UKCA

The UKCA Mark came into effect on 1st January 2021 as a result of "Brexit" and the separation of the UK from EU legislation. This will be mandatory on goods sold in the UK after 1st January 2023. The UKCA mark is similar to the CE Mark. The UKCA marking applies to most goods previously subject to the CE marking.

The technical requirements ('essential requirements') that must be met - and the conformity assessment processes and standards that can be used to demonstrate conformity - are largely the same as they were for the CE marking. The EU Directives applicable to CE marking are replaced with equivalent UK Statutory Instruments (UK S.I.) relevant to UKCA marking. Many of these still currently reference EU legislation, although over time, as the UK and EU legislation diverge, these will become more specific to the UK.

The relevant UK S.I., that are applicable to the alternator are:

  1. UK S.I. 2016/1101 The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations
  2. UK S.I. 2016/1091 The Electromagnetic Compatibility Regulations
  3. UK S.I. 2012/3032 The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations
  4. UK S.I. 2008/1597 The Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations

Like CE Marking, the rules for UKCA marking are the same, i.e., High Voltage and Medium Voltage (>1000VAC) alternators do not carry the UKCA Mark.

The UK Statutory Instruments clearly state that a Generating Set comprised of major components that are UKCA Marked does not entitle the manufacturer of the Generating Set to claim compliance of the complete equipment. The manufacturer of the Generating Set must conduct appropriate testing by an Approved Test House and have in place an appropriate Technical Construction File. In case of a partly completed alternator, which requires further engineering as a component part of equipment that forms a Generating Set, then relevant UK S.Is must be complied with. These are:

  • The Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations and declaration as far as the machine build will allow,
  • The Electromagnetic Compatibility Regulations and
  • The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations.

Just like CE Marking requirements, partly completed alternators do not carry the UKCA Mark.

The requirements included within The Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations have been duly considered by Cummins Generator Technologies using a Cummins Corporate procedure, which provides instructions and direction to enable a cross functional team of people to undertake a product risk assessment in a controlled and documented manner. This Cummins Procedure has been applied to duly consider the requirements of UK S.I. 2016/1101 The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations, UK S.I. 2016/1091 The Electromagnetic Compatibility Regulations and UK S.I. 2012/3032 The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Regulations.

A Declaration of Conformity or Declaration of Incorporation, as appropriate, covering both EU and UK requirements accompanies each alternator and is backed up by a Technical Construction File. Technical Construction Files are a requirement of the Machinery Directive and are a means of locating information to support compliance claims. The Technical Construction Files are only available to authorised market surveillance bodies.

Each Technical Construction File is not a single document, rather a collection of copyright confidential product specific documentary files consisting of maturing information, reflecting product development, changes and auditing milestones.