The use of marks on products and/or their packaging and other materials to demonstrate the conformity to the requirements in relevant product certification schemes is widespread. The conformity marks can enhance the confidence of stakeholders, including governments, regulators, customers and industry to the products which have fulfilled certain regulatory requirements and/or industrial practices. This can increase the business opportunities and reputation of the product manufacturers.
In general, the marks of conformity can be either licensed by the owners of the product certification schemes or the certification bodies providing certification service for those schemes (i.e. conformity mark licenser). A license or an agreement is used to assure the certified manufacturer (i.e. licensee) follows the rules of the scheme, and to control the use of the mark of conformity.
The design of the mark can allow modification from the licenser's own corporate logo, but should avoid confusion with other certification systems (e.g. QMS). In order to let the stakeholders understand the meaning of the marks of conformity, a legend containing the information of the schemes and a short indication of the aspects covered (e.g. safety) may be used. Furthermore, a unique identity for the certified product is also suggested to indicate the traceability.
The conformity mark licenser shall have documented procedures for the use of its marks, with the details for measures to be adopted in case of misuse, including false claims as to certification and false use of certification body marks. Incorrect references to the certification system or misleading use of certificates or the mark found in advertisements, catalogues, etc., should be dealt with by suitable actions, which could include legal or corrective action or publication of the transgression.
The marks of conformity shall primarily be placed on the products, except where the physical size of the product does not permit this or when the application is not appropriate for the type of product. In case it is not feasible to place the mark onto the product, the mark may then be applied on the packaging or other accompanying information. Depending on the rules of the product certification scheme, the marks may also be used in advertising materials (e.g. catalogues and websites), where there must be a clear association between the marks and the certified products, to avoid misleading stakeholders about the conformity to the schemes of other products which have not been certified.
Where certification has been suspended for any reason (when a critical non-conformity has been found, or the certification subscription fee has not been paid, etc.), the certification body shall require that, during the period of suspension, the supplier make no misleading claims and should advise relevant existing and potential buyers of the products regarding the status of certification, and cease to use the certification mark on the products manufactured since the date of notification of suspension.
At this point, try to complete the following short Self-test 1 to see how well you have understood this section.
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