COUNCIL RESOLUTION

of 27 November 1995

on the strengthening of the competitiveness of the European mechanical engineering industry

(95/C 341/01)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Commission communication on industrial competitiveness policy for the European Union of 19 September 1994,

Recalling its resolution of 21 November 1994 on the strengthening of the competitiveness of Community industry (1), and its conclusions on industrial competitiveness policy of 7 April 1995,

Whereas mechanical engineering is of great importance for the economy of the Community, in particular for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) owing to its large production, trade surplus and employment; whereas as a major supplier of capital goods it is crucially linked with all significant upstream and downstream manufacturing industries;

Whereas the goal of Community industrial policy is, in particular, to contribute towards long-term upgrading of the competitiveness of Community industry, relieving unemployment and ensuring sustainable growth; whereas horizontal instruments should therefore be applied also to the mechanical engineering industry,

HEREBY ADOPTS THIS RESOLUTION:

THE COUNCIL

I

TAKES NOTE WITH INTEREST OF:

(a) the Commission's Communication 'Strengthening the competitiveness of the European machinery construction industry` of 9 November 1994;

(b) the Commission's intention of presenting an action plan on the dissemination and implementation of the above communication;

II

CALLS UPON THE MEMBER STATES, WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO THE PRINCIPLE OF SUBSIDIARITY, TO:

(a) pursue a steady macro-economic policy as the best way of creating a favourable business environment for mechanical engineering firms and maintaining the European Union as an attractive location for manufacturing machinery and equipment;

(b) make the necessary efforts with regard to convergence, this being a pre-condition for introduction of the single currency, which will be a lasting solution to currency turmoil;

(c) encourage intangible and tangible investment by appropriate means without prejudice to existing competition rules;

(d) encourage R& D by appropriate means without prejudice to existing competition rules;

(e) further build up a secondary risk capital market, especially for SMEs;

(f) improve training in mechanical engineering to meet the needs of this industry and, if required, create additional capacity;

(g) support, within competition rules, initiatives for cooperation based on mutual advantage of mechanical engineering companies;

(h) monitor the market to ensure a harmonized and coherent application of the Directive on machinery and other Directives affecting mechanical engineering; review remaining national regulations, other than those transposing the said Directives, while ensuring an adequate protection for health and safety, and free movement of goods;

(i) pay special attention to SMEs in all national policy measures applicable to the machinery and related industries; facilitate SMEs' access to them;

(j) step up their efforts strictly to observe existing State-aid rules;

III

CALLS UPON THE COMMISSION TO:

(a) take into account the R& TD needs of the machinery industry in the implementation of the Fourth and preparation of future framework programmes, in particular concerning the ICT and IMT specific programmes; extend Craft and similar technological stimulations for SMEs;

(b) promote, through the Leonardo programme, adaptation to industrial change, reintegration into the labour market, training at company and national levels, exchanges of young apprentices and cooperation between Member States' training schemes in engineering;

(c) provide the mechanical engineering industry with the legal framework needed for the functioning of the internal market through, inter alia, the acceleration of the strategic programme for making the most of the internal market;

(d) render the mechanismus for controlling State aid more transparent and homogeneous;

(e) contribute to removing obstacles to industrial cooperation in the field of machinery, promoting industrial initiatives in growth markets;

(f) increase its efforts to ensure European machine exporters' fair access to foreign markets;

(g) implement the integrated programme for SMEs and the craft sector taking into account the needs of the machinery sector;

IV

NOTES THAT IT IS PRIMARILY UP TO BUSINESS TO IMPROVE ITS COMPETITIVENESS, AND INVITES:

(a) the mechanical engineering industry, and specially its SMEs, to deepen industrial cooperation, both among Community companies and between them and third country companies both within mechanical engineering and its upstream and downstream industries, with special attention to the components sector;

(b) industry to step up its expenditure in R& D to the extent of its financial capacity;

(c) the service sector to improve its offer to industry; of special benefit for engineering companies would be improvements in financing (banks), insurance (insurance companies), automation (data processing and telecommunications suppliers), research (universities, laboratories), studies (project managers, consultants), designs (industrial designers), quality (certification bodies), vocational training (training centres) and marketing in foreign countries (agents, dealers, etc.);

(d) the social partners to engage in dialogue on issues relating to employment, specially in SMEs, and competitiveness such as productivity, training and working practices;

(e) the European standardization bodies to accelerate the preparation of harmonized standards, in particular those covering the Directive on machinery;

(f) engineering companies to expand their presence on markets with significant long-term growth potential;

(g) engineering companies to view quality promotion, lean manufacturing and environmental protection technologies as business opportunities;

V

DECLARES ITS INTENTION OF:

reviewing in the second half of 1996, on the basis of a report to be submitted by the Commission, the dissemination and implementation of the measures included in this resolution.

(1) OJ No C 343, 6. 12. 1994, p. 1.