Product Testing: Retesting the Waters

March 2, 2016
Regular retesting demonstrates the integrity of products & the industry

About the author: Amy Reichel is marketing and communications specialist for the Water Quality Assn. Reichel can be reached at [email protected] or 630.505.0287.

In recent months, some clients of the Water Quality Assn.’s (WQA) Product Certification Program have questioned the association’s policy on retesting already certified products. WQA and other certifiers of water treatment products, including NSF Intl. and UL, require products to be regularly retested in order to maintain their certified status. In conformance with industry best practices, WQA requires the products it certifies to be retested once every one to five years, depending on product type. In certain cases, retesting on a more frequent basis may be required. This is because product certification is not a “one and done” type of process, but rather a process designed to verify integrity.

“We want our clients to understand that there are very good reasons why retesting is the preferred practice among certification bodies,” said Tom Spoden, product certification director for WQA. “It produces significant benefits for the consumer, the product’s manufacturer and the water treatment industry as a whole.”

Product certification, Spoden explained, is not unlike the steps a person must take to obtain and retain a driver’s license. One must pass written and road (performance) tests in order to be granted a driver’s license, and, depending on the state, renew the license after a certain number of years by demonstrating the continued ability to drive safely. This helps ensure that the people with whom we share our roads know how to drive in a safe and controlled manner.

Consumer & Manufacturer Benefits

Products that have been tested and certified by certification bodies provide assurance for consumers. Certification proves to consumers that their products will perform as advertised and that they are safe to use. The process of regularly retesting a certified product validates that the product operates as safely and efficiently as when it first became certified. 

“In order for the certification mark to truly have meaning, consumers need to be able to trust the meaning behind that mark,” Spoden said. “As a product certifier, it’s our job to make sure that people trust WQA’s Gold Seal as an indicator of a product’s quality, regardless of whether it was first certified yesterday or 10 years ago.”

Retesting verifies that the materials used to manufacture the product remain safe, that the manufacturing process has not changed, and ultimately, that the product continues to meet the performance standards to which it originally was certified. Without consistent retesting, there would not be a way to ensure that the materials being used have not changed at the supplier level and are still deemed safe or that the product still performs as claimed.

The retesting requirement also has benefits for a product’s manufacturer. It helps protect manufacturers of drinking water treatment systems and components by ensuring that quality systems and supply chains are closely reviewed on a regular basis. This provides a means for the manufacturer to be vigilant about identifying unwarranted or unknown changes in the supply chain. Furthermore, it helps manufacturers meet and keep up with the ever-changing requirements of the regulatory realm through adoption of methods for compliance by standards. 

For example, the addition of NSF/ANSI Standard 372 gave manufacturers an option to certify or comply with the federal lead-free regulations that went into effect in 2014. During recertification, WQA works with manufacturers to determine the most cost-efficient way to retest products and provide knowledge on changing regulations that may impact them.  

“If there is not a retesting procedure in place, manufacturers have to deal with the unexpected and, most likely, unbudgeted cost, which can then possibly hinder their business,” Spoden said. “However, if a manufacturer works with a certification body that has a retesting procedure in place, the company may already have planned for retesting and accounted for it in [its] budget, making these unexpected requirements less of a burden.”  

Industry Benefits

Perhaps the most important benefit of retesting is the integrity and credibility that it brings to the industry. The water sector, in general, has faced significant scrutiny regarding the health and safety of products that come in contact with drinking water.

“If product certification bodies eliminate or even reduce the frequency of their retesting requirement, our industry would be open to backlash, more scrutiny and even heavier laws and regulations,” said David Loveday, government affairs director for WQA. “Product testing and certification offer a means by which our industry can regulate itself and avoid additional scrutiny by government entities. If legislators and regulators lose trust in our ability to self-regulate, it would be potentially disastrous for our industry.”

In conclusion, the retesting of certified water treatment products should not be viewed as a burden, but rather as a benefit and type of protection for manufacturers, consumers and the industry as a whole. Regular retesting helps ensure the quality of materials, performance of products and integrity of WQA’s Gold Seal and the marks of other product certification programs.

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About the Author

Amy Reichel

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