The European Commission published a set of guidelines for manufacturers to accelerate and increase the production of medical equipment and supplies to combat the COVID-19 epidemic on Monday 30 March.
More specifically, these guidelines (three documents in all) aim to speed up the production of masks and equipment known as personal protective equipment (PPE), hydroalcoholic gels, and 3D printing of medical equipment (e.g. protective masks) to combat the epidemic. The documents are also intended to help manufacturers and market monitoring authorities ensure that these products comply with European safety standards, the institution explains.
These documents will, the institution hopes, enable the proper implementation of the Commission’s conformity assessment recommendations for PPE and certain types of medical devices, published on 13 March (see EUROPE 12446/1). They also provide more information on standards for PPE and certain types of medical devices, which have been made available free of charge to all economic operators by the European standardisation bodies, thanks to an agreement concluded with the European Commission on 20 March this year (see EUROPE 12452/18).
Consult the documents on medical equipment (https://bit.ly/2w3D8Ka ), hydroalcoholic gels (https://bit.ly/2JvC0Sp ), and 3D printing (https://bit.ly/2vYuBYM ). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)