The European Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) contains essential health and safety requirements for the design and construction of machinery and formal requirements for the first making available of machinery on the European Union market, which must be fulfilled by manufacturers and their authorised representatives, distributors and importers of machinery. It governs machinery and the following products which are equivalent to them:

• Interchangeable equipment
• Safety components
• Lifting accessories
• Chains, ropes and webbing for lifting purposes
• Removable mechanical transmission devices
• partly completed machinery

The Machinery Directive has been implemented nationally through the Product Safety Act (ProdSG) and the Machinery Ordinance (9th ProdSV).
The 9th ProdSV lists in its scope which products are subject to it and which are excluded. The 9th ProdSV refers to the annexes of the European Machinery Directive with regard to the safety requirements to be fulfilled, the conformity assessment procedures to be carried out, the CE marking and other regulations to be implemented. Therefore, both the ProdSG and the 9th ProdSV as well as the Annexes to the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC are important for the placing on the market of machinerys.