Glossary · Machinery law and conformity
Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230
Also known as: Machinery Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/1230, MR
German: Maschinenverordnung eu 2023 1230 mvo
The Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 is the EU regulation on machinery and related products that replaces the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC and applies from January 20, 2027. It is directly applicable in all member states and sets essential health and safety requirements, conformity assessment procedures and CE marking.
- Compliance
- EU
- AI
In one sentence
The Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 replaces the Machinery Directive from January 20, 2027, with new rules for software, AI, cybersecurity and manuals.
Example
A builder of AGVs with a machine-learning-based person detection that ensures a safety function must involve a notified body under the Machinery Regulation, because such safety components are listed in Part A of its Annex I.
Explained in context
Context cards connect this term with others to answer one question. Also in British English and German.
- Documenting foreseeable misuse without making it an optionHow do instructions describe reasonably foreseeable misuse without presenting it as a way to use the product?UKDeutsch
- Operating modes in technical documentationWhy do operating modes change what the documentation of a machine has to say?UKDeutsch
- Internal and external technical documentation: what "external" really meansDoes "external documentation" mean documentation that is published?UKDeutsch
- Machinery Regulation and CRA: coupled through standards, not cross-referencesWhy can the Machinery Regulation and the Cyber Resilience Act not simply refer to each other?UKDeutsch
- EN 50742: safety-related security levels and IEC 62443 working togetherIs EN 50742 a sign that legislators misunderstand technicalities, and do its SRSLs contradict IEC 62443?UKDeutsch
- Retrofit and substantial modification under the Machinery RegulationWhen does a retrofit make the operator the manufacturer of a machine?UKDeutsch
How it applies
- Dates: Applies from January 20, 2027; on that date it repeals Directive 2006/42/EC. The first Official Journal version said January 14, 2027 in three places; the corrigendum of July 4, 2023 set the correct date.
- New content: Machinery and safety components with fully or partially self-evolving behavior using machine learning that ensure safety functions are listed among the products needing third-party assessment. Requirements address protection against corruption, including malicious attempts affecting safety, and require that safety-critical software and data are identified and protected and that interventions and safety software versions are recorded.
- Instructions: Instructions may be supplied in digital form; a paper copy must be provided free of charge on request at the time of purchase.
- Substantial modification: A person who substantially modifies machinery takes on the manufacturer's obligations; see substantial modification.
- Technical documentation: Update templates, declarations and documentation processes before January 2027, including digital delivery of the instructions for use.
Machinery Regulation vs. the AI Act
Since the Digital Omnibus on AI, the Machinery Regulation is listed in Section B of Annex I to the AI Act. The AI Act's product regime does not apply to machinery directly; AI requirements reach machinery through machinery law:
- From January 20, 2027: AI-enabled machine functions that affect safety, control or conformity are examined against the essential requirements in Annex III — control systems, protection against corruption, integrity of safety logic, reliability of protective measures and cybersecurity aspects of control behavior. Whether an AI system is a safety component follows the amended AI Act definition.
- By August 2, 2028: Article 8 delegated acts add AI-specific requirements from the AI Act to Annex III.
- In between: Article 20(10) lets AI Act harmonized standards or common specifications support presumption of conformity until machinery-specific ones exist.
The 2028 date adds requirements; it does not start the assessment. See the machinery AI timeline.
Read more on AI TechDoc Press
- Machine AI regulation begins in 2027 — not 2028
- Beyond PIM: building the product data bridge between MR and DPP
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