As you said other NRTL's can get your product certified with one inspection. The problem is that they have not advertised there mark out enough so that it is accepted by the general public. If they were able to make it publicly known that UL is not a government agency, but is merely another NRTL, then companies would gain approval marks cheaper and with better service. Better service would come as the smaller NRTL's are very competitive, where the larger NRTL's and foreign compliance labs are less so because of there size.
Please respond to Gary McInturff <[email protected]> To: "Matthias R. Heinze" <[email protected]>, "POWELL, DOUG" <[email protected]>, [email protected] cc: (bcc: Daniel Fitzgerald/SDD/NAM/APCC) From: Gary McInturff <[email protected]> on 09/10/98 02:51 PM GMT Subject: RE: Agency approvals on components in CE With this we'll be up to 4 cents worth. In safety we don't have US standards anymore and haven't for quite awhile. In the good old bad days there were three major standards. The US controlled by UL a private corporation. Canada controlled by UL a quasi governmental organization. Europe - really controlled by Germany and was governmental. (There were others but Germany usually had the most requirements and meeting them met you could hit most of your other markets - the converse was not always true). UL looked at things and said okay if it nastiness happens lets make sure it can't get out of the enclosure and they developed plastics and the onion approach of investigating individual components to their own standards. CSA was very concerned about the industrial end and had a major focus on wire and insulation. (This is a little unfair to Canada) Europe's main focus was on the isolation between the primary and secondary. At one point in order to be cost effective you had to build at least two products base on where your main market was. I certainly would not put the cost of the double insulated transformers and increased spacing into a product that was 90% US based. We built other more costly units for Europe. If you look at the standards now all of these things have been incorporated along with some national deviations - primarily to account for power distribution. Even from a susceptibility standpoint, regardless of whether you believe these to be rational requirements or quality issues, if you're really playing the global game the standards become universal. I have to be able to withstand all of the requirements of EN50082-1; or -2. The only thing we are missing is the universal acceptance of the independent test marks within all of the countries that have adopted the same basic set of safety requirements. I would love to pay only once for the same service but right now I pay UL and TUV for the same service and inspections. (I don't believe that I can get products universally accepted without it because of local preferences whether they be governmental or customer preferences - yes I know there are vendors out there that say they can do this and I am watching and waiting but its not here yet.) Okay so maybe that was more than 2 cents worth and feel free to blow holes in the e-mail. Its a great debate. Gary McInturff -----Original Message----- From: Matthias R. Heinze [SMTP:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 1998 11:38 PM To: POWELL, DOUG; [email protected] Subject: RE: Agency approvals on components in CE Let me add my 2cents worth. I have to compete with UL and certainly think that CE marked products must be accepted by US authorities having jurisdiction (as these should be eliminated as well, I had trouble with the Hayward City inspector at one time)? Maybe they have something similar to the Hayward city inspectors in France (and about 20 other countries I know of), how do they feel about UL, in France? And if standards, why US standards, why not the other way around, the US adapting international standards (with one or two national deviations)? I for one am glad that I can still find VDE or SEV etc. approved components, maybe these approvals are not perfect but I am sure I have a good defense built up should the unthinkable occur. We make sure. Matthias R. Heinze TUV Rheinland And yes, we have to make money. --------- This message is coming from the emc-pstc discussion list. To cancel your subscription, send mail to [email protected] with the single line: "unsubscribe emc-pstc" (without the quotes). For help, send mail to [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected] (the list administrators). --------- This message is coming from the emc-pstc discussion list. To cancel your subscription, send mail to [email protected] with the single line: "unsubscribe emc-pstc" (without the quotes). For help, send mail to [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected] (the list administrators). --------- This message is coming from the emc-pstc discussion list. To cancel your subscription, send mail to [email protected] with the single line: "unsubscribe emc-pstc" (without the quotes). For help, send mail to [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected] (the list administrators).
