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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass

Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass

1. What is Product Certification ?
In the manufacturing sector, the ISO 9000 series quality management system (QMS) assured the product
consistently meeting prescried requirements! "o#e$er, it focuses mainly on the quality system ut not much on
the product itself! %rior to its acceptance, the product is still $ery often required for testing y the purchaser to
confirm its compliance #ith the rele$ant standard or specification! &he t#o acti$ities, manufacturer's QMS and
purchaser testing are not coordinated! In an effort to integrate them into one quality assurance (Q() system,
products certification #as de$eloped! It promulgates the QMS (similar to ISO 9000 Q( series model), the ISO
1)0*0 for inspection and ISO 1)0*+ for testing schemes into one coordinated effort! &he product is controlled at
source in a manufacturing plant starting from initial prototype testing, technical inspection of the manufacturing
process, auditing of the quality system, appro$al of the product and susequent sur$eillance audit testing of
products sampled from the factory and,or mar-et, etc! In order to enhance the crediility of the product
certification, manufacturers of the product $ery often ha$e to see- third party certification ody to perform the
independent certification audit! &his third party product certification scheme is featured #ith a certification mar-!
( recent e.ample #as that a product certification company named "ong /ong 0ertification Ser$ice 1imited #as
accredited y the "ong /ong (ccreditation Ser$ice for a tempered glass scheme su2ect to the heat soa-ed
process to 3S 45 161)971 8 *00+! ( scheme named %roduct 0onformity 0ertification Scheme for heat soa-ed
tempered glass is no# currently compiled y the 9acade :roup of the "ong /ong Institute of Steel 0onstruction!

Product Conformity Certification Scheme for Heat Soaked Tempered Glass
4stalished in some decades ago, product certification has already een the earliest quality assurance acti$ities
operated y many certification odies all o$er the #orld! It has e$ol$ed throughout the years to its present form!
&he International Standard for the product certification is the ISO,I40 :uide ;+8199;! &his is a top le$el and
generic international standard that the any certification ody has to follo#! (ny manufacturer or company may
apply to a third party certification ody to ha$e a product certified to the requirements of a recogni<ed standard
under the product certification scheme! &he product standard may e a 3ritish Standard, an International
Standard or any national standards!



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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass


Although participation in the scheme is in most cases oluntary! oer the "orld many goernment departments!
regulators! pu#lic authorities and national agencies re$uire mandatory certifications of their products for
reasons of safety! health! enironmental protection! fraud preention and market fairness. The re$uirements
are often stipulated in their "orks and procurement contracts.
&o ensure the quality of the acti$ities of product certification odies meeting the international and domestic
technical requirements, the accreditation of certification odies y their national accreditation odies is often
necessary!
&here are different types of product certification classification according to the international practice! In the ISO
pulication =0ertification and >elated (cti$ities 7 (ssessment and ?erification of 0onformity to Standards and
&echnical Specifications=, eight systems of the product certification are stipulated and they are as follo#s8


1 Type testing
&ype testing is a method under #hich a sample of the product is tested according to a prescried test method in
order to $erify the compliance of a model #ith a specification! It is the simplest and most limited form of
independent certification of a product oth from the point of $ie# of the manufacturer and the appro$al
authority!

% Type testing follo"ed #y su#se$uent sureillance through audit testing of samples purchased from the open
market
( system ased on type testing (see System 5o! 1) ut #ith some follo#7up action to chec- that susequent
production is in conformity! Open mar-et audit testing means a random audit testing of the type tested model
from distriutors@ or retailers@ stoc-!

& Type testing follo"ed #y su#se$uent sureillance through audit testing of factory samples
( system ased on type testing (see System 5o! 1) ut #ith some follo#7up action to chec- that susequent
production is in conformity! (udit testing of factory samples in$ol$es a regular chec- of samples of the type tested
models selected from the
manufacturer@s production efore dispatch!
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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass


' Type testing follo"ed #y su#se$uent sureillance through audit testing of samples from #oth open market
and the factory
( system ased on type testing (see System 5o! 1) ut #ith some follo#7up action to chec- that susequent
production is in conformity! (udit testing oth of factory samples and open mar-et samples

( Type testing and assessment of factory $uality control and its acceptance follo"ed #y sureillance that takes
into account the audit of factory $uality control and the testing of samples from the factory and the open
market
( system ased on type testing (System 5o! 1), #ith assessment and appro$al of the manufacturer@s quality
control arrangements follo#ed y regular sur$eillance through inspection of factory quality control and audit
testing of samples from oth the open mar-et and the factory!

