Declarations on construction products soon to be mandatory

Each construction product made in Serbia will have to have a clear declaration and a mark of being produced in line with international and local standards, as per the new Draft Law on Construction Products, currently being processed at the National Assembly.

A total of 1,200 different construction products made in Serbia, such as doors and windows, construction blocks and water pipes, will thereby feature clear declarations, which hasn't been the case so far.

Since local legislation is not harmonized with that of the EU in this field, the Serbian construction industry and the operations of certification bodies in this filed have not been competitive in the market of the European Union for years now.

– Local business entities that have already adapted their operations to fit the EU legal framework and are already operating in the market, have additional costs, as they have to harmonize their products with the Serbian legislation, which is largely obsolete compared to the European one – says the explanation.

The importance of this type of law for the industry of any country is perhaps best illustrated by the fact that, after harmonizing its legal framework with the EU standards, Slovenia increased the number of companies producing concrete and concrete products by 7% from 2002 till 2006.

The revenues from the sale of products made by Slovenian companies in the EU territory jumped by 80% in the said period, and the number of companies in the field of construction increased by 25%.

The new law will regulate the terms of the marketing of construction products and the preparation of the declaration of performances, putting the mark of harmonization on construction products, as well as the company's obligations during the production, the sale, the distribution...

The rules will apply to producers, importers and distributors of construction products, labs, certification bodies, design engineers, contractors, professional supervisors, but also state organs and investors.

Each construction product made available in the market will have to feature a declaration of performances in a written or an electronic form.

Also, the material will have to feature a Serbian “mark of harmonization”, which, as said in the draft law, needs to be visible, readable and non-erasable.

Inspectors will be authorized to destroy all products that don't have the quality and safety declaration. Companies which sell construction materials without a declaration stand to be fined 100,000 to 2 million dinars, and the law also defines other penalties for non-conscientious producers, traders and agencies in charge of testing the quality of the materials.

One of the main reasons for adopting this law is to meet the obligation of harmonizing the Serbian legislation with the EU legal framework under the negotiation Chapter 1 – Free Movement of Goods.

In addition to numerous other reform procedures, Serbia's road to the EU entails the preparation for the terms and the requirements of the competitive single European market, which is why the establishment of a national system of the infrastructure of the quality of construction products has several goals.

Among other things, it is a requirement for a free movement of goods and the removal of technical barriers in trade, consumer protection, access to international markets and access to the internal EU market of around 500 million consumers.

Law on Construction Products

construction product declaration

construction product performance declaration

construction products

control of quality of construction products