Machinery Regulation guide
QR code on the machine: not compulsory, but the simplest route
The Machinery Regulation does not prescribe a QR code — but it does require a permanent digital access route. The code is the de facto standard.
No QR obligation, but the simplest route
Nowhere does the EU Machinery Regulation prescribe the words "QR code". It requires something else: a permanently functioning route through which the user can reach the digital operating instructions — indicated on the machinery, on the packaging or in an accompanying document.
In practice, almost every implementation comes down to the QR code on the nameplate, because it meets all the requirements at once: machine-readable, scannable without an app, permanently attached to the machine and directly linkable to the correct documentation. It is thereby the de facto standard for implementing the Machinery Regulation.
Requirements for the code
For the QR code to do its job over the machine lifetime, it must be capable of more than a marketing code on a flyer:
- Physically durable: weatherproof or lasered directly into the nameplate — designed for a machine life of 15 to 25 years.
- Stable target URL: the link must never lead nowhere, not even after website relaunches or changes of company name.
- Machine-specific: the scan leads to the file of exactly this machine — not to the manufacturer homepage with a search box.
- Anchored in standards: the international standard IEC 61406 ("Identification Link", successor to DIN SPEC 91406) describes precisely this pattern of a unique, machine-readable product link.
Implementation with docks
docks assigns every machine a permanent 6-digit shortcode and generates from it the QR code for the nameplate. The documents behind it can be updated and versioned at any time — the lasered code remains untouched. Sensitive areas such as circuit diagrams are PIN-protected, and the target URL is contractually guaranteed for 10 years.
More on the concept of the digital nameplate in accordance with IEC 61406 can be found on our digital nameplate page. And the quickest way to check whether your implementation is complete is our Machinery Regulation checklist 2027.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is a QR code on the machine mandatory?
No, the Machinery Regulation does not prescribe any specific medium. It requires a permanent access route to the digital operating instructions, indicated on the machinery — the QR code on the nameplate is the established and simplest way to satisfy this.
What must sit behind the QR code?
The machine-specific documentation: operating instructions in the version belonging to that machine, retrievable without an app and without a login, available for the expected lifetime and for at least 10 years.
What is IEC 61406?
The international standard for the "Identification Link": a unique, machine-readable link on the product that leads to product-specific digital information. It is the successor to the German DIN SPEC 91406 and the normative basis of the digital nameplate.
Keep reading
More chapters of this guide
Machinery Regulation: Deadlines and Transition until 20 January 2027
A hard cut-off date instead of a transition period: from 20 January 2027, every placing on the market is governed exclusively by the Machinery Regulation.
Digital Operating Instructions under the Machinery Regulation: What Is Permitted
Paper is no longer mandatory: Article 10(7) permits digital operating instructions — subject to four conditions.
Technical Documentation under the Machinery Regulation: Scope, Retention, Access
From risk assessment to declaration of conformity: what must remain deliverable for 10 years — and what may stay protected.
What Is an EU Declaration of Conformity? Mandatory Contents and Transition to the Machinery Regulation
The legally binding document behind the CE marking: what belongs in it — and what changes on 20 January 2027.
Risk Assessment under the Machinery Regulation: Obligation, Process, Documentation
No CE marking without a risk assessment: the process according to ISO 12100 — and the new Machinery Regulation requirements from cybersecurity to AI.
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