SAA certification

SAA certification

The standards organization in Australia is the Standards Association of Australia, so many friends refer to Australian certification as SAA certification. Electrical products entering the Australian market must comply with SAA certification. There are two main types of SAA logos, one is formal recognition and the other is standard logos. Formal certification is only responsible for samples, while standard markings require each factory to review. The certification scope of SAA is mainly divided into quality management systems; Environmental management system; Occupational health and safety management; Information security management; The period for applying for Australian SAA certification for common products is 3-4 weeks, and if the product quality does not meet the standards, the date may be extended. If the transported product is not certified, the product will be detained or confiscated, or a fine will be imposed.

SAA Certification - Overview

The standards organization in Australia is the Standards Association of Australia, so many friends refer to Australian certification as SAA certification. In fact, SAA is only a standard setting agency and does not issue product certification certificates. SAA was later renamed as Standards Australia Limited. SAA is an independent company with no direct relationship to the government, but the federal and state governments are members of it. SAA and the Australian Federal Government have signed a memorandum recognizing SAA as the highest organization of Australian non-governmental standards organizations. The memorandum also pointed out that standard formulation should be consistent with WTO requirements. Therefore, there is an agreement stating that when appropriate international standards already exist, there is no need to develop new Australian standards. Australian standards start with "AS", and joint standards between Australia and New Zealand start with "AS/NZS". The standards in Australia and New Zealand are basically consistent with IEC, but there are also some national differences. Australia and New Zealand promote standardization and mutual recognition of certification, and products can be sold in another country as long as they obtain certification from one country.

About SAA Certification

SAA is a certification commonly faced by the industry that electrical products entering the Australian market must comply with local safety regulations. Due to the mutual recognition agreement between Australia and New Zealand, all products certified by Australia can smoothly enter the New Zealand market for sale. All electrical products must undergo safety certification (SAA). There are two main types of SAA logos, one is formal recognition and the other is standard logos. Formal certification is only responsible for samples, while standard markings require each factory to review. At present, there are two ways to apply for SAA certification in China. One is to transfer the CB test report. If there is no CB test report, you can also apply directly.

SAA Certification - Certification/Supervisory Authority

Australia is a federal country, and the certification, control, and management of electrical safety and energy consumption requirements are carried out by the regulatory authorities of each state or region in accordance with their own certification procedures. Certificates issued by any state are equally valid in other states/regions without any additional procedures. In addition, QAS (Quality Assurance Services Pty Ltd.), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the SAA standard setting agency, is an Australian NCB (National Certification Body), and its certificates have also been recognized in various states or regions, with equal validity.

SAA Certification - Product Safety Certification

There is no unified safety certification mark in Australia, and various states or regions have successively stipulated the management methods for electrical products in the form of legislation. Although the name and date of promulgation are different, the content of Electrical safety legislation in various states or regions is basically the same. Electrical products are divided into regulated electrical products and non regulated products. Regulatory electrical products are classified according to AS/NZS4417.2, including electric heating equipment, refrigeration equipment, electric tools, components, etc. The catalog will be published in the government gazette and added according to the actual situation. Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria are the most active in the certification process. Taking Queensland as an example, the Electricity Act 1994 announced detailed regulations for the certification, sale, and use of electrical appliances.

1. Regulated electrical appliances: Regulated electrical appliances must obtain a certificate of approval issued by the monitoring department, and must be labeled with a certificate number. It should be noted that the authentication program is only focused on security, not performance or quality, unless it is related to security. The first letter of the certificate number shows which state or region the certificate was issued from.

2. Non regulated electrical appliances: Although certification is not mandatory for non regulated products, their safety is the responsibility of the seller/manufacturer and they can voluntarily apply for certification. The monitoring department will issue a Certificate of Suitability to products that meet the standard requirements. Electrical products that have obtained a certificate of conformity can be labeled with the certificate number, and the last letter of the certificate indicates which state or region issued the certificate, such as:

CS/431/Q (Queensland)

CS/108/N (New South Wales)

RCM Mark: Currently, Australia and New Zealand are introducing the Regulatory Compliance Mark to achieve unified identification of electrical products. This mark is a trademark owned by regulatory agencies in Australia and New Zealand, indicating that the product meets both safety and EMC requirements and is not mandatory. After obtaining safety certification and electromagnetic compatibility registration for the product, the use of the RCM logo can be applied for through the regulatory agency that issued the safety certification or "RCM Registry" (Standards Australia).

SAIGLOBAL logo: It is a product safety logo issued by SAI (formerly SAI), which is not mandatory and requires factory inspection, etc.

