International standards on explosive atmospheres: Harmonization is a hard but necessary task

Professionals dealing with electrical installations in explosive atmospheres face a difficult battle, as they need to be kept updated and standards change very fast. Sometimes so radical changes come up with a new standard edition, that they seem contradictory to what was written in the previous one, letting readers confused. Consequently, it is not uncommon to occur long discussions among manufacturers, clients, notified bodies and installers, resulting in waste of time and money, especially if the final product or service is considered “non-complying” or even “unsafe” under the new requirements. In this article some topics that are bringing uncomfortable situations to the “Ex professionals” are reviewed, and some suggestions are presented.