The Regional Sections are a local extension of the EHEDG. The Regional Section Chairmen organize events and promote EHEDG products. For details see https://www.ehedg.org/regional-sections/

Please see the information & assessment sheet for new Regional Sections and contact the EHEDG Office in case of interest. All new Regional Sections are signing an official Bylaws agreement with EHEDG.

Membership is always with EHEDG and not with a Regional Section. See https://www.ehedg.org/membership/ for details.

The EHEDG Regional Sections are expected to be self-supporting, but can apply for an annual budget if needed.

One Guideline costs € 119 and can be ordered at the VDMA Webshop. The payment can be made in a currency other than Euro. Please find more information here.

Please login to the EHEDG Website by your personal password (see the red Login button at the top of the page). If your password is unknown, please click on "Forgot your password". If you click on the menu item "guidelines" you can select a guideline and download. All EHEDG company & institute staff members can also log-in by a mass user password. If unknown, please contact the Office.

When having identified a topic of interest to the relevant industries, all EHEDG members are welcome to send in to the Office a new guideline or revision proposal (PDF). The topic will be subject to approval by the Product Portfolio Sub-Committee and the EHEDG ExCo.

Guidelines are written by experts from the EHEDG network. All members are welcome to participate in the Working Groups.

Please see the overview of our Working Groups on our Website.  

SubCom Product Portfolio, with concurrence of the Executive Committee, designates expert teams to expedite the work of EHEDG.

As assigned by the SubCom Product Portfolio, the Working Group is responsible for:

• The development and maintenance of any assigned EHEDG guideline, certification procedure, or training material package within designated time- frames
• Responding to questions or inquiries pertaining to the documents under their purview
• Commenting on international standards to promote harmonization
• Informing the SubCom Product Portfolio of activities and progress on documents under development or review
• Recommend to the SubCom Product Portfolio the need for new documents or revision of existing documents

All experts from the EHEDG membership are welcome to send in to the EHEDG Office an informal application for active Working Group membership by briefly outlining their educational background, professional expertise and motivation. Any new expert application will be subject to approval by the Working Group Chair. Upon acceptance, the expert will be given access to all Working Group documentation and the respective internal website folders of the Working Group.

Corresponding members are invited to actively participate in all Working Group activities and are encouraged to comment on all documents. Corresponding members shall not have a vote but the Working Group must consider their comments.

Please find all upcoming EHEDG training courses and registration details published here.

Please send your request for an inhouse training course to secretariatProtected mail-address@ehedg.org.

We offer basic courses (one day) and Advanced courses (three days). For more information please see here.

The EHEDG Authorised Trainers skills and qualifications are ruled in SCP 3-1. 

The members of the EHEDG Training & Education Working Group commit themselves to developing high-quality and practically oriented training material based on the EHEDG guidelines. The group is a team of experts mainly from the user industries, academia, educational institutes and consultancy with a profound and long-term EHEDG background. 

• Both open and closed equipment used in food processing environments can be certified. A list of all EHEDG certified components is published on https://www.ehedg.org/testing-certification/certified-equipment/.
• Although there are no limitations on the complexity of the piece of equipment, typically only small, individual components are certified rather than large, complex machines or processing systems.
• For certification of open equipment, ALL equipment surfaces are evaluated as product contact surfaces and must meet all hygienic design criteria in relevant EHEDG guidelines.
• Currently, only closed equipment with pipe connections between 25 mm (1 in) O.D. and 75 mm (3 in) O.D. can be tested due to limitations of CIP testing.

In general, all sizes of the same piece of equipment must be evaluated with a design review and CIP tested prior to certification. However, in a few instances where equipment designs are considered completely scaleable by an EHEDG AEO, testing of only one size can be used for certification of the entire range. In most instances, equipment is NOT completely scaleable. Currently, the only alternative to testing each size is to perform computational fluid dynamics modelling (CFD) of the different designs to select the size for testing that may be the most difficult to clean based on wall shear stresses and fluid exchange in critical areas. If the selected size passes CIP testing, the sizes with higher wall shear stresses and fluid exchange in critical areas may also be considered for certification and listed on the same certificate.

All closed pieces of equipment which are installed in a pipeline, e.g. pumps, valves, and inline sensors, must be tested according to the method of EHEDG Doc. 2. This test is a screening test for hygienic design and identifies areas that may contain a crevice which can trap soil and microorganisms or are not easily cleaned due to the flow dynamics.

Closed equipment which fully comply with the hygienic design requirements can be certified without testing. Examples are pipe lines or pressure sensors without elastomeric seals.

These terms are interchangeable and refer to "a method of assessing the in-place cleanability of food processing equipment" described in EHEDG Document 2 published by EHEDG. The test method is used as a basic screening test for hygienic design. It is used to determine if areas (or features) within a piece of equipment are “easily cleanable” by comparing the test results to that of a standard reference pipe soiled and cleaned during the same test. Due to inherent variability in the cleaning of equipment, the test must be repeated successfully at least 3 times for equipment to be eligible for certification. This test is required for equipment to be certified as Type EL Class I and EL Aseptic Class I.

