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Problems are mainly felt by system suppliers, who face an unprecedented demand focus on marginal products, available within own portfolios. Thus, mainly economical class series have been requested lately (considering their competitive price), along with - to a lower extent - high quality marks belonging to the premium category. The reasons are obvious and are closely related to consumers’ typical behaviour focused in both situations only exclusively on the price criterion. For „low-cost” products, the clientele is generally made up of persons with small/ medium revenues who, for various reasons, have chosen to rehabilitate the joinery and are only collaterally interested in the purchased model performances. As for the deluxe class, the difference is exclusively rendered by the product cost, as in this case beneficiaries do not consider the high performance characteristics either, but rather target the obvious display of a privileged social status. The commercial equation has almost completely excluded standard ranges, defined by an average quality/ price ratio, as they have become too expensive for the first category and too cheap for the second.

Obviously, some market players are still suppliers loyal to the quality principles who refuse to consider the current demand polarization, but it remains to be seen to what extent this is a winner strategy. Generally, the implementation of a product policy ignoring signals received from customers requires a high financial potential, able to compensate, when necessary, potential profitability drops. Joinery manufacturers benefit from an even more restricted maneuver space, as, being located at the interface with beneficiaries, they cannot consider the latter’s options. The joinery manufacture activity consists in the integration of several systems, each having a well-defined role within the finished product, and any deviation from quality may compromise the window functionality, whether profiles, hardware or insulating glass. Unfortunately, particularly for big projects, delivery price pressures have reached such a high level, that the adaptation possibilities are minimal. The only solution to be applied consists in using lower quality materials, as well as eliminating certain accessories whose inclusion is many times necessary for ensuring observance of the products intended use intent. Thus, in certain cases atypical „solutions” are adopted, such as for example placing reinforcement profiles (coating) exclusively in the handle and hinge area. In certain situations, there is even the possibility of sales drop beyond the profitability threshold (delivery price lower than costs), the only explanation for such offers on the market being that the manufacturer did not include material expenses in the price equation. Serious cases of financial indiscipline are reported ever more often and, in the absence of a coherent framework able to ensure the identification and elimination of companies adopting such practices, the respective procedure spreads, to the detriment of system suppliers.

The incoherence and lack of professionalism of public bodies responsible with the specific market regulation and control lead to the emergence of situations which, if they weren’t extremely serious, could be funny. We are witnessing complaints related to the application of the European harmonized standard regulating the joinery unit production at a community level. Although the norm provisions are very clear, the elusion means have increased considerably, proving once again local entrepreneurs’ „adaptation” capacity. All factors involved in the process try to obtain maximum advantages, being almost by no means interested in the purpose to which the respective document was drawn up - namely to ensure the commercialization in the European Economic space of adequate products. Thus, certification bodies’ representatives try to impose higher performances (certificated by additional tests), the members of the Permanent Technical Council in Constructions (CTPC) want to charge a fee for registration with the Unique Register (a volunteer option, not actually stipulated by the community legislation), the sector employers organization (PPTT) aims at professionally attesting sector companies, and the State Inspectorate in Constructions (ISC) does not have the real capacity to apply coercive measures, considering that all costs related to such an action ending with the obtaining of a decision in favour of the verified company are ascribed to the inspector who started the control procedures. Therefore, this is why a very explicit and easily implemented law, applied in the West European countries without any problems, is interpreted and eluded in Romania, without any hope of possible intention to clarify this issue.

Many times, the entire concept was degenerated to such an extent that it even led to the conviction that CE marking is only obligatory in the case of tenders for works financed from public funds (as if the other projects - actually representing the majority - were not implemented on the Romanian territory - currently included in the European Economic space structure). Recently, this perception level, which would lead to surprise in other parts of the world, has been outclassed by an unprecedented enormity, the specification conditions of a tender including, as an eligibility condition, the holding of a Professional Certificate (issued by PPTT), without any reference to CE marking. Without intending to minimize the importance of the document drawn up by the local professional organization, however it would have been essential to bestow the due attention and even grant highest priority to the main requirement. Moreover, we have recently recorded cases in which the government adopts an attitude encouraging disloyal competition, as contracting authorities (public entities’ representatives) have disqualified companies from tenders, despite their having submitted documents attesting the initiation of procedures for attesting conformity in a cascade system (as per annex A1 of SR EN 14351-1 and the new construction product sale regulations, superseding the CPD Directive 106/89/CEE) and drawn up the related conformity declaration, the invoked reason consisting in the lack of registration in the Unique Register managed by CTPC (also a public body subordinated to the authority for the regulation of the Romanian constructions sector - MDRT).