Transition Period British and European Standards

The United Kingdom left the European Union at the end of January and we are now in a transition period as our Government and Civil Servants attempt to come to a deal with Brussels. By December 2020 we will hopefully have come to an agreement with all parts of the EU machine and will have started making trade deals with other independent nations. Putting these matters aside, the concern of this latest Blog is to try and pick out what will happen to the BS EN standards after the transition period.

Transition Period Post Brexit

For several decades we have seen the old BS standards be replaced with BS EN, for example, BS 1740-1:1971 became BS EN 10241:2000 and BS 1387:1985 BS EN 10255:2004. Reading the latest bulletin on the subject from the British Standards Institute, the transition period could be extended to the end of 2021; although presently this is due to end in December 2020. I have emailed the BSI to ask the question about what we will see at the end of the current transition, and am awaiting a reply.

I suppose there are numerous possibilities, we could just revert to matching standards where BS EN simply becomes BS. The other possibility is that the BSI will become a completely stand-alone institute in the world of standards. As it was for so many decades after it was formed in 1901 as the Engineering Standards Committee, then the British Standards Associated in 1918; and finally in 1931 becoming the British Standards Institute, two years after it received a Royal Charter.

Presently though the  BSI sits on the CEN and CENLEC committees and is a member of the International Standards Organisation ISO and the International Electrotechnical Commission IEC. The history of British Standards set by the BSI are an integral part of our 20^th century history; and a reminder of our status as an industrial powerhouse across the globe. Whatever happens at the end of this transition period, cannot remove or diminish our place in the world.

Stay Informed

From our perspective as a business, we will keep our customers and the many visitors to our websites updated with information as change begins to take place. If the numbers and letters change on our standards, we will inform our customers and ensure we can provide the BS and EN certification where required. What is certain is the fact that whether the numbers and letters change, the quality of what we offer will not alter. The Kitemark is an emblem of quality across the world and will remain so now and in the future.

Where standards are concerned, there are businesses worldwide that will try and muddy the waters during this transition period. Only recently a well-known steel manufacturer has tried to claim that dual-certified pipe with an older standard is no longer suitable for hot systems. Even though this material has functioned on these same distribution systems for decades. Where there is any uncertainty, some businesses will attempt to take advantage of their ends.

Our recommendation is to consult a trusted ISO 9001:2015 registered distributor of valve and pipeline products and watch our website for updates as we get them. Whether the names and numbers change or not, the products we provide will always be to the latest standards; for more information, please contact our sales team or register for our Newsletter where updates will also appear.