Blog
NRCan Proposes Decoupling ENERGY STAR Specs from its Energy Efficiency Regulations
Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) ENERGY STAR Initiative is considering significant changes in how products manufactured and/or sold in Canada are qualified and listed. NRCan proposes to de-couple Canada’s ENERGY STAR technical specifications from its Energy Efficiency Regulations. NRCan intends to use the ENERGY STAR technical specification published by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)... Read More
Proposed EMC Directive Revision Has New Notified Body Requirements
The European Union Association of Notified Bodies (EUANB) met in December in Spain to discuss proposed revisions to the EMC Directive. The final revised Directive is expected to be issued in the next few months. EUANB is the Notified Body Group for the EMC Directive and is composed of members who are a Notified Body... Read More
Proposed Changes to R&TTE Directive for Radio Equipment Include New Name & Requirements
The Radio and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment Compliance Association (R&TTE CA) met in December in Malaga, Spain to discuss proposed revisions to the R&TTE Directive, which is being renamed the Radio Equipment (RE) Directive. At the meeting, MET Laboratories was approved as a R&TTE Compliance Association member. (This is unrelated to R&TTE Notified Body status –... Read More
EMC Testing Requirement for IT Equipment Varies by Country
In Compliance Magazine recently published a good primer on compliance requirements for IT equipment around the world. Following is a summary of the electromagnetic compatibility regulations. A set of common standards serve as the basis for global EMC regulations: Conducted and radiated emissions are based on CISPR 22 & FCC Part 15 Immunity is based on... Read More
Top 10 Compliance Today Blog Posts for Electrical Compliance Engineers in 2012
The Compliance Today blog for electrical product manufacturer compliance engineers saw a significant jump in readers and subscribers in 2012. Following were the most popular 2012 posts, by pageviews. RTCA/DO-160G is Latest Version for Testing of Airborne Equipment, But Not the Only Choice UL1604 to Be Replaced by ANSI/ISA 12.12.01-2000 for Hazardous Locations Certification 2011... Read More
Luminaires Manufacturers Get New ENERGY STAR Certification Resources
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has posted new materials that aid in the testing and certification of lighting products for ENERGY STAR: Certifying Luminaires – Utilizing the Certified Subcomponent Database (CSD) This document helps luminaire manufacturers select components for ENERGY STAR fixtures. Items listed on the CSD have already been tested for photometric, life... Read More
Top 35 Blogs for Electrical Product Manufacturers
We received so much positive feedback on our blog posts for EMC Compliance Links and Product Safety Compliance Links, that we decided to dedicate a post to spotlight the top blogs for electrical product developers. With a few exceptions, these blogs are from independent sources, like industry associations, publishers or consultants. What are we missing?... Read More
Five Tips for Avoiding Counterfeit Electrical Products
Counterfeit electrical products are a huge and growing problem. Counterfeit products worth billions of dollars enter the U.S. each year. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 13% of all counterfeit products seized are electrical products, ranking them second among all category totals. The manufacture of counterfeit electrical products is popular because the profits... Read More
UL 1741 Safety Testing of Inverters Includes Anti-Islanding Requirement
UL 16741 the standard for anti-islanding protection In the event of a power failure on the electric grid, it is required that any independent power-producing inverters attached to the grid turn off in a short period of time. This prevents the DC-to-AC inverters from continuing to feed power into small sections of the grid, known... Read More
ENERGY STAR Partner Meeting Discusses New Requirements for Lighting & Consumer Electronics
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ENERGY STAR Partner Meeting was a couple weeks ago in St. Paul, MN and MET Labs was there. Following is a summary of key meeting discussions. New Requirement for Dimmable CFLs and LEDs The meeting agenda began with a roundtable, which was focused on dimmers. EPA has encouraged consumers... Read More
