TURKEY has been a democratic and laic Republic since 1923. The Parliament is the unique Executive Body and performed the legislation. The Parliament is re-established every five years by elections. Head of State is President who is elected every seven years by Parliament. Turkey covers an area of approximately 777.000 square km, and the population is about 70 million. The country has 81 provinces which are administrated by a Governor. Turkey has been a candidate country for EU since 1999, and the harmonization studies are going on in every sector.
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT) has the main responsibility for legal metrology in Turkey. Law of Measures (law no 1782) has been put in act on 26 March 1931, so Republic of Turkey accepted SI unit system.
Law of Measurements and verification act (law no 3516) put in act in 1989 and Measurement and Standards General Directorate has been established.
In order to fit Turkish laws to European union laws, a frame law 4703 was accepted in 2001 25 EU directives are translated and put into act as Turkish directives to harmonize Turkish laws with EU. Law on Measurement and Calibration, and harmonised EU directives are the bases for legal metrology in Turkey.
With the requirements of that law No:3516 ;- The inspection, calibration, stamping of the measurement and measurement instruments, - To register brand of measurement and measurement instruments,
- to approve type and the systems,
- to keep and control /or making them kept and controlled of national etalons,
- To inspect competency of calibration stations within the point of technical aspect and implement qualification certificate,
- To establish /or making them established of the laboratories,
- To organize training technical courses,
- To harmonize and to put into action of the subjects which directly goes in the responsibility field of EC acquis.Weights and the measures under the scope of Law on Measurement and Calibration Numbered 3516 are controlled and examined by the inspectors and technical experts of our provincial offices with the masses, sensitive scales and length meters and the ones which comply with the (e.g. weight scales, electricity-meters, water-meters, natural gas meters, gas and oil meters, taximeters, voltmeters etc.) legislation are stamped. The usage of the measuring instruments which are damaged and which need repairing are prohibited.
After the decisions No: 1/95 and 2/97 between EU and Turkey, MIT has undertaken the responsibility of transposing 21 EU directives on legal metrology. One of these directives is new approach, the rest are old approach. MIT completed transposing process in year 2002. With the entry into force of these 21 regulations , newly manufactured products to be placed on the market and to be put into service have to be manufactured in accordance with the provisions of new regulations.
With the completion of harmonization task, MIT has concentrated all its efforts on implementation of these directives.
- Simple length measures
- Area measuring instruments
- Dipsticks
- Medium accuracy weights
- Liquid volume metering instruments
- Petroleum
- Liquefied petroleum gas
- Bulk milk
- Lubricating oil
- Heating oil
- Cold water meters
- Gas volume meters
- Electricity meters
- Non-automatic weighing instruments
- Self-indicating
- Non self-indicating
- Automatic weighing instruments
- Discontinuous totalising (commercial transactions)
- Continuous totalising (belt weighers) (commercial transactions)
- Gravimetric filling
- Catch weighers
- Check weighers (if used to determine conformity)
- Weight graders prepacked quantities)
- Weigh/price labeler and weigh labeler
- Road traffic measuring instruments
- Odometers
- Taximeters
- Tire pressure gauges
- Exhaust emission meters
- Law enforcement instruments
- Chronotachographs
- Speed detectors
- Ethylometers (breath analyzer)
- Depth gauges for liquids for tax purposes
- Warm water meters
- Heat meters
- Moisture content meters for cereal grains
- Refractometers for must in grapes
- Sound meters
- Saccharine meters for sugar in beet juice
- Food Conservation thermometers
Instruments are generally subject to type approval, initial verification and mandatory re-verification unless otherwise specified.
The designation of the notified body is the most essential tool for the implementation of the Regulation on Non-Automatic Weighing Instruments. Hence MIT prepared and published the Communiqué on “Basic Criteria in the Appointment of the Notified Bodies for Non-Automatic Weighing Machines Regulation” in OJ dated 24.02.2003 and No. 25030 to appoint notified bodies.
TSI (Turkish Standard Institute) and TÜRK LOYDU have applied to be a notified body in the field of Non-Automatic Weighing Instruments on 15.07.2003, and TURKAK (Turkish Accreditation Agency) assessed the application. After TURKAK submitted a positive report, MIT made the notification to the European Commission.
Market surveillance activities in the field of Legal Metrology have been carried out by the inspectors of legal metrology employed at the central and 81 provincial offices of MIT according to the Law No. 3516 on Measurements and Calibration and Law No. 4703 on Preparation and Implementation of Technical Legislation of Products.
MIT has allocated enough resources and staff for market surveillance. For many years every product placed on the market and put into service have been inspected and stamped by MIT inspectors. These inspectors perform sudden and periodic controls in the market. MIT has testing facilities in 7 cities and those facilities will be extended to 14 cities. For the rest of the cities, MIT utilizes 46 testing vehicles for metrological controls. Moreover MIT purchased 34 new testing vehicles last year
For type approval MIT is the outmost authority. Actual measurements are performed by various laboratories authorized by MIT.
For the implementation of old approach directives on Legal Metrology, MIT has to designate inspection bodies. MIT examines the inspection reports of those bodies and give type approval certificates . MIT assessed TSI (Turkish Standard Institute) and appointed it as Inspection Body. MIT published a Communiqué concerning the appointment of TSI as Inspection Body on 15.2.2004.
MIT has currently 7 regional metrology centers equipped to handle the legal metrology related measurements such as mass, volume, length, gas and water flow. It has 81 provincial verification offices. In each municipality there is a verification bureau.
The measuring and weighting instruments at the Provincial Offices are calibrated once in every two years by the sensitive scales and measuring instruments in our laboratory's located in 7 provinces .
On the other hand, calibration of the weighing and measuring instruments at our provincial offices which should be done in every two years is performed by National Metrology Institute. (UME) The traceability of the UME is provided by International Metrology Center (BIPM).
During the production phase, the first inspection of the meters is done in repairing and calibration stations. The instruments used at these stations are also calibrated by UME.
Concerning the import controls of measuring instruments coming from Third Countries, those instruments can enter Turkish market only after MIT issues type system approvals and stamps each product. Those instruments coming from EU countries that have an EC type approval certificate are subject to free circulation.
In recent years, an important progress has been achieved in Turkey on manufacturing of measuring instruments. As of the 2 May 2005 there are 22 electronic electric meter, 3 natural gas meter and 14 water meter manufacturing firms in Turkey.
Regarding the taximeters, there are three manufacturing firms. In the field of petroleum product meters there are 17 firms, and 10 firms are operating in the production of LPG meter.
There are 84 manufacturing firms in weighing instruments sector in Turkey.
In the field of legal metrology, there are two manufacturer associations. These are the Association of Weighing Instruments and the Association of Electronic Meters. These associations inform the manufacturers on EU legal metrology system.
Turkey has been a full-member of the BIPM since 1875. Since 1960 Turkey had been a corresponding member of OIML. This year it has become a full member of OIML and an Associate Member of WELMEC.
G.M.K. Bulvari No: 128 Maltepe
ANKARA/TURKEYTEL : 00 90 312 231 10 84
FAX : 00 90 312 231 16 94Created August 2005