EL Class I is only for closed equipment, intended to be cleaned-in-place (CIP) with liquids, and can be CIP tested using the method of Doc. 2. EL Class I AUX is for certification of auxiliary open equipment which is intended to be cleaned-in-place with liquids but not tested. EL Class II is for equipment which is intended to be cleaned with liquids but must be disassembled or dismantled prior to cleaning.

No. Since open equipment cannot currently be tested to ensure cleanability, open equipment intended to be cleaned with liquids can only be certified as EL Class I AUX or EL Class II. Open equipment intended to be dry cleaned only can be certified as ED Class I or Class II.

• The annual prolongation process provides EHEDG assurance by the certificate holder that the equipment design has not been changed in the past year.
  
  
• The 5-year renewal process allows EHEDG to ensure that certified equipment meets the latest criteria for certification due to changes in the EHEDG guidelines, certification criteria, or test procedures. This process is established in 2015.

Different elastomers may have different material properties. Experience has shown that different materials in the same mechanical design may affect the equipment cleanability. Since 2009 the certificate lists the elastomers that were CIP tested. The equipment is only certified when used with the elastomers listed on the certificate. Each elastomer listed on the certificate must be CIP tested using the method of Doc. 2.

Different elastomers may have different material properties. Experience has shown that different materials in the same mechanical design may affect the equipment cleanability. Since 2009 the certificate lists the elastomers that were CIP tested. The equipment is only certified when used with the elastomers listed on the certificate. Each elastomer listed on the certificate must be CIP tested using the method of Doc. 2.

EHEDG, in conjunction with the nominated AEO, will issue a revised certificate with the new name on it as a revision. The 5-year renewal anniversary date will not be reset. However, if there have been any changes to the EHEDG Hygienic Design Criteria or Test Methods a new certification procedure is required.

For closed equipment components intended to be cleaned in-place (CIP) with liquids (EL CLASS I certified), only the internal, wetted surfaces/parts are evaluated and certified to meet the hygienic design criteria according to EHEDG guidelines. This means that for pumps, valves and in-line sensors; the motor, drive, actuator or frame (if present) are NOT evaluated and certified for cleanability according to EHEDG guidelines. Only the internal, product contact surfaces are evaluated and certified according to EHEDG guidelines and, if necessary, tested for easy cleanability according to Doc. 2.

The date on the EHEDG certificate and Certified Logo indicate the month and year that the equipment was last reviewed and certified.

Yes. For example Type EL Class I for cleanability and Type EL Aseptic Class I for sterile applications.

If the test programme was conducted after 1st January 2008 the report may still be valid for re-certification purposes if the design and materials have not been changed. Consult an AEO for review.

Certificates in the EHEDG database of valid EHEDG certificates might be highlighted with a "Renewal Pending" flag if a certificate is subject to renewal but the renewal process hasn't been completed yet. The raising of the flag is linked to the fulfillment of the following prerequisites:

• The certificate has already expired
• An application for renewal was handed in in time
• The component has already passed successfully the phase of HD-Evaluation
• The component is subject to being tested

Thus, testing and/or formal issuing of the certificate haven't been completed yet. The component might still fail the test. In this case the "Renewal Pending" flag will be withdrawn and the certificate will be removed from the database.

The use of the ‘EHEDG Certified’- Logo in/on marketing material is allowed by the EHEDG certification contract, provision 1.

However the ‘EHEDG Certified’-Logo shall only be used if, and only if, the undoubtedly linked to the specific certified equipment to which it refers. Examples of abuse of the ‘EHEDG Certified’- Logo are stated in appendix 2 of the certification contract.

To apply for an EHEDG membership, please complete the individual membership application, the company membership application, or the institute membership application as applicable on our Website. 

There are several benefits for EHEDG members. Company members are authorized to use the EHEDG Company Member logo under agreed conditions, or to download the EHEDG guidelines free of charge. For full benefits details please see company membership.

Individual members receive general information and updates about EHEDG and get membership discounts on selected publications and events. A 50 % discount when purchasing the EHEDG guidelines. There is the opportunity to join a Regional Section and its activities.

Yes. Please find all documents in the download section.

The seven EHEDG bylaws formalise the EHEDG internal rules regarding elections, financials, communications, and others. For details visit our download section. 

The EHEDG Office is happy to help. Please send an E-Mail to secretariatProtected mail-address@ehedg.org

The membership will be automatically extended from one calendar year to another, if not cancelled in written (E-Mail to secretariatProtected mail-address@ehedg.org, or letter) before 30th September of the current year for the year to come, thus terminating the membership on 31st December. The full payment for the following year will be due in case of cancellation after 30th September.