The Non-automatic Weighing Instruments Regulations 2016

The Regulations define a non-automatic weighing instrument as ‘a measuring instrument serving to determine the mass of a body by using the action of gravity on that body’ and ‘requiring the intervention of an operator during weighing’.

As far as UKCA marking is concerned, the Regulation applies to instruments intended to be used for determining mass in the following situations: commercial transactions; for calculating tolls, tariffs, taxes, bonuses, penalties, remunerations or indemnities; for the application of laws or regulations or for an expert opinion given in court proceedings; in the practice of medicine for weighing patients for purposes of monitoring, diagnosing and medical treatment; for making up medicines on prescription in a pharmacy and determination of mass in analyses carried out in medical and pharmaceutical laboratories ; or for determining a price on the basis of mass for the purposes of direct sales to the public and the making-up of pre-packages.

Regulation 2016 No. 1152 on Non-Automatic Weighing Equipment specifies the essential requirements the product must meet in order for the manufacturer to affix the UKCA marking in Chapter I to the Regulations.

Before proceeding with the assessment procedure, it is important to determine whether you, the manufacturer, can assess your product by yourself or whether you have to involve a Approved Body.

In the case of non-automatic weighing equipment, the manufacturer can choose from different assessment procedures and for instruments intended for any of the uses must involve an Approved Body.

An Approved Body verifies the compliance of a product by conducting a conformity assessment. It also ensures that the technical documentation sufficiently supports product compliance. If the Approved Body is involved in the production control phase, its identification number will follow the UKCA marking.

When the Approved Body is convinced of a product’s compliance, it will issue a certificate of conformity to confirm this. The manufacturer will then draw up the Declaration of Conformity (DoC) to declare on his sole responsibility conformity to the relevant Regulations. The establishment of the DoC is a legal obligation.

The Declaration of Conformity must include the manufacturer’s details such as name and address, essential characteristics the product complies with, any designated standards and performance data and the identification number of the Approved Body as well as a legally binding signature on behalf of the organisation.

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