SAA Certification - Electromagnetic Safety Requirements

When electronic and electrical products enter Australia, in addition to safety signs, they should also have the EMC mark, also known as the c-tick mark. The purpose is to protect the resources of the radio communication frequency band, and its implementation system is somewhat similar to the EMC Directive in Europe. Therefore, it can be self declared by the manufacturer/importer. However, before applying for the C-tick logo, testing must be carried out according to relevant CISPR standards. And the report must be endorsed and submitted by the Australian importer. The Australian Commission Authority (ACA) uniformly accepts and issues registration numbers.

In Australia, electromagnetic compatibility is monitored by ACA (Australian Communications Authority). Under the Australian EMC system, products are divided into three categories. Suppliers must register with ACA and apply for C-TICK logo before selling Class II and III products.

Class 1 products: products with low interference radiation to devices using wireless spectrum, such as manual switches, simple relays, unidirectional squirrel cage induction motors, resistors, etc. This type of product can voluntarily apply for the use of the c-tick logo during production and sales.

Class II products: products with high interference radiation to devices using wireless spectrum, such as switching power supplies, welding machines, dimmers, and most household appliances.

Three types of products: products with extremely high interference to devices using wireless spectrum, namely products covered by CISPR11 and CISPR22. Due to the fact that applicants applying for the use of the C-TICK logo in ACA registration are limited to companies registered in Australia or New Zealand, they can apply through buyers in Australia or New Zealand or through certification agencies of branches/partners in Australia or New Zealand.

SAA Certification - Energy Consumption Label

Although most states and regions have similar mandatory requirements for the energy consumption of white goods and household air conditioners, the mandatory certification product catalogs vary from state to state. At present, Queensland and Victoria have the most comprehensive product catalogs. The registration of any state is equally valid in other states and territories. The energy consumption requirements apply to the following household appliances:

Refrigerators and refrigerators (test standards: AS/NZS 44741.1, AS/NZS 4474.2)

Washing machine (testing standards: AS/NZS 2040.1, AS/NZS2040.2)

Dryer (test standards: AS/NZS2442.1, AS/NZS2442.2)

Dishwasher (Test standards: AS/NZS 2007.1, AS/NZS 2007.2)

Unidirectional household air conditioners (test standards: AS/NZS3823.1.1, AS/NZS3823.1.2, AS/NZS3823.2, AS/NZS3823.3) must be submitted by the applicant to the monitoring agency with a complete and correct test report and samples of energy consumption labels. The test report must be issued by an accredited laboratory and valid for three years from the date of issuance.

SAA Certification - Certification Method

In the scope of SAA certification, currently Chinese manufacturers' application for SAA certification is mainly limited to product certification. According to the different types of products, product certification mainly adopts two methods: "formal recognition" and "standard marking". Among them, "formal approval" only requires manufacturers to provide product samples and conduct laboratory testing according to SAA's product standards. The "standard mark" not only requires sample testing, but also requires factory inspection. Generally, factories are required to have an effective quality management system in place during the production process of the products they apply for certification.

SAA Issuing Authority - Australian Issuing Authority

There are a total of 8 certification agencies in Australia (including New Zealand)

Department of Fair Trading, New South Wales

Queensland Department of Mines and Energy

The Office of the Chief Electrical Inspector, Victoria

Office of Energy Policy, South Australia

Office of Energy, Western Australia

Office of Electricity, Standards and Safety, Tasmania

TCA Testing&Certification Australia, Sydney

Ministry of Commerce, New Zealand

SAA Certification - Certification Scope

The certification scope of SAA is wide, and different types of certification marks also vary slightly. The main scope includes:

Quality management system;

Environmental management system;

Occupational health and safety management;

Information security management;

HACCP food safety management; And product certification

SAA Certification - Certification Cycle

In general, the period for applying for Australian SAA certification for ITAV lighting fixtures and small household appliances is 3-4 weeks. If the product quality does not meet the standards, the date may be extended.

When submitting the report for review in Australia, it is necessary to provide the SAA certificate of the product plug (mainly for products with plugs), otherwise it will not be processed. For important components in the product, such as lamps, the SAA certificate of the transformer inside the lamp needs to be provided, otherwise the review materials in Australia will not pass

SAA Certification - Certification Process

1. Fill out the application form

2. Product sample testing

3. Product rectification (when testing fails)

4. Issue a report

5. Report evaluation

6. Issue certificate

SAA Certification - Penalties

Electrical products transported to Australia must comply with electrical safety and electromagnetic compatibility standards. If they fail to meet the requirements, they will receive the following treatment:

◆ Detainment or confiscation of products

◆ Or a fine, usually around $10000 for individuals, and around $200000 for companies

SAA certified logo

There are two main types of SAA logos:

One is formal recognition;

One type is the standard logo.

Formal certification is only the responsibility of the sample, while standard markings require factory review by each individual.

At present, there are two ways to apply for SAA certification in China. One is to transfer the CB test report. If there is no CB test report, you can also apply directly.