Type approval of apparatus

HSE has issued three type approval certificates – for the:

  1. installation of ionisation chamber smoke detectors
  2. bulk storage of ionisation chamber smoke detectors
  3. installation of gaseous tritium light devices (including fire exit signs)

The purpose of the certificates is to relieve employers of the obligation to notify or apply for registration for work involving ionising radiations with HSE where these devices are installed and no other work with ionising radiations is carried out.

The updated certificates replace the certificates issued under the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999 (IRR99). The new certificates are issued under the Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 (IRR17).

The updated certificates do not introduce any major changes to the previous certificates. Those devices that conformed to the previous certificates, issued in 1999, will comply with the 2017 certificates. Employers should check that their devices continue to conform to the conditions in the updated certificates and should notify the HSE Radiation Team ([email protected]) if the devices cannot be shown to satisfy these conditions. In most cases employers will need to do no more than check that they are complying with the conditions in the certificates of type approval. Employers will only need to notify HSE or apply for registration, as appropriate, where these conditions cannot be met.

Note that Type approval is not automatic for any apparatus that does not cause a dose rate of more than 1 micro-sievert per hour under normal operating conditions (see Schedule 1 of IRR17).

Certificates of approval

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Updated 2023-09-27