Product certification ensures safety and quality before items are sold. Different industries have different tests, and some countries make it optional. Companies can use software or human testing to ensure compliance. Ethical standards dictate that products must be checked for safety, even if certification is not required.
Product certification is a quality assurance effort that items go through before they are made available for sale. Ensuring that a product is safe to use is one of the main objectives of product certification. In addition, each product category undergoes different tests. For example, computer software will not have the same product certification testing as building materials. Some countries and industries do not require certification, so a company may voluntarily withdraw and certify their products or sell them without certification.
Before a product can be sold in stores or privately to other companies, it undergoes product certification. Most companies have software made to test for certification and will go through the full list of tests to ensure the product is ready for sale. By using a program, a company can ensure that no tests are accidentally skipped while getting an unbiased view of the product. Companies that do not have such software can undergo human testing. This means that someone monitors the tests and checks that regulations are adhered to.
Each industry has different product certification tests. This is because each industry creates a completely different product that cannot be tested in the same way. Products such as software are checked to ensure that all features work correctly, and if the software says it is compatible with other programs, it is checked for full compatibility. Building materials are checked for weight and strength to ensure they can be used safely in construction without falling apart or adding extra stress to the overall building. Similar industries may encounter similar tests.
Some countries and industries do not have product certification or make the process completely optional. As of early 2011, the US does not require product certification for the nuclear industry, but it does have requirements for many other products. The UK has optional product certification for all industries, meaning companies are not required to certify their products before they are sold, although some companies choose to pursue certification as an ethical consideration or as a marketing tool.
When an industry does not need certification, it is up to the individual company to decide whether their products are safety checked. Ethical standards dictate that products must be checked anyway, especially products that may risk consumer safety. Refusing to seek certification makes it difficult for suspicious consumers to trust products and may cause consumers to buy products from competitors who have had their products tested.
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