IATF 16949: Understanding legal implications for the automotive industry
Standards and Legal Situation
In today’s blog, I would like to discuss the IATF 16949:2016 standard and its legal implications. This text aims to provide clarity so that a user or aspirant to IATF 16949 knows when to strictly adhere to certain requirements and understands their obligations.
IATF 16949: Legal Status and Mandatory Nature?
Standards are prevalent in technical fields such as construction, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering, as well as in nearly all areas of daily life, including workplaces, management processes, healthcare, environmental protection, and the service sector. A common debate revolves around whether standards are mandatory.
What about IATF 16949? To clarify upfront, compliance with IATF 16949 is not legally mandated; it is voluntary. There is no regulation directly requiring the implementation of this international standard, which specifies quality management system requirements for the automotive industry. However, as is often the case with regulatory discussions, there are some aspects to consider
EU Harmonization
What are harmonized standards? Harmonized standards are technical specifications developed or revised by European standardization organizations such as CEN (European Committee for Standardization). During the development of these standards, standardization organizations collaborate with various stakeholders, including industry, consumers, and authorities. Once the standards are finalized and adopted by the standardization organizations, they are published in the Official Journal of the European Union and are considered harmonized standards from that point onwards.
What is the point of the harmonization? Legal Certainty: The use of harmonized standards provides manufacturers and other economic operators with legal certainty regarding the fulfilment of legal requirements.
Harmonized standards play a central role in the European Single Market by facilitating compliance with EU directives, thereby promoting trade and competitiveness. They are an integral part of European law and are therefore also significant for all national legal systems within the European Union.
Dijaz Maric, Quality Management & Reliability Engineering Consultant
Do you want to learn more about the implementation of IATF 16949, or other standard in the Automotive sector? We provide remote support and training to enhance your functional safety related projects. Please contact us at info@lorit-consultancy.com for bespoke consultancy or join one of our upcoming online courses.
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