Last edit: 10/08/2025
THE DOUBT:
Is it true that the machinery manufacturer has responsibility, for the safety of its product, only for 10 years, from the moment the machinery has been put into service?
CONSIDERATIONS:
We receive now and then that question from our customers. The misunderstanding is coming from the fact the machinery manufacturer has the obligation to keep the Technical File for 10 years.
[2006/42/EC] Annex II – Declarations – 2. CUSTODY
The manufacturer of machinery or his authorised representative shall keep the original EC declaration of conformity for a period of at least 10 years from the last date of manufacture of the machinery.
The manufacturer of partly completed machinery or his authorised representative shall keep the original declaration of incorporation for a period of at least 10 years from the last date of manufacture of the partly completed machinery.
The Machinery Regulation does not significantly change that language. It now includes distinct wording for Machinery and for Partly Completed Machinery. Below is the language for Machinery; the same wording appears in Article 11 for Partly Completed Machinery.
[(EU) 2023/1230] Article 10 – Obligations of manufacturers of machinery and related products
[…] 3. Manufacturers shall keep the technical documentation and the EU declaration of conformity at the disposal of the market surveillance authorities for at least 10 years after the machinery or the related product has been placed on the market or put into service. […].
However, despite the obligation for the documentation is up to 10 years, the Manufacturer’s responsibility is for the whole lifetime of the machinery or of the Partly Completed Machinery!
The limit of 10 years was established since, back in early 2000, most of the documentation was kept on paper. It was kept for the Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 as well.
CONCLUSIONS:
The manufacturer’s responsibility extends for the entire lifetime of the machinery, not just the first 10 years of use. However, over time, if the owner fails to follow the prescriptions stated in the Instructions for Use, the manufacturer will have increasing grounds to claim — or to justify — that a failure causing a hazardous situation was not their fault, but rather the result of inadequate maintenance of the machinery or the production line.