Directives, standards, and European noise requirements

The intent of this article is to describe the impact of European noise standards currently under development on products that are destined for sale in Europe. The European Community (EC) is pur¬suing its program to build an integrated internal market with harmonized standards and regulations. This program has many implications for European product manufacturers as well as for industrial or¬ganizations that do business globally. The competitiveness of firms engaged in international trade may be affected by the EC program. Of particular interest are the harmonization of national and international standards, the implementation of the EC directives and the strengthening of European regional testing and certification requirements. These aspects of the EC program may affect access to Europe's internal market.