Republic Act No.

8495
An Act Regulating the Practice of Mechanical Engineering in the Philippines

This Act shall be known as the Philippine Mechanical Engineering Act of 1998. The State recognizes the importance of mechanical engineers in nation- building and development. Practice of Mechanical Engineering - A person shall be deemed to be practicing mechanical engineering or rendering mechanical engineering service within the meaning and intent of this Act when he performs the following, Consultation, valuation, investigation and management services requiring mechanical engineering Knowledge; Engineering design, preparation of plans, specifications and projects studies or estimates for mechanical equipment, machinery, or processes of any mechanical works, projects or plants; Management or supervision of the erection, installation, alteration, testing and commissioning ofmechanical equipment, machinery, or processes in mechanical works, projects or plants; Management, supervision, operation, tending or maintenance of any mechanical equipment,machinery or processes in mechanical work, projects or plants; Management or supervision of the manufacture, sale, supply or distribution of mechanical equipment parts or components; Teaching of mechanical engineering professional subjects in government recognized and accredited engineering schools; and Employment in government as a professional mechanical engineer, registered mechanical engineer,or certified plant mechanic if the nature and character of his work is in line with his profession requiring professional knowledge of the science of mechanical engineering. Mechanical equipment or machinery - includes all prime movers such as steam engines and turbines, internal combustion engines and gas engines and turbines; steam generators such as boiler; furnaces; heat exchanger such as cooling towers, kilns and dryers coolers and heaters; materials handling equipment,such as pumps, cranes, conveyors, hoists, elevators, escalators, mechanized dumbwaiters, moving ramps and walkways. Mechanical processes, works, projects or plants shall include steam plants, geothermal plants,dander-thermal plants, nuclear plants, ocean thermal energy conservation (OTEC) plants, internal combustion plants, hydraulic plants, pumping plants, compressed gas plants, all kinds of mills, shops, factories, shipyards dry docks, heating, air conditioning, ventilating and refrigeration plants containing any mechanical equipment, machinery or process deriving power from steam, fossil fuels, wind, air, gas, water, solar heat, nuclear energy, ocean waves and tides, or other energy sources. Capacity of process works, projects or plant-rated capacity in kilowatt of mechanical works, projects or plants for the purpose of this Act shall be the total kilowatt ratings of all engines, motors, boilers, turbines, or other prime movers installed for use in such works, projects or plants, whether in operation or not, and without regard to the number of capacities of the mechanical equipment, machinery or processes receiving power from or intended to be driven by such prime movers. Creation and Composition of the Board of Mechanical Engineering.- There is hereby created a Board of Mechanical Engineering, hereinafter called the Board, to be composed of a Chairman and two members to be appointed by the President of the Philippines from a list of three (3) recommend for each Position, chosen, ranked in the order of preference and submitted by the Professional Regulation Commission, hereinafter referred to as the Commission, from a list of five nominee submitted by the duly accredited association of mechanical engineers in the Philippines. The Board shall be organized not later than six (6) months from the affectivity of this Act. A member of the Board shall, at the time of his appointment, possess the following qualifications: (a) Natural born citizen and resident of the Philippines; (b) Must be at least thirty-five (35) years of age;(c) Holder of the degree of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering or its equivalent, conferred by a school, academy, college or university in the Philippines or abroad that is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED); (d) A Professional Mechanical Engineer with a valid professional license and an active practitioner as such, for not less than ten (10) years prior to his appointment; (e) Must not, for a period of three (3) consecutive years prior to appointment, be a member of the faculty of any school, academy, institute, college or university where a regular course in mechanical engineering is being taught, nor have pecuniary interest

