International use
There is a considerable interest in the use of EN Eurocodes outside EU/EFTA by countries:
- whose National Standards are based on European National Standards that will soon be withdrawn;
- who want to update their National Standards based on technically advanced codes;
- who are interested in trading with the European Union and EFTA Member States.
The EN Eurocodes may be used for the above purposes, because they are:
- a complete set of design standards that cover in a comprehensive manner all principal construction materials, all major fields of structural engineering and a wide range of types of structures and products;
- the most up-to-date codes of practice;
- flexible, offering the possibility for each country to adapt the Eurocodes to their specific conditions regarding climate, seismic risk, traditions, etc. through the Nationally Determined Parameters. Nationally Determined Parameters can also be adapted to the national approach and setup regarding risk and safety factors.
The use of common or technically aligned standards supports the exchange of goods and services by increasing interoperability at a global level and contributes to the international dimension of European standardisation.
Worldwide interest
The Joint Research Centre collects, assesses and disseminates up-to-date information on the international status of Eurocodes adoption in partnership with relevant Directorates-General of the European Commission, TAIEX , CEN , National Standardization Bodies and relevant contact points at national level. The JRC Europe Media Monitor (EMM) tool also facilitates the identification of news relevant to the Eurocodes. Information collected by the JRC includes expression of interest on the Eurocodes by third countries, planned and performed dissemination activities, needs and implementation progress in countries of interest.
The status of worldwide interest in the Eurocodes is visualised in the Eurocodes map. The Joint Research Centre has developed the map and updates it based on the information collected.
Click and pan to navigate the map. Country information appears at mouse hovering. With the side bar commands, you can centre back the map, display the colour captions, zoom in and out, view in full screen and print the map.
Dissemination of EN standards
CEN and its members own the copyright exploitation rights of all CEN deliverables. A clear distinction is made within the CEN rules between two types of use:
- adoption of ENs as National Standards of the country concerned (and the withdrawal of any other National Standards that conflict with them), or
- publication of the ENs without adoption.
CEN supports any actions aimed at disseminating the results of its work and encourages the adoption of European Standards as National Standards in countries outside the CEN area. All use of European Standards is subject to an agreement signed by CEN and the country that wishes to use the standards. CEN/CENELEC Guide 10 establishes the agreed policy for the distribution and sales of CEN/CENELEC publications. CEN/CENELEC Guide 12 describes the concept of affiliation with CEN and CENELEC and CEN/CENELEC Guide 13 presents the concept of a Companion Standardization Body. Lastly, CEN/CENELEC Guide 30 is a reference document on Standards and Regulation aimed primarily at public authority policy makers.
Contacts
National Standardisation Bodies interested in the Eurocodes should address CEN.
Gonçalo Ascensão
Account Manager Production
- Organisation
- CEN - European Committee for Standardization
- Postal address
- Avenue Marnix 17, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Nuno Pargana
CEN Programme Management
- Organisation
- CEN - European Committee for Standardization
National Authorities interested in the Eurocodes should contact the European Commission.
Manfred Fuchs
DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs Construction (DG GROW)
- Organisation
- European Commission
- Postal address
- Avenue d'Auderghem 45, 1040 Etterbeek, Belgium
World media and the Eurocodes
What the world media say about the Eurocodes and other European standards for the construction sector?
The Europe Media Monitor (EMM) is a news gathering engine developed by the JRC for real-time monitoring and analysis of online media, including conventional press and social media, world-wide in 60 languages. It updates the information every ten minutes and provides automatic translation. EMM produces a map showing the recent news articles on the Eurocodes and other standards for the construction sector. A summary of each article is presented with a link to the original location.
Eurocodes in your country
Do you wish to give us updated information on the status of Eurocodes interest/adoption in your country? Please contact us.
International dimension of European standardisation
The use of common or technically aligned standards supports the exchange of goods and services by increasing interoperability at global level.