The Technical Regulation of The Planning and Building Act (TEK) states that all properties of products used in a building/construction pertaining to its ability to satisfy the Regulations’ fundamental requirements, must be documented.
Such product documentation must be available before the product is sold and used in buildings/constructions. This documentation requirement applies to all building/construction products, prefabricated structures and structural components.
CE marking
CE marking satisfies the minimum requirements for documentation of product properties enabling the product to be put on the market. This means that the declared product properties encompassed by a CE marking, including the manufacturer’s production control, will be accepted in all EU and EFTA countries.
Before CE marking of a product can take place, the manufacturer must be able to confirm conformity either with a harmonised European product standard (hEN), or a European Technical Approval (ETA).
However, a CE-marked product does not necessarily satisfy the applicable requirements enabling use of the construction product in a building/construction project. One must therefore compare the declared properties with what is needed in each specific building/construction project.
Minimum requirements for use in a building/construction
TEK stipulates requirements over and above those necessary for CE marking for a number of building/construction products, PRODOK matrices have been developed that indicate the minimum documentation for a number of building/construction products. A SINTEF Technical Approval is a confirmation that the requirements in TEK and PRODOK matrices are satisfied for a building/construction product.
TEK stipulates requirements over and above those necessary for CE marking for a number of building/construction products, PRODOK matrices have been developed that indicate the minimum documentation for a number of building/construction products. A SINTEF Technical Approval is a confirmation that the requirements in TEK and PRODOK matrices are satisfied for a building/construction product.
In addition come conditions associated with the respective building/construction such as climate loads, structural loadings and building/construction techniques. These are conditions that can require special properties and performances for the building/construction product that must be documented.
Responsibility
There are several participants in the value chain that have differing responsibilities in relation to product documentation:
- The manufacturer of the building/construction material, or the importer of the construction product, is responsible for ensuring that product documentation is available when the construction product is put on the market.
- Dealers/distributors are obliged to seek and hold documentation.
- The responsible planners/designers for the building project must define the properties and performances that are to be satisfied in each individual case.
- Purchasers of the construction product must ensure that the product purchased has the properties that are presupposed during the planning process.
- Product documents are to be included in the building project documentation and may be subject to inspection and control by the building authorities.
For more information regarding product documentation requirements, see the Norwegian Building Authority's website.