) *actory $uality control assessment and its acceptance only
Sometimes -no#n as the appro$ed firm or appro$ed manufacturing method of certification! ( system under
#hich the manufacturer@s capaility to produce a product in accordance #ith the required specification, including
the manufacturing methods, quality control organi<ations and type and routine testing facilities are assessed and
appro$ed, in respect
of a discrete technology!

+ ,atch testing
3atch testing is a system under #hich a atch of a product is sample tested and from #hich a $erdict on the
conformity #ith the specification is issued

- 1../ testing 100B testing is a system under #hich each and e$ery item certified is tested to the requirements
of the technical specification!

&he commonest product certification scheme for construction products is ased on the ISO 0ertification System +!
Some relati$ely lo# ris- products may e ased on System 1! &he product manufacturer is a#arded a license y a
product certification ody if the product complies #ith the standard and the factory has a proper quality control
system to ensure consistent and continuous compliance #ith the standard coupled #ith a series of scheduled
audit testing on products selected from the factory and,or the mar-et! ( licensee under this scheme is entitled to
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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass

use the certification mar- of the certification ody on the product to denote compliance #ith the standard! (5ote8
a quality system certification mar- to ISO 9001 is not permitted to appear on the product!)
Chen this mar- of conformity is affi.ed on a product, the product certification ody shall ensure that the
traceaility of its mar- to the rele$ant product standards is a$ailale to the pulic! In the case #hen a certified
product complies #ith a part of the standard only, it should e clearly indicated! &hese mar-s may e registered
under &rade Mar- Ordinance and are the
property of the product certification ody! Dnauthorised use or misuse of the mar-s #ill e su2ect to legal action
in accordance #ith applicale la#s! In case of misuse of the mar-, certification ody shall ta-e appropriate
correcti$e actions #hich could include legal action!


%. Adantages of Product Certification
%roduct certification pro$ides the follo#ing ad$antages8
7 It is an independent assurance that the product is manufactured under an effecti$e system of testing, super$ision
and control
7 %urchasers of the product may not require to carry out further tests, as the products are already certified to e in
compliance #ith the standards
7 0ertified products pro$ide the user an assurance for safety and reliaility
7 0ertified products en2oy the enefits of protection against competition from sustandard products and
misrepresentation
7 &he product certification mar- enhance the reputation of manufacturer and thus, e.tend its mar-eting capaility
7 Impro$ed efficiency in production and reduced #astage and re2ects!


&. Why Accreditation of Product Certification #ody is needed ?
Many products certification odies are commercial organi<ations and the quality of their certification acti$ities
ha$e to e assessed to comply #ith the ISO,I40 :uide ;+, the rele$ant product standard such as 3S 45 161)971 8
*00+ and local accreditation requirements in order to pro$ide confidence to the purchasers or users of the
certified products! It is #ith this tas- that an accreditation ody in a country is emerged! Many countries and
economies ha$e accreditation odies at national le$el to perform technical assessments to the product
certification ody! In most cases, accreditation odies are go$ernment departments!
(ccreditation means crediility! (ccreditation is a formal recognition of the competency of an organi<ation to
perform conformity assessment acti$ities! Dnder the International (ccreditation 9orum (I(9), a multilateral
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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass

recognition agreement (M1() among $arious economies #as estalished! Signatories of the M1( are oliged to
promote the acceptance of
the conformity assessment results among all M1( memers! &he o2ecti$e of #hich is to facilitate cross order
trading and reduce technical arriers to trade (&3&), a mission of the (sian %acific 4conomic 0ooperation ((%40)
and Corld &rade Organi<ation (C&O)!

