[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 225 (Friday, November 21, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62358-62359]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30684]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. NRTL-2-97]
Detroit Testing Laboratory, Inc., Application for Recognition
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration; Labor.
ACTIONS: Notice of application for recognition as a Nationally
Recognized Testing Laboratory, and preliminary finding.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the application of Detroit Testing
Laboratory, Inc. for recognition as a NRTL under 29 CFR 1910.7, and
presents the Agency's preliminary finding.
DATES: The last date for interested parties to submit comments is
January 20, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Send comments concerning this notice to: NRTL Recognition
Program, Office of Variance Determination, Occupational Safety and
Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution
Avenue, N.W., Room N3653, Washington, D.C. 20210.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bernard Pasquet, Office of Variance
Determination, NRTL Recognition Program at the above address, or phone
(202) 219-7056.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Notice of Application
Notice is hereby given that Detroit Testing Laboratory, Inc. (DTL)
has made application pursuant to 29 CFR 1910.7, for recognition as a
Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory.
The address of the laboratory covered by this application is:
Detroit Testing Laboratory, Inc., 7111 E. Eleven Mile, Warren, Michigan
48092.
Background
Detroit Testing Laboratory, Inc. (DTL), according to the applicant,
is a Michigan corporation and was formally incorporated in 1949. The
applicant states that the lab was originally founded in 1903 as a
partnership, that ownership of the lab changed in 1948 and again in
1968, and that in 1976, the current owner purchased DTL as sole
stockholder.
The applicant submitted an application package, and separately
submitted a Quality Assurance (QA) Manual (see Exhibits 2A and 2B). The
QA Manual includes: an organization chart, position descriptions, and
resumes of key personnel; department descriptions including equipment &
standards used for departments involved in testing; description of
certifications done and standards used for certification; and the
details on how calibrations are handled, including descriptions of
equipment and standards.
Capability
Section 1910.7(b)(1) states that for each specified item of
equipment or material to be listed, labeled or accepted, the laboratory
must have the capability (including proper testing equipment and
facilities, trained staff, written testing procedures, and calibration
and quality control programs) to perform appropriate testing.
The applicant has one main facility at its site in Warren,
Michigan, and a smaller test facility in Center Line, Michigan. This
smaller site is not included in the applicant's request for
recognition. The applicant claims that natural gas, electric,
compressed air, steam, and water are available in the laboratory for
product testing and for calibrations and tests.
The applicant's QA Manual shows the testing experience of its key
testing staff, mentions its certification, and listing and labeling
experience with products, and describes its testing capabilities and
experience in a number of specific areas. It also contains a list of
major instrumentation and equipment.
Quality Assurance Procedures, Test/Operating procedures (developed
on a form, the original of which is kept by each lab), calibration
procedures, and audits (including proficiency audits which depends in
part on the use of outside private services) are described in the QA
manual. Furthermore, the QA includes an Internal Corrective Action
Procedure whereby reports are issued to an area when it operates
outside the guidelines of the QA System. The QA Manual also contains a
sample handling procedure and procedures on employee training. Written
procedures exist for typical tests, per QA manual.
Control Procedures
Section 1910.7(b)(2) requires that the NRTL provide certain
controls and services, to the extent necessary, for the particular
equipment or material to be listed, labeled, or accepted. These consist
of implementation of control procedures for identifying the listed or
labeled equipment or materials, inspecting the production runs at
factories to assure conformance with test standards, and conducting
field inspections to monitor and assure the proper use of identifying
marks or labels.
The application contains the description of the listing and
labeling procedure, which indicates ``inspections'' will be done four
times per year, and periodic compliance testing is done every four
years. A sample listing and follow-up agreement was also provided. In
addition, ``Instructions for * * * Inspections * * * ,'' and a sample
inspection form were submitted.
[[Page 62359]]
Independence
A statement of independence was supplied attesting that DTL is
independent of any producer, supplier, or vendor. The applicant claims
in the statement that, for products being tested and certified: it has
no managerial affiliations with any producer, supplier, or vendor; it
has no securities, investments, or stock options in the product lines;
the employment security of its personnel is free from influence by any
producer, supplier, or vendor; that it is not owned, operated, or
controlled by any producers, suppliers, or vendors; and that it is not
engaged in promotion or design.
Creditable Reports/Complaint Handling
Section 1910.7(b)(4) provides that a OSHA recognized NRTL must
maintain effective procedures for producing creditable findings and
reports that are objective and without bias, as well as for handling
complaints and disputes under a fair and reasonable system. The QA
manual contains details on development of test data and reports, and
both the application and the QA manual describe a complaint procedure.
Standards
DTL desires recognition for testing and certification of products
to determine compliance with the following test standards, which are
appropriate within the meaning of 29 CFR 1910.7(c):
ANSI/UL 234--Low Voltage Lighting Fixtures for Use in Recreational
Vehicles
ANSI/UL 1025--Electric Air Heaters
Preliminary Finding
Detroit Testing Laboratory, Inc., addressed all of the criteria
which had to be met for recognition as an NRTL, as summarized above. In
addition, the NRTL Recognition Program staff performed an on-site
review of DTL's main facility and investigated nine major areas:
facility; test equipment; calibration program; test and evaluation
procedures; test reports; records; quality assurance program; follow-up
listing program; and personnel. Any discrepancies noted by the survey
team during the on-site review were adequately responded to following
the on-site evaluation and are included as an integral part of the On-
Site Review Report (see Exhibit 3). With the preparation of the final
report, the Program staff was satisfied that the testing facility
appeared to meet the necessary criteria required by 29 CFR 1910.7, and
recommended that DTL be recognized.
Following a review of the application file and the On-Site Review
Report, the NRTL Recognition Program staff concluded that the applicant
appeared to have met the requirements for recognition as a Nationally
Recognized Testing Laboratory for the Warren, Michigan facility and,
therefore, recommended to the Assistant Secretary that the application
be preliminarily approved.
Based upon a review of the completed application file, the On-Site
Review Report, and the recommendation of the staff, the Assistant
Secretary has made a preliminary finding that Detroit Testing
Laboratory, Inc. can meet the requirements as prescribed by 29 CFR
1910.7 to recognize the Warren, Michigan facility for the two standards
previously listed.
All interested members of the public are invited to supply detailed
reasons and evidence supporting or challenging the sufficiency of the
applicant having met the requirements for recognition as a Nationally
Recognized Testing Laboratory, as well as Appendix A to 29 CFR 1910.7.
Submission of pertinent written documents and exhibits shall be made no
later than January 20, 1998 and must be addressed to the Office of
Variance Determination, NRTL Recognition Program, Occupational Safety
and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution
Avenue, N.W., Room N 3653, Washington, D.C. 20210. Copies of the DTL
application, the laboratory On-Site Review Report, and all submitted
comments, as received, (Docket No. NRTL-2-97), are available for
inspection and duplication at the Docket Office, Room N 2634,
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of
Labor, at the above address.
The Assistant Secretary's final decision on whether the applicant
(DTL) satisfies the requirements for recognition as a NRTL will be made
on the basis of the entire record including the public submissions and
any further proceedings that the Assistant Secretary may consider
appropriate in accordance with Appendix A to Section 1910.7.
Authority: 29 CFR 1910.7.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 14th day of November, 1997.
Charles N. Jeffress,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-30684 Filed 11-20-97; 8:45 am]
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