For over three quarters of a century, the British Pump Manufacturers’ Association (BPMA) has been serving the interests of UK and Irish suppliers of liquid pumps and pumping equipment.
BPMA mission throughout has been to influence the pump sector environment and aid the competitiveness of its 82 strong membership. Primary to this task is increasing sector awareness through the provision of technical support and independent pump technology training to manufacturers, distributors, operators and purchasers of pumping equipment.
Through its own membership of both Europump (European Association of Pump Manufacturers) and EURIS (European Union Relationship & Industrial Strategy), BPMA engages with a host of other trade bodies and organisations across the international electro-technical arena, on all the key issues and disciplines affecting standards, product certification and compliance, including of course the impact of Brexit on the UK’s pump sector.
The latest guidance issued to BPMA members deals with WEEE2 and the rules governing Sealant Systems for use in Double Mechanical Seals, as required by the Pressure Equipment Directive.
WEEE2 Directive 2012/19/EU information for the Pump Industry
This Directive is due to come into force on 15th August 2018 and whilst there is no known market surveillance in place, high penalties for non-compliance have been announced. For two years BPMA staff and a core group of its members have been working with Defra and the Environmental Agency to create a Position Paper specifically for pump manufacturers. This document has now been completed and circulated to the full BPMA membership. It contains definitions and comments which are the pump industry’s interpretation of the WEEE Directive 2012/19/EU and how it affects the removal and safe disposal of pumps and pump related equipment. The document contains links to other guidance material, which collectively provide all the information needed to fully understand the scope of responsibility. This includes details on both the ‘Producer’ and the ‘Package Producer’ and their respective responsibilities for collection.
BPMA Members (and for that matter, all other parties operating in the pump sector) will need to register with their local Environmental agency – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/weee-producer-compliance-scheme-apply-for-approval.
They will also need to register with an approved Compliance Scheme operator.
Health & Safety concerns over Mechanical Seal Sealant Systems
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has recently been in contact with the BPMA regarding a serious concern over the integrity and compliance of Sealant Systems that are used on Double Mechanical Seals.
As a subsequence, detailed information has now been sent to every BPMA member company. This highlights important issues regarding non-compliance due to no CE marking, non-adoption of the safety measures required under the Pressure Equipment Directive, as well as with the lack of design, manufacturing, traceability and conformity assessment by a Notified Body.
By distributing this material throughout its membership, the BPMA is ensuring its members are fully aware of the issues and concerns that the HSE has in relation to the conformity of these sealant systems.
BPMA Director, Steve Schofield, said of these two communications, “The BPMA takes its responsibilities in relation to international standards and product certification extremely seriously. It regards compliance in these matters as an integral part of its membership parameters, which in turn offers credence to its ‘Buy with Confidence’ ethos. As such, not only is it of great importance to keep our members fully abreast of all developments in this area, we feel it is also important to keep the wider ‘pump using’ market informed as to the work our members undertake to ensure they remain fully compliant. Buying pumps and pump related systems from a BPMA member should therefore provide all the required assurances.”