in or administrative supervision over any such institutions of learning; (f) Must not, for a period of three (3) consecutive years prior to appointment, be connected with a review center or with any group or association where review classes or lectures in preparation for the licensure examination are offered or conducted at the time of appointment; and (g) Has never been convicted of any offense involving moral turpitude. Section 6. Term of Office.- A member of the Board shall hold office for a term of three (3) years from the date of his appointment or until his successor shall have been qualified and duly appointed, unless, however, that such incumbent member has been re appointed for another three (3) years term. No member of the Board shall serve for more than two (2) regular terms. Any vacancy occurring within the term of a member due to resignation, conviction of any kind, disability or death, shall be filled by appointment by the President of the Philippines; and such member appointed shall serve for the un expired portion of the term vacated without prejudice to serve for a maximum of two (2) full terms. If the appointee comes from the incumbent Board, he shall serve the remaining vacated term in addition to the previous years he had already served and shall be qualified for reappointment in his new position: Provided, his aggregate number of years of service shall not exceed two (2) regular full terms. Each member of the Board shall take his oath of office prior to the official performance of his duties. Examination Required.- All applicants for registration for the practice of mechanical engineering shall be required to undergo and pass a written technical examination as provided for in this Act. Categories.- Certificates of registration for the practice of mechanical engineering shall be of three (3) categories and in order of rank as follows: (a) Professional Mechanical Engineer; b) Mechanical Engineer; and(c) Certified Plant Mechanic. Qualifications of Applicants for Professional Mechanical Engineer.- Any applicant to the professional mechanical engineering examination must, at the time of filing of his application, establish to the satisfaction of the Board that: (a) He is a citizen of the Philippines; (b) He must not have been convicted by a court of law of a crime involving moral turpitude; (c) He has a valid certificate of registration and he is a registered mechanical engineer and a holder of a valid professional license; (d) He has graduated from an engineering school or college of recognized standing, after completing an approved course in mechanical engineering; (e) He has specific record of a total of four (4) years or more of active mechanical engineering practice, reckoned. Section 15. Qualifications of Applicants for Mechanical Engineer - Any person applying for examination and for a Certificate of Registration as Mechanical Engineer shall, prior to admission to the examinations, establish to the satisfaction of the Board that: (a) He is a citizen of the Philippines; (b) He must not have been convicted by a court of law of a crime involving moral turpitude; (c) He holds the degree of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from a university, school, College, academy, or institute duly constituted and recognized as such by the government. Section 16. Qualifications of Applicants for Certified Plant Mechanic.- Any person applying for examination for certificate of registration as Certified Plant Mechanic shall establish to the satisfaction of the Board that: (a) He must not have been convicted by a court of law of a crime involving moral turpitude; (b) He has graduated from a vocational or trade school duly recognized by the government after completing an approved course of not less than two (2) years in stationary or power plant engineering or any mechanical plant operation; and (c) He has specific record of an additional one (1) year or more of active practice in mechanical plant operation of such character as indicated in an affidavit of a registered professional mechanical engineer and, likewise establish to the satisfaction of the Board, that the applicant is competent to undertake the operation, tending and maintenance of mechanical works, projects or plant of not less than one hundred (100) kilowatts. Section 17. Scope of Examination.- The scope of examination and the methods of procedure shall be prescribed by the Board with special reference to the applicants ability to perform the type of engineering work pertaining to the particular category he is to be registered in. (a) Professional Mechanical Engineer - The granting of professional mechanical engineer Certificate of

Registration shall be testimonial in nature which shall include the submission of an enumeration of the applicants - experience including the presentation of an engineering report/technical paper pertinent to his line of experience attested to by two (2) or more profession mechanical engineers in an affidavit for this purpose; (b) Mechanical Engineer - The applicant shall pass a written examination on different subjects or group of subjects prescribed by the Board, and within the syllabi prepared by the Board with emphasis on power plant and industrial plant engineering, mathematics, engineering economics, economic analysis, laws and ethics and machine design. The subjects in which the applicant for Mechanical Engineers shall be examined are: 1. Machine Design, Materials, and Shop Practice 2. Industrial and Power Plant Engineering 3. Mathematics Engineering Economics and basic engineering sciences (c) Certified Plant Mechanic The examination for Certified Plant Mechanic may be written or oral on subject matters based on the following submitted statement of experience: 1. Elements of Power Plant Machinery 2. Elements of Industrial Plant Machinery; and 3. Shop Machinery and Practice. Subject to the approval of the Commission, the Board may amend or revise the subjects, their syllabi, passing average, and the system and procedure in the licensure examinations for the practice of mechanical engineering and the corresponding weight pursuant to implementing rules and regulations issued for this purpose. The said subjects and their syllabi may be amended by the Board so as to conform to technological changes brought about by continuing trends in the profession. Section 18. Ratings.-To pass the examination, a candidate for a professional mechanical engineer, a mechanical engineer, and certified plant mechanic must obtain an average of seventy percent (70%) on all subjects, with no rating below fifty percent (50%) in any of the subjects. Section 19. Report of Ratings.- The Board shall submit to the Commission the ratings obtained by each candidate within fifteen (15) days after the examinations, unless extended for just cause. Section 20. Re-examination.- An applicant who fails to pass the examination for the third time shall be allowed to take another examination only after the lapse of one year. Section 21. Oath.- All successful candidates in the examination shall be required to take an oath of profession before the Board or any government official authorized to administer oaths, prior to entering upon the practice of the mechanical engineering. Section 33. Field of Action Authorized for Each Category: Prohibition.- It shall be unlawful for any person, unless authorized under this Act: (a) to be in responsible charge of the preparation of plans, designs, investigations, valuation, technical reports, specifications, project studies or estimates or to be in performance of other professional mechanical engineering activities unless he is a duly licensed Professional Mechanical Engineer. (b) to teach professional subjects in mechanical engineering course unless he is a duly licensed Professional Mechanical Engineer, or a Masters- degree or Doctorate degree holder in mechanical engineering. (c) to be in responsible charge of the construction, erection, installation, alteration, or of the performance of a mechanical engineering service in connection with the manufacture, sale, supply or distribution of any mechanical works, project or plant either for himself or for others, unless he is a duly registered Professional Mechanical Engineer or Mechanical Engineer. (d) to operate, tend or maintain, or be in-charge of the operation, tending, or maintenance of any mechanical works, projects, plant of 100 kw., or more but not more than 300 kw unless he is a duly licensed Professional Mechanical Engineer, Mechanical Engineer or Certified Plant Mechanic. (e) to operate, tend, or maintain or be in-charge of the operation, tending, or maintenance of any mechanical equipment, machinery or process for any mechanical works, projects or plants of 300 kilowatts or above but not more than 2000 kw unless he is a duly licensed Professional Mechanical Engineer or Mechanical Engineer. (f) to operate, tend or maintain, or to be in charge of the operation, tending or maintenance of any mechanical equipment, machinery, process for any mechanical works, projects or plants of over 2000 kw unless he is a duly licensed Professional Mechanical Engineer. Section 34. Personnel Required in Mechanical Plant.-Every mechanical work project or plant in

