With the view to harmonise standards for the design, construction and acceptance procedure for the items of equipment referred to in SOLAS and MARPOL, the European union has developed with the help of the industry, classification societies  Bureau Veritas in the forefront and the Member States, the Marine Equipment Directive MED. The MED covers statutory equipment carried and used on ships registered under the flags of the European Union Member states plus Norway and Iceland, which are required to meet the 4 International Conventions developed by the International Maritime Organisation IMO namely: (1) Load Lines 1966, (2) SOLAS 1974 Life-savings Appliances, (3) MARPOL 1973 Marine Pollution, (4) COLREGS 1972 Prevention of Collisions, Under the procedures defined in the Med, once an approval has been obtained for the equipment referred to in the Directive by a single Notified Body, this approval will be acceptable in all other Member States. Recognition that the equipment fully complies with the requirements of the MED will be denoted by a Ships Steering Wheel