Internal Market: Orgalim reaction - Commission Staff Working Document on the CPR Evaluation study

Orgalim welcomes the Commission Staff Working Document published on 24 October 2019, which analyses the implementation of Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products the ‘Construction Products Regulation’ or ‘CPR’. We feel that the Commission has precisely pinpointed many of the issues that need to be addressed and we agree that a small revision of the legislation may be necessary to secure the three specific objectives of the legislation as outlined in the Executive Summary of the Evaluation, namely: legal clarity, simplification and reinforcing the credibility of the harmonised system. However, we need to remember that the guiding principle of the CPR is to establish a single market for construction products. 

It is undeniable that a well-functioning Construction Product Regulation which ensures easy access to the internal market to both large and small manufactures from all the Member States is hugely beneficial to all market operators. The Single Market has been one of the European Union’s biggest achievements and Ms von der Leyen has pledged to continue improving it. However, there are still a few gaps in the project and it is evident that the internal market for the construction sector, which contributes to 9% of the GDP in the EU, could see improvement. 

To maintain their innovative and competitive potential, businesses need to rely on a clear and harmonised legal framework which defines common rules for all economic operators throughout the EU while maintaining regulatory stability and predictability. The CPR framework is not essentially bad, it works on many good assumptions. However, the evolving legal context has created an impasse particularly in the standardisation process. Orgalim is strongly committed to help solve this situation. 

To read our response in full, please download the position above.