S.L. 427.23 Art. 32Designation of technical services.

(1) When the approval authority designates a technical service, the latter shall comply with the provisions of these regulations.

(2) The technical services shall carry out themselves or supervise the tests required for approval or inspections specified in these regulations or in a regulatory act listed in Schedule IV, except where alternative procedures are specifically permitted. They may not conduct tests or inspections for which they have not been duly designated.

(3) The technical services shall fall into one or more of the four following categories of activities, depending on their field of competence:

(a) category A, technical services which carry out in their own facilities the tests referred to in these regulations and in the regulatory acts listed in Schedule IV;

(b) category B, technical services which supervise the tests referred to in these regulations and in the regulatory acts listed in Schedule IV, performed in the manufacturer’s facilities or in the facilities of a third party;

(c) category C, technical services which assess and monitor on a regular basis the manufacturer’s procedures for controlling conformity of production;

(d) category D, technical services which supervise or perform tests or inspections in the framework of the surveillance of conformity of production.

(4) Technical services shall demonstrate appropriate skills, specific technical knowledge and proven experience in the specific fields covered by these regulations and the regulatory acts listed in Schedule IV. In addition, technical services shall comply with the standards listed in Appendix 1 to Schedule V which are relevant for the activities they carry out.

(5) An approval authority may act as a technical service for one or more of the activities referred to in sub-regulation (3).

(6) A manufacturer or a subcontracting party acting on his behalf may be designated as a technical service for category A activities with regard to the regulatory acts listed in Schedule XV.

(7) The entities referred to in sub-regulations (5) and (6) shall comply with the provisions of this regulation.

(8) Technical services of a third country, other than those designated in accordance with sub-regulation (6), may be notified for the purposes of regulation 34 only in the framework of a bilateral agreement between the Community and the third country in question.