The USA offers a potentially lucrative export market for products and equipment, but unless these are certified before arrival they may be 'red-tagged' and their use denied
When a product is put onto the US market, does it need to be NRTL (Nationally Recognised Testing Laboratory) listed or labelled? The answer is usually 'yes'.
The three main reasons why manufacturers have products listed are: to meet the legal requirements; to avoid litigation; and to gain a marketing advantage.
The requirements for listing products in the USA are derived from two important legal documents.
Combined, these documents cover the workplace, plus any building that requires an occupancy permit (residential properties).
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Act.
Under the OSHA Act of 1970, OSHA uses Federal regulation Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Paragraph 1910.303, Subpart S (29CFR 1910.303 (S)), which requires that all conductors and equipment are approved (listed), it also requires electrical equipment to be examined, to ensure it is free of hazards likely to cause harm to employees and be suitable for installation (by listing or labelling). Therefore electrical conductors and equipment used in the workplace must be listed, or labelled by an NRTL.
TUV International UK can offer both listing (the TUVus Mark) and labelling to clients in the UK.
National Electrical Code (NEC). In addition to OSHA requirements, which cover only the workplace, the USA relies upon local building codes to ensure safe residential housing.
These codes are based on the requirements of the National Fire Protection Agency, standard NFPA 70, also known as the National Electrical Code (NEC).
This code is adopted universally by state and local inspectors who are empowered by their Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ).
Some common AHJs known for their strict enforcement of local electrical codes include the City of Los Angeles, the City of Chicago, the State of North Carolina, the State of Oregon, the State of Florida, the City of Orlando and New York City.
In these locations, electrical inspectors 'red-tag' electrical products that are not listed or labelled.
The legal requirement for acceptability to the local AHJ is derived from Article 110 - Requirements for Electrical Installations.
As a result, electrical inspectors will look for an NRTL Listing, or a field label.
Products that are not listed or labelled will be red-tagged and denied use at the installation.
The NEC and Telecommunications Equipment.
The NEC code 800-4 requires all equipment connected to a telecommunication networks to be listed.
How does this affect you? If equipment is not listed or labelled you may be asked to pay for it to be field labelled on site before it is released for use, and lose a potential repeat order from the customer, due to the delays involved.
In addition, AHJ inspectors who are IAEI members exchange information on manufacturers who they know are non-compliant.
The only sure way to avoid problems on equipment shipped to the USA is the have it listed or labelled in the UK before you ship, TUV International UK can offer this service.
