Article 14 of the EU Directive 2016/798 regulates the maintenance of vehicles used for rail traffic while Annex III of this Directive specifies the relevant criteria.
The Entity in Charge of Maintenance (ECM) has to use this standardized system to ensure that the vehicles the ECM is responsible for are in a safe operating state. The ECM has to make certain that the vehicles are serviced and maintained according to vehicle specific documentation and in conformity with the applicable requirements, including the rules for maintenance and the TSI (Technical Specifications for Interoperability). Furthermore, the maintenance measures necessary for the vehicles for which the ECM is responsible will have to be derived from the requirements by the ECM. Then the ECM carries out these measures autonomously or avails of the services provided by workshops that are ECM certified or whose conformity is certified. If such services are used, adequate agreements with the workshops have to be concluded. If there is certification according to ISO 9001 or an ECM Attestation for Freight Vehicles, synergies can be utilized.
Quality Austria has offered ECM Attestations of Conformity for Rail Vehicles since 2016 and is accredited as a Certification Body for ECM and named as an ECM Certification Body by ERA in ERADIS (European Railway Agency Database of Interoperability and Safety).
- Ensuring quality, transparency and demonstrability of regulated maintenance of rail vehicles
- Evidence of compliance with the relevant international requirements (European Union) and national requirements (e.g. railway laws, TSI,...)
- Safety in railway and rail traffic
- Companies operating in rail traffic, infrastructural operators and holders of rail vehicles, by whom the functions of Entities in Charge of Maintenance (ECM) are assumed
- Companies dealing with the maintenance of rail vehicles
- External providers (suppliers) of components for rail vehicles
Any entities in charge of the maintenance of rail vehicles can demonstrate that they have established this system and implement it in analogy to the requirements of Annex II of the EU Regulation 2019/779 and/or Annex III of the Directive 2016/798 and the ERA decisions ordained, in this respect, can endeavor to obtain a relevant ECM Attestation of Conformity.
After attestation has been applied for with Quality Austria in writing, it will be possible to obtain this attestation if compliance with the criteria has been demonstrated at the audit and inspection.
Companies that have obtained an ECM Attestation of Conformity act preventively in the sense of the corresponding adaptation of the EU Regulation 2019/779, which is intended for all vehicles by the responsible Commission.
Relevant preliminary work, including endeavors to obtain an ECM Attestation of Conformity and the successful completion of the annual Surveillance Audits, can be credited at the necessary certification.
Quality Austria bietet ECM Konformitätsbescheinigungen für die für Instandhaltung zuständige Stellen bzw. Instandhaltungsfunktionen für Schienenfahrzeuge gem. VO (EU) 2019/779 an und ist als Zertifizierungsstelle für ECM für alle Schienenfahrzeuge (Güterwagen, Lokomotiven, Triebzüge, Reisezugwagen, Hochgeschwindigkeitsfahrzeuge, Bau-/Instandhaltungsfahrzeuge, Sonstige) akkreditiert sowie bei der ERA (European Railway Agency) in der ERADIS Datenbank unter Certification Body angeführt.
ECM EU Regulation 2019/779 (regulation succeeding ECM EU Regulation 2011/445), SMS (Safety Management Systems) Railway Safety according to the EU Directive 2016/798 and/or the Railway Act in Austria, EU Regulation 2018/762, ISO 9001, IRIS (International Railway Industry Standard)