CE certification via Smander is a very novel concept, naturally there will be some questions.
We have collected some frequently asked questions and answers here.
If you still have questions feel free to ask them on our dedicated smander discord forum
Can I do CE certification fully on my own?
Yes, Indeed you could do everything required for a CE compliant product on your very own ,with the exception of a few safety critical product categories.
In Theory.
Most people just think of laboratory tests for electronics, but CE conformity is a much broader process that envelops a lot more factors.
In practice you will need to overcome a few hurdles, which will require extensive knowledge of the process, directives and regulations as well as a lot of time for research and paperwork.
After all you will need to be sure you did apply the right rules to your product and followed the correct procedure to assess compliance, which is the actual hardest part.
Therefore big corporations either employ there own specially trained personell commonly known as CE product coordinators and compliance officers, or hire external consultants with the same credentials.
Many of these consultants specialize in specific product categories and focus on a specific type of clients.
The various EU directives and regulations regarding product safety can be a nightmare to navigate, especially when you are just starting your business.
While you can, in theory achieve full CE compliance on your own, you will usually face some serious roadblocks in the process.
Having an expert on your side that actually understands the intricacies of maker products and small business needs, is crucial to safely bring your product to market.
How expensive is CE certification?
This depends entirely on your product, so there is usually no cookie cutter price named.
Most Services offer a CE Assessment (which commonly includes, Product analysis, Risk analysis and regulatory reasearch) at a starting price of around € 5000,- for typical consumer products .
Which is quite reasonable given that specially trained people will analyse your product in every minute detail and spend sometimes weeks researching applicable regulations and the right procedure.
Often laboratory tests are needed to apply harmonized standards as test procedures to your product, which can be very costly.
Especially if your product might fail these laboratory tests the financial risk can be quite big, so it is always advisable to invest in a pre-compliance check, to make sure you will pass on the first try.
The internal and external documentation then has to be written in a compliant format which also includes the User manual and the CE declaraton of conformity.
These are usually done by specialized technical writers and can have variying prices depending on the amount of paperwork needed for your product.
Smander offers these services on demand focussed on small and medium sized businesses, with our own certified CE product coordinators, and also offers a more cost effective solution for Makers and small businesses called GetSmandered.
I have not started a company yet. Can I get a CE Assessment as a private person?
With Smander, yes you can.
Usually these types of services are only offered B2B, but we know that many of you have not taken the big step of founding a company yet.
You can book all our services, just as any business would, depending on your place of residency VAT might be added to the invoice.
When your product is ready to hit the market you will need to change the documents to reflect the new company name, address etc. which you can do yourself or order a new set of documents from Smander (a processing fee may apply).
How is GetSmandered different?
We harness the power of the maker community and our own certified CE product coordinators to provide you with an affordable and safe way, to achieve CE compliance, and make informed decissions for your journey as a manufacturer.
So you can focus on what you actually set out to do:
Design great products!
By focussing exactly on the range of products makers typically produce and a group based streamlined assessment process, we can effectivelly cut down overhead costs.
Our in house expertise in exactly these product categories enables a lot of people to even get a professional CE-Product-Assessment in the first place.
Once GetSmandered launches you can apply on our website until a set cutoff date.
Your product just has to fit within some boundaries we set for each round of GETsmandered. (These will get wider as our service grows)
The more products get certified each round the more we can share the overhead, which decreases the price for everyone.
You only need to provide your Company/Personal Information and answer a few questions about your product to apply.
There is no application fee for now.
If you are in doubt if your product is eligible, apply anyways.
The achievable priece range will already be visible when we launch our first round of GETsmandered.
Alerting your friends to the opportunity will be very appreciated as we all benefit from more people putting in applications and choosing to certify their product with us.
Shortly after the cutoff date we will contact all applicants.
If you product is eligible for this round of Getsmandered you will receive detailed info about pricing and the further process.
You will have to send in your product for the assessment and risk analysis to our HQ as well as provide additional information about your product via a questionaire and upload forms.
Our experts will then conduct a product analysis, risk assessment, and regulatory research to determine which directives and regulations apply to your product and what you need to do to fullfill these requirements.
After all the products have been analysed we send out the reports in short, concise, human understandable form, instead of the usual thick binder full of unintelligeable legal lingo.
A TODO-Sheet will tell you exactly what directives and regulation apply to your product and how to get the needed test reports /documents to proof compliancy.
Be it either by performing the tests yourself, hiring a laboratory, or just gathering some supplier data. It all depends exactly on your product and is no longer a mystery.
We are working on partnering with providers for lab testing and translation services, to be able to offer you a turnkey solution at some point.
We also hope to soon be able to provide very affordable Pre-compliance checks for electronic products ourselves to protect you from costly failed lab tests.
Once all the TODOs are done and you have uploaded the corresponding data, you will get the final set of documents, which are the internal and external CE documentation as well as the deklaration of conformity which you as the manufacturer have to proudly sign.
All left to do, is to launch your product onto the european market and celebrate!
What does GetSmandered cost?
The cost for GetSmandered is determined by the number of eligble applicants. We set a guaranteed maximum base fee at the begin of the application period, and can hopefully lower it if enough people join in.
Our goal is to achieve an affordable price while providing the ideal service for our target clients (that’s you).
