Learn more about the safety listings on the products you use everyday!
Sometimes it may seem like there are thousands upon thousands of safety listings, requirements and precautions in the modern world. Well there are, and they all suck.
Kidding! There are not that many, they're really quite simple, and they all have one collective goal in mind: to make a cleaner, safer, better world for us all. Here, you'll find that I listed a few of the major ones that specifically apply to the lighting industry.
All of the following organizations have been approved by OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) to apply their safety testing to products.
UL Listed, Recognized, Classified and ETL Listed
UL is arguably the most prominent safety listing organization.
Using their predetermined safety requirements, the UL organization tests products to determine whether they are safe for use. UL stands for Underwriter Laboratories and was established in Chicago in 1894. The first inspections by UL were conducted by UL investigators at the manufacturer’s facilities; currently, they host over 60 official laboratories for testing and giving certifications.
ETL stands for Electrical Testing Laboratories and is nationally recognized as a reliable testing laboratory. ETL tests to the standards developed and tested by UL.
Our most popular LED Light Bulb, the GL32943S, is UL Listed.
The three official UL listings and their descriptions are:
UL Listed; a listing given to a product that complies with the UL safety standards.
UL Recognized; a certification posted on the smaller, individual components of a UL Listed product.
UL Classified; a listing given to a product that has been evaluated for only a few specific UL safety standards, as opposed to all of them.
ETL Listed; a listing given to a product that has been tested to and complies with UL standards.
DLC Listed and DLC Premium
DLC stands for DesignLights Consortium and is petitioned strictly to commercial lighting products, unlike the universal applications of UL.
A DLC listing or rating denotes a products capability of performing well amidst high energy levels. Generally, this listing regards a products high energy efficiency when outputting light. The DLC rates products with a motive of providing a cleaner, more energy-efficient future.
Many of our Flood Lights and Wall Packs are DLC Listed.
The two main DLC listings and their descriptions are:
DLC Listed; a listing given to a product that meets standards for operating with high energy efficiency.
DLC Premium; a listing given to a product that meets higher standards than DLC Listed products.
RoHS and Subsequent Versions
The RoHS, (the Restriction of Hazardous Substances), impedes with the use of certain hazardous materials in various electrical products.
Some of the materials that are restricted by the RoHS organization include mercury, lead, and cadmium; these materials are in one way or another hazardous to the environment and/or humans, as well as inherently pollutive.
The RoHS organization has evolved into further fields by implementing and expanding their restrictions. Other relatives of the parent organization include RoHS 2, RoHS 3 and RoHS 5/6. (When asked about an RoHS 4, the organization stated that there will most likely be one eventually.)
One of our most popular Flush Mount Downlights, the SL79622, is RoHS Compliant.
The main RoHS listings and their descriptions are:
RoHS; The rating of the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in favor of a cleaner, safer environment.
RoHS 2; An expanded Restriction of Hazardous Substances, covering more fields.
RoHS 3; An even furtherly expanded Restriction of Hazardous Substances, in which the list of unpermitted minerals is extended from 6 to 10.
RoHS 5/6; The rating of the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in which the product unincludes at least 5 of the 6 unpermitted minerals.
CEC
CEC stands for the compliance with the California Energy Commission. This organization sets regulations for a vast array of lighting products, including lamps, controls and fixtures. They evaluate a products availability on the market by determining whether the products efficiency is compliant with their standards.
The CEC oversees the Title 20 and JA8 Title 24 standards of California.
Title 20 and JA8 Title 24
In a nutshell, Title 20 and JA8 Title 24 are ratings that apply strictly to California that seek to ensure the efficiency of lighting in homes and businesses, as to achieve the highest attainable level of environmental quality. They are requirements within the state of California for inclusion within new construction projects.
Essentially, the programs work to preserve environmental quality by reducing the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted into the air.
The main listings and their descriptions are:
Title 20; a listing given by the CEC to a product that complies with their energy efficiency requirements, required for any form of marketing in the state of California.
JA8 Title 24; a listing given by the CEC to a product that complies with their energy efficiency requirements, unrequired for marketing in the state of California, but required for use in new construction projects.
NSF
The NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) is an American non-profit organization that regulates sanitation and safety to preserve the health of the public. The NSF badge denotes that the product has been tested and passed by the NSF, validating its compliance with the health requirements. The badge can also reference a certain companies priority of healthy product and respectable image.
The NSF can administer unannounced examinations of work areas and products to verify continued compliance.
Energy Star
The Energy Star organization of the U.S.E.P.A. (United States Environmental Protection Agency) provides a rating that denotes a products compliance with federally regulated energy efficiency. It guarantees the efficiency of a product and its consideration for the well being of both the environment and the consumer.
Some of our best selling Christmas String Light sets like the VH390528 or the VH316689 are Energy Star Rated.
To be considered for the Energy Star badge, essentially, products must:
Practice substantial energy savings,
Be universally well regarded by the consumer,
Provide extensive energy efficient methods of operation, as well as a method by which to measure it,
Include a way to showcase the badge,
And Include the guarantee that, if the product was inherently more expensive than a similar, less efficient product, the ratio lost by making a greater purchase can be made up within a reasonable amount of time through energy savings.
Well, there you have it. Thanks to all of these organizations, we live in a safer, cleaner world that immensely considers its inhabitants and provides a better future for us all. Now that wasn't so bad, was it?
