Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/1781 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for electric motors and variable speed drives pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, amending Regulation (EC) No 641/2009 with regard to ecodesign requirements for glandless standalone circulators and glandless circulators integrated in products and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 640/2009 (Text with EEA relevance)

This Regulation establishes ecodesign requirements for the placing on the market or the putting into service of electric motors and variable speed drives, including where they are integrated in other products.

(1) This Regulation applies to the following products: (a) induction electric motors without brushes, commutators, slip rings or electrical connections to the rotor, rated for operation on a 50 Hz, 60 Hz or 50/60 Hz sinusoidal voltage, that: (i) have two, four, six or eight poles; (ii) have a rated voltage UN above 50 V and up to and including 1000 V; (iii) have a rated power output PN from 0,12 kW up to and including 1000 kW; (iv) are rated on the basis of continuous duty operation; and (v) are rated for direct on-line operation; (b) variable speed drives with 3 phases input that: (i) are rated for operating with one motor refered to in point (a), within the 0,12 kW-1 000 kW motor rated output range; (ii) have a rated voltage above 100 V and up to and including 1000 V AC; (iii) have only one AC voltage output. (2) The requirements in section 1, and points (1), (2), (5) to (11), and (13) of section 2 of Annex I shall not apply to the following motors: (a) motors completely integrated into a product (for example into a gear, pump, fan or compressor) and whose energy performance cannot be tested independently from the product, even with the provision of a temporary end-shield and drive-end bearing; the motor must share common components (apart from connectors such as bolts) with the driven unit (for example, a shaft or housing) and shall not be designed in such a way that the motor can be separated in its entirety from the driven unit and operate independently. The process of separation shall have the consequence of rendering the motor inoperative; (b) motors with an integrated variable speed drive (compact drives) whose energy performance cannot be tested independently from the variable speed drive; (c) motors with an integrated brake which forms an integral part of the inner motor construction and can neither be removed nor powered by a separate power source during the testing of the motor efficiency; (d) motors specifically designed and specified to operate exclusively: (i) at altitudes exceeding 4000 metres above sea-level; (ii) where ambient air temperatures exceed 60 °C; (iii) in maximum operating temperature above 400 °C; (iv) where ambient air temperatures are less than – 30 °C; or (v) where the water coolant temperature at the inlet to a product is below 0 °C or above 32 °C; (e) motors specifically designed and specified to operate wholly immersed in a liquid; (f) motors specifically qualified for the safety of nuclear installations, as defined in Article 3 of Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom ; (g) explosion-protected motors specifically designed and certified for mining, as defined in Annex I, point 1 of Directive 2014/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council ; (h) motors in cordless or battery-operated equipment; (i) motors in hand-held equipment whose weight is supported by hand during operation; (j) motors in hand-guided mobile equipment moved while in operation; (k) motors with mechanical commutators; (l) Totally Enclosed Non-Ventilated (TENV) motors; (m) motors placed on the market before 1 July 2029 as substitutes for identical motors integrated in products placed on the market before 1 July 2022, and specifically marketed as such; (n) multi-speed motors, i.e. motors with multiple windings or with a switchable winding, providing a different number of poles and speeds; (o) motors designed specifically for the traction of electric vehicles. (3) The requirements in section 3, and points (1), (2), and (5) to (10) of section 4 of Annex I shall not apply to the following VSDs: (a) VSDs integrated into a product and whose energy performance cannot be tested independently from the product, that is to say that an attempt to do so would render the VSD or the product inoperative; (b) VSDs qualified specifically for the safety of nuclear installations, as defined Article 3 of Directive 2009/71/Euratom; (c) regenerative drives; (d) drives with sinusoidal input current.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply: (1) ‘electric motor’ or ‘motor’ means a device that converts electrical input power into mechanical output power in the form of a rotation with a rotational speed and torque that depends on factors including the frequency of the supply voltage and number of poles of the motor; (2) ‘variable speed drive’ (VSD) means an electronic power converter that continuously adapts the electrical power supplied to a single motor to control the motor’s mechanical power output according to the torque-speed characteristic of the load driven by the motor, by adjusting the power supply to a variable frequency and voltage supplied to the motor. It includes all electronics connected between the mains and the motor including extensions such as protection devices, transformers and auxiliaries; (3) ‘energy efficiency’ of a motor means the ratio of its mechanical output power to the electrical active input power; (4) ‘pole’ means a north or a south pole produced by the rotating magnetic field of the motor, whose total number of poles determines its base speed; (5) ‘continuous duty operation’ means capable of continuous operation at rated power with a temperature rise within the specified insulation temperature class, specified as specific duty types S1, S3 >=80 % or S6 >=80 % as defined in standards; (6) ‘phase’ means the type of configuration of the mains; (7) ‘mains’ or ‘electric mains’ means the electricity supply from the grid; (8) ‘motor with mechanical commutators’ means a motor in which a mechanical device reverses the direction of the current; (9) ‘cordless or battery operated equipment’ means an appliance deriving its energy from batteries enabling the appliance to perform its intended function without a supply connection; (10) ‘hand-held equipment’ means a portable appliance intended to be held in the hand during normal use; (11) ‘hand-guided equipment’ means a non-road mobile appliance that is moved and guided by the user during normal use; (12) ‘totally enclosed non-ventilated (TENV) motor’ means a motor designed and specified to operate without a fan, and which dissipates heat predominantly through natural ventilation or radiation on the totally enclosed motor surface; (13) ‘regenerative drive’ means a VSD that is able to regenerate energy from the load to the mains, i.e. that induces a 180° +/- 20° phase shift of the input current to the input voltage when the load motor is braking; (14) ‘drive with sinusoidal input current’ means a VSD with a sinusoidal waveform of the input current, characterised by a Total Harmonic Content below 10 %; (15) ‘brake motor’ means a motor equipped with an electromechanical brake unit operating directly on the motor shaft without couplings; (16) ‘Ex eb increased safety motor’ means a motor intended for use in explosive atmospheres and certified ‘Ex eb’, as defined in standards; (17) ‘other explosion-protected motor’ means a motor intended for use in explosive atmospheres and certified ‘Ex ec’, ‘Ex tb’, ‘Ex tc’, ‘Ex db’, or ‘Ex dc’ as defined in standards; (18) ‘test load’ of a VSD means the electrical device used for testing purposes that determines the output current and the output displacement factor cos phi; (19) ‘equivalent model’ means a model which has the same technical characteristics relevant for the technical information to be provided, but which is placed on the market or put into service by the same manufacturer, importer or authorised representative as another model with a different model identifier; (20) ‘model identifier’ means the code, usually alphanumeric, which distinguishes a specific product model from other models with the same trade mark or the same manufacturer’s, importer’s or authorised representative’s name; (21) ‘witnessed testing’ means actively observing the physical testing of the product under investigation by another party, to draw conclusions on the validity of the test and the test results. This may include conclusions on the compliance of testing and calculations methods used with applicable standards and legislation; (22) ‘factory acceptance test’ means a test on an ordered product where the customer uses witnessed testing to verify the product’s full accordance with contractual requirements, before they are accepted or put into service.

