Harmonization of international EMC standards

This paper discusses the efforts that are on world over, towards harmonizing various national EMC standards, to reduce trade barriers between countries and various user sectors like defence and civilian. Such harmonized standards will greatly reduce the burden on the manufacturers of electrical and electronic systems, by minimizing the duration of the product development cycle and the compliance evaluation costs. In this context, the European and the American experiences of harmonization of civilian EMC standards are discussed in detail. Efforts in the USA and Germany, for harmonizing the defence and civilian EMC standards are also outlined.