EN 1090 certification: CE marking for steel and aluminium structures

EN 1090 certification proves that a steel or aluminium fabricator controls its production well enough to supply load-bearing components with CE marking. It is a certificate for your factory production control (FPC), issued by a notified body. The basis is the European Bouwproductenverordening 305/2011 (Construction Products Regulation) , under which EN 1090-1 is a harmonised standard.

According to Bouwen met Staal (Dutch steel construction information platform) , NEN-EN 1090-1 has been legally mandatory since 1 July 2014. Without a certificate, you may not draw up a declaration of performance or apply CE marking. How demanding the requirements are depends on the execution class of your work and on your FPC system.

In short: EN 1090 does not certify one product, but your workshop. The notified body checks whether your factory production control works. After that, you draw up a declaration of performance for each delivery yourself and apply the CE marking.

EN 1090 in brief

Question	Answer
For whom?	Companies that make and place on the market load-bearing steel or aluminium components
Mandatory?	Yes, for CE marking of structural components under EN 1090-1
Which parts?	EN 1090-1 (conformity), EN 1090-2 (steel), EN 1090-3 (aluminium)
Who assesses?	A notified body under the Construction Products Regulation, system 2+
What is certified?	The factory production control (FPC), up to a certain execution class
Welding?	Via ISO 3834, part 2, 3 or 4 depending on the class
Result	FPC certificate, followed by your own declaration of performance and CE marking

Who needs EN 1090 certification?

A metal company that makes steel beams, columns or rafters for an industrial hall almost always falls under it. The same applies to an aluminium fabricator that supplies load-bearing frames. The test is: do you make a structural component that you place on the market as a construction product?

Not sure, for example with a fence or a non-load-bearing part? CEN (European Committee for Standardization) has published the technical report CEN/TR 17052, a guide to the scope of EN 1090-1. Always discuss borderline cases with your notified body in advance.

Everything about EN 1090 at a glance

Below you will find the pages arranged by question. Start with the execution classes if you want to know how demanding the process will be. Start with the costs if you need to prepare a budget.

Which class fits which work, with examples.

Execution classes EXC1 to EXC4

Part 2, 3 or 4 and the link with the execution class.

ISO 3834 for welding

An example procedure overview for your factory production control.

FPC system

What appears on the CE label and in the declaration of performance.

CE marking and DoP

Budget the process and plan the initial inspection.

Costs and timeline

A completed welding procedure specification as a template.

WPS example

What it states, its validity and the welder matrix.

Welder certificate ISO 9606-1

Checking the steel on arrival, step by step.

Material certificate 3.1

An ITP template with hold points and an example.

Inspection and test plan

From steel to component, with a record example.

Traceability and marking

The differences with steel and what the notified body wants to see.

EN 1090-3 aluminium

Accreditation, designation and the questions to ask for your quote.

Choosing a notified body

How long the certificate stays valid and how surveillance works.

Certificate validity

EN 1090 and the new Construction Products Regulation

The new Construction Products Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 entered into force on 7 January 2025 and applies largely from 8 January 2026. Harmonised standards that applied on 8 January 2026 remain usable under the old regime until they are replaced or withdrawn. For EN 1090-1, nothing changes for your certificate or your CE marking at this point. You can read more about the transition on the CE marking and DoP page.

EN 1090, ISO 9001 and VCA

EN 1090 is separate from ISO 9001 for construction. An existing ISO 9001 system is a good basis, because document control, purchasing and nonconformities are already arranged. If you work on building sites, clients often also ask for VCA (Dutch safety certification scheme for contractors).

Sources

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