operation shall have not less than the following complement of resident licensed professional mechanical engineer, mechanical engineer or certified plant mechanic: (a) 100 kw or over but not more than 300 kw: one (1) certified plant mechanic, or one (1) mechanical engineer, or one (1) professional mechanical engineer: Provided, That every mechanical work, project, or plant in this category operating in more than one shift every twenty four hours, shall have in addition to the minimum personnel herein required, one (1) certified plant mechanic, or one (1) mechanical engineer, or one (1) professional mechanical engineer in-charge of each and every additional shift. (b) 300 kw or over, but not more than 2000 kw: one (1) mechanical engineer or one (1) professional mechanical engineer: Provided, That every mechanical work, project, or plant in this category operating in more than one shift every twenty-four (24) hours shall have, in addition to the minimum personnel herein required at least one (1) mechanical engineer, or one (1) professional mechanical engineer in-charge of each and every additional shift. (c) Over 2000 kw: one (1) professional mechanical engineer: Provided, That every mechanical work, project or plant in this category operating in more than one shift every twenty-four (24) hours shall have, in addition to the minimum personnel herein required at least one (1) professional mechanical engineer in-charge of each and every additional shift. Section 35. Preparation of Plans and Supervision of Construction by Licensed Engineers Required.- It shall be unlawful for any person to order or otherwise cause the fabrication, construction, erection, installation or alteration of any mechanical equipment, machinery or process for any mechanical works, projects, or plants, unless the designs, plans, layouts or specifications have been prepared by or under the responsible charge of, and duly signed and sealed by a Professional Mechanical Engineer. Likewise, proposals and quotations for the supply and fabrication of mechanical equipment, works, projects, plants, mechanical pollution abatement systems, mechanical fire protection systems, pressurized pipes with a working pressure of not less than 70 kpa., shall be duly signed and sealed by a Professional Mechanical Engineer. Section 36. Practice Not Allowed for Firms and Corporations. The practice of mechanical engineering is a professional service, admission to which shall be determined upon the basis of an individuals- personal qualifications. No firm, company partnership, association or corporation may be registered or licensed as such for the practice of mechanical engineering: Provided, however, That persons properly registered and licensed as mechanical engineers may form and obtain registration with the Security and Exchange Commission of a firm, partnership or association using the term -Mechanical Engineers- and or Architect and Mechanical Engineers- but nobody shall be a member, partner or associate unless he is a duly registered and licensed mechanical engineer, and the members who are mechanical engineers shall only render work and services proper for mechanical engineers as defined in this Act. Section 37. Posting of Certificates.- The owner, manager, or other person in-charge of any mechanical works, projects, or plants of one hundred (100) kw or more, of a firm, copartnership, corporation or joint-stock association, shall post or cause to be posted in a conspicuous place within such plant of business, the original certificate of registration of the engineer or engineers and of the certified plant mechanic/s employed in such plant, in a frame protected by transparent glass or its equivalent.Section 38. Roster of Engineers and Mechanics.- A roster showing the names and place of business of all registered professional mechanical engineers, mechanical engineers and certified plant mechanics, shall be prepared by the Commission which shall be made available to any interested parties upon formal written request. Section 39. Foreign Reciprocity.- No foreign mechanical engineer or mechanic shall be allowed to practice mechanical engineering or be given a certificate of registration or be entitled to any of the privileges under this Act unless he can prove in the manner provided by the rules of Court or by specific provisions of law or regulations, that the country of which he is a subject or citizen, in the spirit of reciprocity, permits Filipino mechanical engineers and/ or mechanics to practice within its territorial limits on the same basis as the subject or citizens of such country or state. Section 40. Enforcement of the Act by the Officers of the Law.- The Professional Regulation Commission shall be the enforcement agency of the Board. As such, the Commission shall implement the