What is included in GetSmandered?
The base fee includes:
Product Analysis
– formal documentation of all CE relevant aspects of your product
Risk Assessment
– Documentation,Analysis and Assessment of Risk factors and needed measures to medigate these risks to achieve compliance
– Documentation of residual risks and resulting consequences for your User information and documentation
Regulatory Research
– Determining the applicable directives and regulations for your product
– exemplary list of applicable harmonized standards that can be used to provide evidence of compliancy
The TODO sheet
– An easy to understand step by step guide specific to your product
– description of the procedure you need to follow
– Data you need to provide (datasheets, schematics etc.)
– Special notes depending on your product (red flags, edge cases)
– List of needed laboratory tests if applicable
We hope to soon add:
– offers for pre-compliance checks, laboratory testing and translation services if applicable
– offer for printed and bound copy of the final documents for your archive
Once all mandatory items on the TODO sheet are cleared, Smander bundles up the provided data to build up your internal and external documentation.
This concludes in the CE declaration of conformity which will also be provided in a compliant format by Smander and has to be personally signed by the manufacturer (that’s you!).
Who does the CE Assessment at Smander?
Our services are provided by certified CE product coordinators who utilize our own dedicated database system to streamline the process.
These are supported by technical writing Staff and automated data processing systems.
Do I need to send you my product for the CE Assessment?
Yes, we will need at least one copy of your product in exactly the way it will be put on the market. We might request more than one sample in case it is needed for the assessment ( f.e. products that work in groups, sender and receiver pairs etc. )
Our facility is in Austria in the heart of the european union.
If you are shipping from outside the EU you will need to make a formal and correct customs deklaration to avoid additional fees.
(https://www.wko.at/aussenwirtschaft/zollbefreiungsverordnung)
You might also need additional units for laboratory testing , be aware that some tests might be destructive in nature.
For electronics products we recommend to get the pcbs professionally assembled as Assembly consistency is a factor in the Risk Analysis.
We can connect you to a suitable service for this task.
Can I get the sample Back afterwards?
Yes, you can get it back. A shipping fee will apply
We recommend combining the return request with an order of a bound printed Issue of the CE Assessment as this fullfills your obligation of keeping a hard copy of the documents in your archive.
What is UKCA? Do I need it?
You will find infos about the UKCA mark here:
My product only exists on paper/ in data at the moment. Is there an option to get Started from this early Stage?
Yes, we are currently working on a specialized service for this case.
We call it : „Simple Start“
It is always benefitial to talk to an expert during the design phase.
if you design your product with compliance in mind, you can avoid costly late stage changes.
I don´t know if my product fits Getsmandered, should I apply anyway?
Yes.
If you are unsure apply anyway. We currently have no application fees.
Worst case you either need to wait for a new round of GetSmandered with a broader scope of products or use the regular Smander services.
For the rare case your product does not fit either options we try to help find a service that fits your needs.
You also have the option to get a preliminary assessment and guidance with „Simple Start“
Do you provide guidance on how to develop a compliant product?
While we do not offer any engineering services, we do share ressources and helpful content on our discord .
We also collect information and link posts about regulatory changes and offer a plattform to discuss these topics.
We soon offer video call sessions for individual booking , to answer specific questions privately.
Is GetSmandered only for open source products?
No, GetSmandered is in principle available for open source and proprietary products.
Open source products have the advantage of easier compliance with technical documentation requirements and we highly encourage the development of open source hard- and software.
We will however offer some services only for open source hardware and restrict some rounds of GetSmandered to Open source products to allow for cost savings in data processing and storage.
Do I need to do something after my Product is CE certified?
Yes, every manufacturer has obligations before, during and after the product is available on the market.
These include among others observing the market, keeping track of incidents, providing documents on request to customers and authorities as well as keeping a hard copy of all the documents in your archive for at least 10 years after the last unit has been put on the market.
Smander can provide you with a convenient bound and printed hard copy for your archive.
Do all products need to have CE certification?
No.
If your product falls under one or more directives or regulations that mandate CE is determined during the CE-Assessment.
If you are unsure if CE even applies to your product, this should be your first indication that Smander is the right service for you.
In this case „Simple Start“ will likely be the ideal option for you.
Is CE only valid for EU member states?
No, apart form the EU member states some other nations also accept CE as valid form of product compliance. For the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales & northern Ireland) checkout our UKCA page:
Do you also offer services for american regulation (FCC etc.)?
No, we are currently focussing on EU regulation.
Having a CE compliant product is a very good starting point for achieving compliance in the united states but the regulatory systems are neither intertwined nor can replace conducting the required steps of the other system.
In some cases you can order laboratory tests for both certification systems at once at the same laboratory which could potentially save money in the testing stage.
What if I just put a CE mark on my product without going through the process and having the documents ready?
This would get you into serious trouble.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32008R0765
Marking products with CE that are not eligible to bear the symbol is a serious violation.
This also applies when the product does not fall into a category that needs CE certification.
The directives and regulations excist to protect consumers and producers.
How can I get in contact with you?
you can join our discord
or write us an email
we also have a twitter/X/whatever its called today account
And if you want to get notified about major news and services you can also register for our Newsletter.
If you meet one of us at an event, we are always happy to chat.
