The CENELEC members created at their 39th General Assembly, held in Edinburgh on 8th and 9th June 1999, a new body called CENELEC Conformity Assessment Forum, CCAF. This body has replaced the sectoral committee ELSECOM and is meant to become a focal point for conformity assessment in the electrotechnical field at European level, based on the following policies:

• to establish a formal link between the standards work of CENELEC and conformity assessment schemes operating in the electrotechnical field, with due regard to other interested parties;
• the testing and certification bodies should have freedom to manage and operate their individual schemes in line with their market demands;
• the principal aim of the CCAF is the promotion of European standards as the basis for conformity assessment.

CCAF will provide a forum for discussion of policies and strategies related to conformity assessment in the electrotechnical area, between representatives of the different conformity assessment schemes, representatives of their advisory structure, national interests represented by the concerned CENELEC National Committees and advisors from European regulatory, economic and social partners.

The CCAF will also provide a contact point for coordination and cooperation at the level of CEN and ETSI, the European Commission, the EFTA Secretariat, and the IEC.