4.amples of some of the national accreditation odies are as follo#s and many of #hich are go$ernment odies8
(5SI E (merican 5ational Standards Institute
D/(S E Dnited /ingdom (ccreditation Ser$ice
05(3 E 0hina 5ational (ccreditation 3oard for 0ertifiers
F(3 E Fapan (ccreditation 3oard
S00 E Standard 0ouncil of 0anada
F(S7(5G E Foint (ccreditation System of (ustralia H 5e# Gealand
S(0 E Singapore (ccreditation 0ouncil
ISM E Iepartment of Standards, Malaysia
5(0 E 5ational (ccreditation 0ouncil of &hailand


J ( chart ao$e sho#ing the proposed Multilateral >ecognition (greement (M1() for product certification
schemes among (ccreditation 3odies of different economies under the International (ccreditation 9orum (I(9)!
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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass


( M1( for laoratory testing and caliration has een operating gloally under International 1aoratory
(ccreditation 0ooperation (I1(0) for more than a decade! ( ne# gloal M1( for product certification has een
launched in *006 y I(9! &he I(9 M1( (for product) signatories as at March *00+ are (ustralia, (ustria, 3elgium,
0anada, 0hina, 0<ech, Ienmar-, 9inland, 9rance, :ermany, Ireland, Italy, Me.ico, 5etherlands, 5e# Gealand,
5or#ay, %oland, >omania, (lo$a-ia, South (frica, Spain, S#eden, S#it<erland and Dnited /ingdom! (*6 memer
states) (5SI of DS( and F(3 of Fapan are no# under application to the M1( signatory! "/(S is a I(9 M1( QMS
signatory on accredited ISO 9001 certification since *006 ut not yet a M1( signatory on accredited product
certification! "/(S intends to see- entry into the I(9 M1( signatory a fe# years later after the accreditation
scheme on product certification is sufficiently mature!
Chen a particular product certified y a certification ody accredited y "/(S, the "/0(S mar- is permitted to
affi. on the product along side #ith the product certification ody mar-!
&he t#o mar-s together ha$e to e housed in a rectangular o. as sho#n elo#!

&he comined use of the certification and accreditation mar-s affi.ed on the product certificate #ill no dout
further enhance the crediility and confidence to the purchasers and users of the product!

'. Compulsory 0egistration1Certification of Products #y 2omestic 3a"
(part from $oluntary certification systems of products mentioned ao$e, there are t#o countries in the #orld,
namely, Mainland 0hina and Fapan, -no#n to the "/(S that operated compulsory certification of products under
their la#s! &hese apply mainly to high ris- products such as motorcyclists' protecti$e helmets, fire doors, seat
elts, electrical appliance and #iring accessories, etc! &hese t#o schemes are called the 0hina 0ompulsory
0ertification (0hina's 000 mar-) and Fapan Industrial Standard (Fapan's FIS mar-)! &he former is directly
administered y the :eneral (dministration of the Quality Super$ision, Inspection and Quarantine under the State
0ouncil of the %eople's >epulic of 0hina :o$ernment and the
latter y the Ministry of Industry and &echnology of the Fapanese :o$ernment!

000 Safety Mar- 000 9ire %roduct Mar- 000 4M0 mar- FIS Mar-

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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass


(. 4uropean practices 5 Construction Products 2irectie 6CP27 and C4 marking
&he 0onstruction %roducts Iirecti$e aims to rea- do#n technical arriers to trade in construction products
et#een Memer States in the 4uropean 0ommunity! &o achie$e this, the 0%I pro$ides for the follo#ing 6 main
elements8
7 ( system of harmoni<ed technical standards, e!g! cement to 45 19)718*000, aggregate to 45 1*;*08*00* and
concrete to 45*0;718*000
7 (n agreed system of attestation of conformity for each product family, ; systems of attestation are stipulated as
follo#s (e!g! 0%I required cement to system 1K and aggregate to system *K) (Systems 1K to A must e certified y
a third party certification ody appro$ed y the respecti$e go$ernments ut System 6 can e a self declaration y
the manufacturer of the product)8
7 System 1K %roduct conformity certification #ith audit testing
7 System 1 %roduct conformity certification #ithout audit testing
7 System *K 9actory production control certification #ith cont sur$eillance
7 System * 9actory production control certification #ithout sur$eillance
7 System A Initial type testing
7 System 6 Manufacturer's tas- only
7 ( frame#or- of notified odies, e!g! accredited product certification odies in each Memer States appro$ed y
their go$ernments and notified to the 4uropean 0ommission are called 5otified 3ody (or (ppro$ed 3ody)!
7 &he 04 mar-ing of products, a typical e.ample for cement to 45 19)718*000 is sho#n as follo#s8

