Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global leader in safety testing and certification, announced on September 9th the opening of a testing and certification facility for photovoltaic (PV) equipment in Ise City, Mie Prefecture, Japan. In addition to offering performance and safety testing services for PV equipment in Japan, the facility will provide technical support to Japanese PV equipment manufacturers as they develop their businesses and enter overseas markets.

The global demand for sustainable energy generating sources, such as PV systems, has increased. The governments of the U.S. and Japan, as well as market-leading Germany, continue to take proactive steps to develop the PV market and accelerate PV equipment production. In Japan the government’s road-map for reaching greenhouse gas reduction targets includes a national policy to expand the reach of PV power generation to 10 million households by 2020, which constitutes a 21-fold increase compared with 2005.

PV systems, which consist of PV modules and panels, junction boxes, inverters and power converters, are permanently installed on roofs or ground-supported frames and thus are prone to degradation due to wind, rain, hail, as well as age. Accordingly, improving the safety and verifying performance of PV systems is critical for them to receive widespread adoption.

UL has been engaged in formulating PV equipment safety specifications and standards since the 1980s, and has contributed to the safe operation of PV equipment by providing safety testing and certification services for PV equipment manufacturers worldwide. “We continue to expand our service capabilities to meet the recent increase in global demand for PV product evaluation services,” said Jeff Smidt, Vice President and General Manager for UL’s Global Energy business. Just within the last couple of years, UL has opened PV testing facilities similar to the new Ise City facility, in San Jose, California, U.S.; Suzhou, China; and Zeppelinheim, Neu-Isenburg, Germany. “With further plans to open a testing facility in India, UL is implementing a concrete, large-scale investment plan in North America, Asia, and Europe, which are the world’s largest PV markets,” Smidt added.

The new PV testing facility in Ise City has 14 cutting-edge testing chambers on a 2,000 square-meter (approx. 21,000 square-feet) site. It is fully equipped with solar simulators emitting artificial sunlight, impact testers (which test the durability of a device against physical impact) and hail testers. Moreover, to meet strict testing requirements, the facility is staffed by engineers and technicians with expert knowledge of PV testing work. (source ul.com)

UL is the trusted resource across the globe for product safety certification and compliance solutions. Benefiting a range of customers – from manufacturers and consumers to regulatory bodies and code officials – they have tested products for public safety for more than a century.

The EMC Directive states that equipment shall be designed and manufactured, having regard to the state of the art, to ensure that:

a) the electromagnetic disturbance generated does not exceed the level which radio and telecommunications equipment or other equipment cannot operate as intended;

b) it has a level of immunity to the electromagnetic disturbance to be expected in its intended use which allows it to operate without unacceptable degradation of its intended use.

Manufacturers can use the internal production control described in Annex II to comply with the EMC Directive. The manufacturer shall perform an electromagnetic assessment on the product with the view of meeting the protection requirements listed above in points a and b. The manufacturer may want to identify the appropriate European standards from the list of EMC standards, order them, and demonstrate that they comply with the standards. Manufacturers can employ the services of an independent lab to show that a product meets the requirements of the relevant standards. Manufacturers must assemble a technical file which can be available to EU competent authorities. This technical file would include information such as the design of the product, the standards used, and the test certificate obtained from the lab proving conformance to the standards.

The European Commission Guide to the EMC Directive states that the EMC Directive excludes three types of equipment:

• Radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment covered by Directive 1999/5/EC (The R&TTE Directive)
• Aeronautical products, parts, and appliances referred to in Regulation 1592/2003;
• Radio equipment used by radio amateurs as defined in International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Radio Regulations.

The Commission’s EMC Guide states that EMC requirements for certain products are covered within that specific product directive. For example, EMC requirements for the Medical Device Directive (93/42/EEC), the Active Implantable Medical Device Directive (90/385/EEC), the In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Device Directive (98/79/EC), the Marine Equipment Directive (96/98/EC), the Agricultural and Forestry Tractors Directive (75/322/EEC), the Two or Three-Wheeled Motor Vehicles Directive (97/24/EC), and the Auto EMC Directive (95/54/EC) for parts that affect the safety of a vehicle are covered by requirements in those directives. As a result, products falling under those directives are not covered by the EMC Directive (2004/108/EC). (source www.export.gov)