by the Commission, with respect to the incentives and goals of the major players in the European standardization game, i.e., national and European standardization bodies, industry and the EC Commission. Selected economic models of standardization are applied to investigate the policy impact of the New Approach.

Timing recovery in high bit-rate transmission systems over copper pairs

This letter proposes a timing recovery scheme for transmission systems with baud-rate sampling allowing the use of an all digital phase-locked loop. The impact of the numerically controlled oscillator on the attainable signal-to-noise ratio and jitter under conditions of the European Telecommunications Standardization Institute (ETSI) HDSL standard is discussed.

The testing of disinfectants

Although all disinfectant tests have the same final purpose, namely measuring the antimicrobial activity of a chemical substance or preparation, a large number of testing methods has been described. They are subdivided into suspension tests, carrier and surface disinfection tests and other practice-mimicking tests. The suspension tests comprise qualitative and quantitative suspension tests, and, as derived tests, the determination of the phenol coefficient and capacity tests. There is an essential difference between a carrier test and a surface disinfectant test: in the former case the carrier is submerged in the disinfectant solution during the whole exposure time, whereas in the latter case the disinfectant is applied on the carrier for the application time and thereafter the carrier is drying during the exposure. The basic principle now widely accepted is that the antimicrobial efficiency of a disinfectant is examined at three stages of testing. The first stage concerns laboratory tests in which it is verified whether a chemical compound or a preparation possesses antimicrobial activity. For these preliminary screening tests, suspension tests are considered. In the second stage of tests, disinfection procedures and not disinfectants are examined. It is determined under which conditions and at which use-dilution for a given application the preparation is active: the tests simulate real-life situations; such tests are carrier tests for the disinfection of materials by submersion and surface disinfection tests. The last stage takes place in the field, and comprises the in-loco or in-situ tests with as variants the in-use tests, which examine whether, after a normal period of use, germs are still killed by the disinfectant solution. It is the task of the European and international standardization organisations to develop new standards and to elaborate tests, which predict the effectiveness of a preparation in practice under variable circumstances.

UMTS universal mobile telecommunications system: development of standards for the third generation

The standards for the universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) are being developed by the European Telecommunications Standardization Institute (ETSI), UMTS is a set of standards aimed at the global market. It will be a real third-generation global system for mobile communications, adding new features and introducing relevant technological innovations while evolving from both a global system for mobile communications (GSM) and integrated services digital networks (ISDNs), UMTS standardization is a market-driven process, and UMT standards are based on the carefully selected market requirements developed in close cooperation with the UMTS Forum and GSM Memorandum of Understanding Association (MoU), UMTS belongs to the IMT-2000 family and, while supporting existing services, will be capable of offering new and revolutionary services including multimedia and access to the Internet, offering a speed of 2 Mb/s for a single user at a radio-access network. This paper attempts to give an objective view of the UMTS standardization in Europe.

Method validation for mycotoxin determinations in food and feedstuffs

The development, evaluation and validation of analytical methods for the measurement of mycotoxins in food and feedstuffs is discussed, describing the different links between EC Standards, Measurements and Testing projects and the projects of its predecessors, the Bureau Communautaire de Référence and the Measurements and Testing Programme, the needs of the food and feed industry, EU regulations and the work of the European Standardisation Body in the area of mycotoxins. General information is given on different types of interlaboratory studies as well as on the purity, homogeneity and stability studies of mycotoxin calibrants. The preparation of interlaboratory test materials together with their link to certified reference materials (CRMs) is also explained. Finally, the different use of CRMs and the requirements of mycotoxin reference compounds certified for purity is illustrated.

Vergleich von zwei Verfahren zur Messung der Rißüberbrückung / Comparison of two different methods to determine the crack bridging capacity

Abstract Testing of coating systems for the surface protection of directly trafficable concrete areas is based on different national guidelines, e.g. ZTV-SIB and the guidelines for the protection and the repair of concrete structures (Rili-SIB of DAfStb) with the systems of class OS-F and OS 11 resp. One of the basic parameters to judge the durability is the testing of the crack bridging capacity in case of temperature and load dependent movements. In addition to the „mortar prism method", originally worked out by BAM and being referred to in the guidelines, different test methods, such as the „concrete slab method", are alternatively used in practice. This investigation aimed at the comparison of the different substrate sand testing principles. The tests revealed comparable results between crackbridging tests of coatings on cement mortar prisms and concrete slabs for the chosen testing parameters. The results will be taken into consideration in the elaboration of the European standardization for surface protection systems.