The ecodesign requirements set out in Annex I shall apply from the dates indicated therein.

1 The conformity assessment procedure referred to in Article 8 of Directive 2009/125/EC shall be the internal design control system set out in Annex IV of that Directive or the management system set out in Annex V of that Directive.

2 For the purposes of the conformity assessment pursuant to Article 8 of Directive 2009/125/EC, the technical documentation of motors shall contain a copy of the product information provided in accordance with point 2 of Annex I to this Regulation, and the details and results of calculations set out in Annex II to this Regulation.

3 For the purposes of the conformity assessment pursuant to Article 8 of Directive 2009/125/EC, the technical documentation of VSDs shall contain a copy of the product information provided in accordance with point 4 of Annex I to this Regulation, and the details and results of calculations set out in Annex II to this Regulation.

4 Where the information included in the technical documentation for a particular model has been obtained: (a) from a model that has the same technical characteristics relevant for the technical information to be provided but is produced by a different manufacturer; or (b) by calculation on the basis of design or extrapolation from another model of the same or a different manufacturer, or both, the technical documentation shall include the details of such calculation, the assessment undertaken by the manufacturer to verify the accuracy of the calculation and, where appropriate, the declaration of identity between the models of different manufacturers. The technical documentation shall include a list of all equivalent models, including the model identifiers.

Member States shall apply the verification procedure laid down in Annex III when performing the market surveillance checks referred to in point 2 of Article 3 of Directive 2009/125/EC.

The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (e.g. by recognising the test conditions or test cycle), and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters specified in this Regulation or declared by the manufacturer, importer or authorised representative in the technical documentation or included in any of the documentation provided. The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No deterioration of performance shall occur as result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product’s performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.

The benchmarks for the best-performing motors and variable speed drives available at the time of adopting this Regulation are set out in Annex IV.

The Commission shall review this Regulation in the light of technological progress and shall present the results of this assessment, including, if appropriate, a draft revision proposal, to the Consultation Forum no later than 14 November 2023. This review shall in particular address the appropriateness of: (1) setting additional resource efficiency requirements for products in accordance with the objectives of the circular economy, including identification and reuse of rare earth in permanent magnet motors; (2) the level of verification tolerances; (3) setting stricter requirements for motors and variable speed drives; (4) setting minimum energy efficiency requirements for motors with a rated voltage above 1000 V; (5) setting requirements for combinations of motors and VSDs placed on the market together, as well as integrated variable speed drives (compact drives); (6) the exemptions set out in Articles 2(2) and (3); (7) adding other types of motors to the scope, including permanent magnet motors.

Regulation (EC) No 640/2009 is repealed as from 1 July 2021.

1 Article 1, point 2(b) is replaced by: ‘(b) circulators to be integrated in products and placed on the market no later than 1 January 2022 as replacement for identical circulators integrated in products placed on the market no later than 1 August 2015 and specifically marketed as such, except as regards the product information requirements of Annex I, point 2(1)(e).’

2 Annex I, point 2(1)(e) is replaced by: ‘(e) for circulators to be integrated in products and placed on the market no later than 1 January 2022 as replacement for identical circulators integrated in products placed on the market no later than 1 August 2015, the replacement circulator or its packaging shall clearly indicate the product(s) for which it is intended.’

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. It shall apply from 1 July 2021. However, the first paragraph of Article 7 and Article 11, shall apply from 14 November 2019.