A recent example of the product safety certification process involves hoverboard manufacturers, which will now be required to provide counterfeit safety marks on their products. Underwriters Laboratories, an independent safety consulting and certification company, has developed safety standard UL2272 for self-balancing scooters, often called hoverboards. This standard the electric drive train as well as the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and the charger system. Short circuits can occur when the lithium-ion batteries are jostled, sometimes causing explosions.
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In late December 2015, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission tweeted about investigating 22 reported fires in at least 17 states. There were also 70 ER-treated injuries reported at that time. Hoverboards with the product safety certification approval will no doubt become the desired models of choice for the safety-conscious consumers going forward.
An established fountain manufacturer came to us at a previous Lightfair inquiring about their first underwater LED lighting project. LED technology was new to them and presented many unique challenges for their lighting systems. To make matters worse, they were operating under a tight schedule.
Product Safety Consulting was able to quickly help them using our Design For Safety Approval™ process. This process includes a variety of services outlined below.
- Design Review – From drawings, we can conduct an initial review confirming the required Standard(s), confirming requirements that pertain to your product, providing recommendations on possible non-compliances, getting your design team headed in the right direction.
- Construction Evaluation – We go through the Standard, paragraph by paragraph, confirming compliance. If non-compliances are found, we provide recommendations on how to bring the product into compliance.
- Testing – We conduct the testing and confirm compliance. Again, if non-compliances are found, we provide recommendations on how to bring the product into compliance.
- Submittal Management – We submit on your behalf and manage the product until Certification is issued.
How long will the process take? That depends on what stage you’ve reached, and the complexity of your product. If your design is simply a tweaking of a normal table lamp testing might be fast and easy. If you’ve invented a new and revolutionary heart pacemaker the process will probably take longer. In the latter case you might be using unusual materials or processes. There might be aspects in your design that have never been tested before. Beyond this, there’s your reaction time. If a glitch appears, and you solve it immediately obviously the process will move more quickly. These kinds of issues affect the timing for the testing of any product.
