A Type Examination Certificate makes a statement (without time limitation) that is true on the day it is issued and refers to compliance of the design as specified by the certificate.
Note: The prime activity is the collation of evidence confirming compliance with the specified standard. The evidence will often include the results of tests performed in our own laboratory or in another laboratory which can, probably through accreditation, demonstrate equivalent traceability, along with data sheets for material and components. Drawings, often prepared specifically for the certification exercise, are the primary source of information. The output is a report, confirming the evidence of compliance, and a certificate, defining what has been certified. The certificate will normally be a “public domain” document, but the report is a confidential document between us and our customer. There will, however, be the possibility that we are required to reveal the contents of the report, and the drawings, to appropriate legal bodies (such as the European Commission in connection with EU Directives) and to our accreditors.
Product Verification:
The comparison of an individual manufactured product against a standard specification, or a design specification, by physical examination and possibly by performance of tests (if the standard calls for routine testing).
A Product Verification Certificate makes a statement (without time limitation) that is true on the day it is issued and refers to the condition of the examined product at that time.
Production Quality Assurance:
The comparison of the manufacturer’s quality management system against the relevant general requirements of ISO 9000 series of standards and the more specific requirements of a quality system standard for the particular products (normally EN 13980), backed up by a system of regular auditing and sample product surveillance from production.
A Production Licence (general term) or Quality Assurance Notification (specific term from the ATEX Directive) or Quality Assessment Report (specific term from the IECEx Scheme) is a time limited document, subject to renewal at defined intervals, dependant on the results of continuing audits and product surveillance. A Production Licence gives permission to apply the certification body mark (for the particular certification scheme) during the currency of the licence, to indicate that the certification body had an appropriate degree of confidence that the manufactured product so marked would comply with the standard requirements. A Quality Assurance Notification permits the manufacturer to apply the European Union Notified Body Number to manufactured product on a similar basis. An IECEx Certification Body will take into account the currency of the relevant Quality Assessment Report, when maintaining the IECEx Certificate of Conformity in real time on the IECEx website.
Definition of Certification:
A procedure by which a third party gives written assurance that a product, process or service conforms to specified requirements.
(Third party - Person or body that is recognised as independent of the parties involved, as concerns the issue in question.)
(Definitions taken from ISO/IEC Guide 2)
Baseefa refers to all of its Conformity Assessment activities as “Certification”.
Product Certification is a generic term, usually taken to mean a combination of Type Examination with either Product Verification or Production Quality Assurance. Other forms of surveillance are possible (such as anonymous purchase of products on the open market; particularly relevant for consumer products), but these are currently not offered by Baseefa.
Under the requirements of the ATEX Directive (as well as many other EU Directives) the proper integration of the two aspects of design control and production control are broken and they are treated separately, possibly even involving different Notified Bodies. IECEx provides proper Product Certification. ATEX is a hybrid scheme which does not always guarantee the same level of confidence in the supplied product.
Provision of Authoritative Reports
There are situations where a full Conformity Assessment procedure is not applicable, for example reporting on observable compliance of installed equipment, or confirmation of a single test result for inclusion in a Technical File. Under these circumstances we will be pleased to provide a report, confirming our observations.
Advice and Training
Baseefa has extensive knowledge in the application of standards in many areas. Indeed, staff currently with Baseefa have played a major part in the shaping of all the standards used in the explosive atmospheres industry, both at a European and at an International level. If we can’t supply an answer to your interpretational questions, nobody else can. Making this knowledge available to our customers is a very important part of our work, but we are very careful to do it without breaking the commercial confidence of our other customers and without stepping over the dividing line into design consultancy, which would prevent us acting as a certification body.
We are happy to offer advice on an “as needed” basis, as part of our Technical Advice Service, in conjunction with certification work, or as part of your company’s planned staff training. We can offer general seminars and workshops, or events dedicated to your particular needs.
How we interface with our Customers
We wish to make using our services as simple as possible, and avoid administrative procedures adding any delay to the progress of your work. However, the fact that we are a certification body does mean that we have to follow certain guidelines laid down in the accreditation standards and by The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) who are responsible for accrediting most of what we do.
In common with all certification bodies, we are obliged to operate a commercial regime that avoids the possibility that we might come under financial pressure to issue certification where we do not have the technical basis for so doing. For this reason, we cannot operate a payment regime that relies on payment on delivery of a certificate. However, we are well enough aware of our customers’ needs to minimise payments in advance, so we will normally prepare quotations for work on a stage payment basis. Small projects, where we do not need the formality of a full quotation, have a simple payment regime which will vary according to the established payment record of each customer.
