With CE marking becoming a legal requirement on a lot of stone products from July this year (see: www.naturalstonespeci

alist.com), Stone Federation has passed on to its members a warning that not all CE marks are quite the same.

China seems to have come up with its own version of a CE mark that looks remarkably like the European CE mark but is, it says, supposed to indicate that the product is a Chinese export.

The European CE mark is not without its critics because it looks like a quality mark, such as the BSI Kite Mark, and seems to be regarded as such in many circles, but is no such thing. It is intended to indicate a manufacturer assurance that a product is fit for purpose, but does not indicate that the product has met certain test criteria. Tests might have to be carried out, but the results simply have to be presented. There are no pass or fail criteria.

A reseller of products that have to be marked (which includes stone cladding, flooring and tiles, but not worktops or fireplaces, for example) has a legal responsibility to ensure that the goods sold are legally marked.

The China Export mark is not a substitute for the European CE mark. It does not indicate that the product has been tested nor that it is fit for purpose. In fact, it does not indicate anything other than the country of origin is China.