Advice on new ideas

If you are a commercial supplier to the IOM class:

– Treat new ideas as if they are probably illegal.
– Convince yourself that it is not so before marketing the equipment.
– Consider asking the IOMICA Technical Sub-Committee for an interpretation.
– If you sell equipment that is found to be illegal you may be obliged to correct, or replace, the equipment at your own expense.

The last item of advice derives from the consumer legislation that is in place in most countries, and is an implicit condition of trade otherwise. Something for sale must be fit for its purpose, and the manufacturer has liability if not a duty of care for it. It does not prevent any manufacturer from agreeing with a customer that a particular item is a special request of the customer and is sold without representation or warranty of any kind. No problem in this case. The Technical SC and Measurement SC are in addition considering steps that might be taken to address the issue of manufacturers driving class development rather than the owners and the class association.

If you are an amateur builder:

– If you come up with something you have not seen before, then assume that it is illegal until you are convinced otherwise.
– Direct any questions to your national class association.
– A certificate, or a certification mark, is NOT proof of the equipment being class legal. It is only proof that the equipment has passed such controls as are required by the class rules, and that the official measurer at the time of fundamental measurement did not find anything wrong with the equipment.
– The owner always has the responsibility for the use of class-legal equipment, RRS 78.1 applies.

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