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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass


). 8erie" of Hong 9ong Accreditation Serice
"ong /ong (ccreditation Ser$ice ("/(S) #as originated as an accreditation scheme named "O/1(S in 19L+ under
the then Industry Iepartment! Since then, it has undergone sustantial de$elopments and is no# a go$ernment
accreditation ody pro$iding $arious accreditation schemes #ithin the Inno$ation and &echnology 0ommission
(I&0), 0ommerce Industry and &echnology 3ureau (0I&3) of the "ong /ong S(> :o$ernment! 0urrently, "/(S
offers the follo#ing schemes8
7 "ong /ong 1aoratory (ccreditation Scheme 6H893AS7 J "ong /ong Inspection 3ody (ccreditation Scheme
6H9:AS7
7 "ong /ong 0ertification 3ody (ccreditation Scheme 6H9CAS7 &he accreditation mar-s for the three schemes are
as follo#s8

"O/1(S pro$ides accreditation of laoratories on $arious categories #hich include construction materials,
chemical, toys, electrical products, food, en$ironmental and recently medical laoratories! &he accreditation
standard is ISO,I40 1)0*+! "/I(S pro$ides accreditation of inspection odies for construction products, #elding
and indoor air quality inspection! &he accreditation standard is ISO,I40 1)0*0! "/0(S pro$ides accreditation of
certification odies for quality management scheme (QMS) to ISO 9001 and en$ironmental management system
(4MS) to ISO 16001! In (ugust *00A, "/(S has launched a ne# accreditation programme under "/0(S scheme on
construction products certification!
&he construction product certification programme co$ers product certification of general construction materials,
uilding, high#ay, #ater#or-s and firefighting products, etc!
:eneral construction material products E ready mi. concrete, cement, aggregate, %9(, admi.ture, grout, repair
mortar, ituminous materials, steel reinforcement, structural steel, #elding material, glass and aluminum, etc!
3uilding products E door, gate, #indo#, cladding, gla<ing, facing stone, tile, ric-, loc-, partition and dry #all,
paint, false ceiling, fire shutter, passi$e fire protection product, drainage and pluming pipe and duct, precast
concrete and steel piles, etc!
"igh#ay products E railing, fencing, manhole co$er, drainage and se#erage pipes, ridge earing, $ehicular
parapet, faricated mo$ement 2oint, street lighting, any street furniture, etc!
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Product Certification of Heat Soaked Tempered Glass

Cater#or-s and firefighting products E #ater tap, #ater meter, #ater pipe and fitting, stopcoc-, storage cistern,
$al$e, hydrant, hose reel, sprin-ler, drencher etc!
( "/0(S Supplementary 0riteria 5o! * on the (ccreditation of 0onstruction %roducts 0ertification is a$ailale in
the "/(S #e ###!info!go$!h-,itc,h-as!

1.. Conclusion
&he #orld has entered into an era of rapid transformation of information and technology! Cith the gloali<ation
of trade and -no#ledge and gi$en 0hina's accession to the C&O, a multilaterally recogni<ed accreditation scheme
on product certification #ould no dout help enhance "ong /ong's aility to -eep areast #ith its trading partners
and facilitate cross
order trading! &his #ill also impro$e the quality of our products used domestically and to strengthen our
competiti$eness in the gloal mar-et! (ccreditation of fire product certification #ill no dout help impro$e the
quality of these products to meet the standard requirements!

11. 0eferences
1! ISO,I40 :uide ;+ M:eneral requirements for odies operating product certification systemsN, 199;!
*! ISO,I40 1)0*0 M:eneral criteria for the operation of $arious types of odies performing inspectionN 199L
A! ISO,I40 1)0*+ M :eneral requirements for the competence of testing and caliration laoratoriesN, 1999
6! ISO 9001 Quality management system E requirements *000


( typical heat soa-ed o$en complied #ith 3S 45 161)9718*00+ requirements