The Ships Wheel or Wheelmark explained

The “Ships Wheel”, or “Wheelmark” as it is officially called, is an accreditation that is required for equipment placed on board ships for which safety certificates are issued by, or on behalf of, Member States of the European Union.

The Wheelmark is granted once a product has been demonstrated to meet the safety at sea requirements as stipulated by the Marine Equipment Directive. It is the “flag administration” of the Member State that has the authority for issuing certification - in the UK, this was the MCA untill the UK adopted the UK Marine Equipment Regulation (MER), referred to as Red Ensign approval.

Countries within the European Union have one or more nominated “Notified Bodies” which carry out the work to demonstrate that equipment placed on board ships meets safety at sea requirements. Products which they approve for use are required to use the Wheelmark, which must be affixed directly to the product or to its packaging.

Our GMDSS radio products comply with the MED Ships "Wheelmark" and UK "Red Ensign" Marine Equipment Regulations. To read more about this approval, click on ’What is the Red Ensign Approval Rating?’.

To learn more about GMDSS, click on our article 'Overview of GMDSS Sea Areas and Radio Safety Equipment Requirements'.