Technical Committee (TC) SAFETY Activity Report 2022

Chair: Brian Copsey, ASP

Responsible for ETSI deliverables dealing with electronic communications equipment safety; co-ordinating ETSI positions on electronic communications and systems safety requirements, and ensuring that work programmes within TC SAFETY are co-ordinated with other European and International Standards making bodies to avoid duplication of deliverables.

ETSI’s Safety committee (TC SAFETY) monitors developments in electromagnetic fields (EMF), electrical safety and safety in cable television systems, as these impact the interests of ETSI members.

The role of SAFETY is quite distinct from other ETSI Technical Committees. While it does not normally write standards, the primary role of the committee is as an information exchange, collecting information from other bodies including CENELEC, IEC, ITU and WHO, as well as the EC for any work on Directives related to Safety in order to provide information for ETSI members.

Accordingly, the committee has primary responsibility for ETSI deliverables dealing with electronic communications equipment safety as well as electronic communications installations safety. It also co-ordinates ETSI positions on electronic communications and systems safety requirements, while ensuring that work within TC SAFETY is co-ordinated with other European and International Standards organizations. This is in order to establish, wherever possible, globally applicable standards for telecommunications equipment safety and to avoid duplication of effort.

The committee’s continuing focus in 2022 has been in relation to implementation of changes in ITU documents and the Radio Equipment Directive (RED). Here TC SAFETY works with CENELEC – the body responsible for the development of Harmonised Standards for EMF in Europe – to revise current EMF standards in the light of changes brought about by the RED that will impact many ETSI groups.

During the year we continued to monitor work in CLC/TC106X, the group within CENELEC addressing various aspects of human exposure to electromagnetic fields at frequencies up to 300 GHz. We also continued our participation in the EC Low Voltage Directive (2014/35/EC) Working Party to distribute relevant EC notifications; and in the ITU-WHO groups dealing with Safety, distributing information when appropriate.