Quality of life analysis in patients with lower limb ischaemia: Suggestions for European standardisation

In this era of evidence-based medicine and limited resources we seem obliged, on clinical and economic grounds, to demonstrate that we improve not only patient survival but also the quality of patients' lives. This study aims to determine the impact of increasing lower limb ischaemia on quality of life (QOL) and which of three commonly used generic QOL instruments is the most valid, reliable, and responsive to change in patients with lower limb ischaemia. Two hundred and thirty-five patients, 144 men and 91 women, median age 68 years (range 41-87 years) were graded according to ISCVS suggested reporting standards, i.e. 16 mild, 116 moderate and 25 severe claudicants; 33 patients had rest pain and 45 tissue loss. Patients completed Short Form 36 (SF36), EuroQol (EQ-5D) and Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) questionnaires at interview. Additional copies of questionnaires were posted to 80 patients prior to attendance. Correlation between the two sets of responses reflects test-retest reliability. Correlation between domains measured by the three instruments reflects convergent and divergent validity. Kruskal Wallis ANOVA detected QOL changes across the whole group. Spearman Rank was used to analyse validity and reliability. Responsiveness was analysed using the Mann-Whitney U-test. Increasing lower limb ischaemia confers significant (p < 0.05) deterioration in: SF36 measured: physical functioning, physical role, pain, general health, vitality, social functioning and mental health. EQ-5D measured: mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain and anxiety/depression. NHP measured: energy, pain, emotional reaction, sleep, social isolation and physical mobility. All three instruments are significantly reliable (rs > 0.7). The validity of SF36 and NHP (rs = 0.68-0.78) is superior to EQ-5D (rs = 0.37-0.7). SF36 & NHP are equally responsive to changes in physical activity and pain. SF36 and EQ-5D are most responsive to changes in social activity. SF36 is most responsive to changes in psychological status. QOL deteriorates markedly with increasing lower limb ischaemia. The SF36 would appear to be the most appropriate generic QOL analysis tool for these patients. We recommend its widespread adoption throughout Europe, thus providing a standardised tool for reporting generic QOL.

Structural eurocodes

This article aims to give a general idea on a new kind of European technical documents which are been issued in the last decade of this century in the construction field. The article goes from the origin, initial program, further developments and the last evolution towards the European Standardization Committee CEN. It also deals with the future of this brand new European standards and with the problems arising when they are been adopted as standards with an special mention to Spain where they have to meet the national regulations in the same field.

European Standardization of XRPD Measurements

European Standardization of XRPD Measurements

Standardization of plant protection equipment in the EU: aspects of pollution control1

Within the European standardization process for agricultural machines, the standards dealing with pollution control aspects are the second important field of activity after the standards for safety. Even though there are for the time being no EU directives dealing with pollution control in the way that the Machine Directive (89/392) deals with the safety of agricultural machinery, the relevant standards under preparation will surely become important in a short time. The early start of European standardization in this field has led to harmonization of different national requirements, on the one hand, and makes it possible, on the other hand. that further European legislation can be reduced to essential guidelines. The basic work already done within the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is allowing the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) to make rapid progress in the European context.

A review of ISO and CEN standards on ergonomics

In recent years an increasing number of official ergonomic standards has become available world-wide. The International Standardization Organization (ISO) and the European standardization organization Comité Européen de Normalisation (CEN) have published 28 ergonomic standards, whereas 69 standards are in preparation. VDU-work, danger signals, and thermal stress are the best-covered areas, but also areas such as manual materials handling and mental workload are covered. The majority of the draft standards will be published within 2–3 years.

Consumer input in standardization: a case study of toy safety

Abstract Ever since the ‘new approach’ to the achievement of the Internal Market was adopted, the importance of European Standardization has increased. The standardization institutes are now responsible for the technical elaboration of requirements touching upon health and safety of consumers. Therefore, it is of major importance for consumer movements to have an input in the process. In this study, the consumer interest articulation in the ‘new approach’ policy-making process is looked into. The role consumer organizations play in both the pre-standardization and the actual standardization stage are dealt with. Toy safety is taken as a case-study, and the information for the research was mainly gathered from interviews with about 30 representatives of European and national consumer movements, government agencies and industry involved in this field The study shows that the influence of consumers in the pre-standardization stage, when a directive is drafted and a mandate negotiated between the European Commission and the standardization institutes, is limited As concerns the standardization stage, consumers have representation in technical committees and working groups of the European standardization institutes. The participation of European and national representatives is compared The main findings of this research are that consumer input in the actual standardization process is crucial, since their input in the pre-standardization phase is limited. In addition to this, the European and the national consumer representatives are not equally successful in assuring consumer input in this particular policy area. The causes for this difference are considered.

European standardization policy

European standardization policy

Characterisation of HEPA and ULPA filters by proposed new European test methods

The rapid development of microelectronic technology, with the increased storage density of today's VLSI circuitry, requires clean-rooms of class M1 (US Federal Standard 209E). In such clean-rooms the air needs to be approximately 350 times cleaner than in a ‘traditional’ class M3.5 (class 100 according to US Federal Standard 209D), and the filters should have penetrations and leaks up to 1000 times lower than usual. This situation raises several questions. Are existing standardised test methods capable of measuring the efficiency of and leaks from such filters? If not, what are the most important changes which have to be made to allow such filters to be fully characterised? How are such filters to be manufactured, and when manufactured, how can they be tested in large-scale production? The paper highlights some aspects of a new approach to filter testing, and takes into consideration the latest developments in European standardisation with regard to HEPA and ULPA filters.

European standards development in healthcare informatics: actual and future challenges.

This paper focuses on the current and future standardisation activities in CEN TC251 (European Standardisation Committee, Technical Committee on Medical Informatics). The progress of the Committee's standards development is summarized per working group. The main challenges of the next years are enumerated: coordination across working groups and project teams, quality management, and international harmonisation (especially with the USA).

German participation in European and international IT-standardization

DIN is the national standards body of Germany. It is organized as a registered association of public interest and supported by the interested parties. This ensures market-oriented standardization. Among the 100 DIN-committees, the committee “Information Processing Systems” (DIN-NI) is responsible for IT-standardization. Scope and internal structure of this committee correspond to those of ISO/IEC JTC 1, the Joint Technical Committee 1 ‘Information Technology’ of ISO and IEC. The paper gives an overview of DIN-NI activities and its relation to European and international standardization. More than 95% of the committee activities are devoted to international and European standardization. GMD is a key contributor to the work of DIN-NI.

Current evolution of the GSM systems

The central topic of the article is the past, present and future evolution of the technical aspects of the GSM system and its derivatives such as DCS 1800 and DCS 1900, as viewed from the European standardization bodies. An important part of the article outlines the current evolution, trying to identify the major trends that are likely to show where the future lies. While the past can be reported rather objectively, this is not the case for the present or the future. In a number of places, working assumptions are presented which are not fully stabilized; they may or may not represent the solution finally adopted by the engineers. The article reflects the state of the work as of summer 1995. Similarly, the stress on this evolving trend reflects the authors choice, as independent consultants.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>

Thermal Conductivity of Moist Masonry Materials

In the European standardization organization CEN, a working group has developed a standard describing the procedures to be used when determin ing the thermal conductivity of masonry materials such as brick, aerated concrete, etc. It applies to measurements using a guarded hot plate or a heat flow meter appara tus. This paper deals with those clauses of the standard related to measurements on moist materials and describes the background and considerations needed for the drafting of these clauses. Preparation and conditioning of the test specimens are described. The paper analyses the effect of moisture redistribution during the measurements and reviews different options for dealing with these effects. It is possible, for the materials considered, to restrict the errors caused by effects of moisture in the materials to less than about 5%-that is to the same order of magni tude as the errors of the guarded hot plate or heat flow meter apparatus itself when testing dry masonry materials.

Norwegian standardization effort on medical image interchange.

The Norwegian Computing Center is currently performing a project on standardization in the exchange of medical images and related data, with special emphasis on ultrasound images. The project is performed for Vingmed Sound, a Norwegian manufacturer of ultrasound scanning equipment, and much of the work is done in cooperation with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Trondheim. In the project, we work in close cooperation with the European Standardization Committee, CEN, and also with the DIGICARE (Digital Imaging in Cardiology) group of the European Society of Cardiology. The main aims of the project are to define, from the viewpoint of ultrasound imaging, the user requirements for medical image exchange standard, and to contribute to the development of such a standard.