A number of our standard terms and conditions come directly from the accreditation standards and we are not in a position to vary them for individual customers.
By asking you to complete an initial Customer Registration Document (REG1) 
we are able to comply with the accreditation requirements whilst simplifying the process for each subsequent project. If, in completing the registration, you request the facility, we will accept instructions from you on individual projects using e-mail, with an appropriate password code to maintain some measure of security.You also have the opportunity to register an agent, who can deal with us on your behalf.
Additional Information
The following publications give further details of each of our services:
P03 Type Examination
This covers all type examination services, specifically including EC-Type Examination in accordance with the ATEX Directive, Annex III. It is also a component of the module Unit Verification at Annex IX of the ATEX Directive. For IECEx, the process of Type Examination results in the production of a report which can support the subsequent issue of an IECEx Certificate of Conformity or can be sent to any other IECEx Certification Body, anywhere in the world, for that body to issue locally acceptable certification.
P04 Product Verification
Product verification, applied to individual items of manufactured equipment, is offered in conjunction with most forms of type examination and also covers the requirements of the ATEX Directive, Annex V. In conjunction with Type Examination, this covers the module Unit Verification of the ATEX Directive. (The IECEx Scheme is considering introducing a Verification Module as an alternative to Quality Assurance.)
P05 Quality Assurance
This covers all forms of Quality Assurance, specifically including Production Quality Assurance (Annex IV), Product Quality Assurance (Annex VII) and Conformity to Type (Annex VI) of the ATEX Directive, as well as similar techniques applied to products, systems and services outside the scope of the ATEX Directive. Along with the process of Type Examination, this is the module required to justify issue and maintenance of an IECEx Certificate of Conformity.
P06 Review and Storage of Technical Files
In common with many EU Directives, the ATEX Directive places requirements on the storage of manufacturers Technical Files, including when a Notified Body is not involved in their preparation.
General Terms and Conditions 1. In these General Terms and Conditions and in all other specific Terms and Conditions for particular services offered by Baseefa:
a. The words "Baseefa", "we", "our" and "us" are deemed to refer to Baseefa
b. The words "customer", "your" and "you" are deemed to refer to the person, company or agent who is seeking a service from Baseefa
c. The words "certification" and "certified" are deemed to include all the conformity assessment services operated by us, whether or not a certificate is issued.
2. These General Terms and Conditions apply to all contracts between Baseefa and its customers and are effective upon registration of the customer with Baseefa. Additional specific terms and conditions apply to the individual services offered by Baseefa, as outlined in the Guides for each service.
3. You register with Baseefa by supplying basic contact information, and statements of limitation of authority applicable to individuals within your company. From this, we are able to accept subsequent orders for work from those individuals, in accordance with the limitations you have laid down.
4. You may vary the details of your registration, or terminate it at any time, by notifying us in writing.
5. The registration should be made in the form indicated in the accompanying registration form and be signed by an individual with appropriate authority within your organisation, normally a director or company secretary.
6. We have an absolute right not to accept a request for registration, or to refuse to continue a registration, but if we do so we will indicate the reason. (Normally a refusal to grant or to continue registration will only occur in the event that you are not capable of complying with, or have previously failed to comply with, our terms and conditions.) If you are not satisfied with the explanation provided, you may appeal to our advisory board.
7. Your responsibilities to us are that:
a. You will pay all fees due to us within thirty days of the date of the invoice unless you have had confirmation from us, in writing, that an alternative payment regime is acceptable.
b. You will supply such information, drawings, samples and facilities as may be necessary for us to perform our work to an agreed schedule.
c. You will ensure that all technical documentation and drawings supplied to us are clearly and uniquely identified and dated.
d. You will provide access as necessary for our personnel, or those working on our behalf, to perform their duties.
e. You will inform us promptly of any significant change that could affect a product system or service that is certified by us.
f. You will keep a register of all customer complaints and remedial action relating to any product, system or service certified by us, and shall allow our representatives full access to the register.
g. Ownership of certificates and related documents is retained by us and you will return them to us on request.
h. Certificates and related documents cannot be transferred to other parties without our express permission in writing and you will inform us if you wish us to consider such a transfer.
i. Where a certificate relates to an activity carried out at a particular location, you will notify us of any intended change of location for the activity so that appropriate measures can be taken in accordance with the rules for the particular service.
j. You warrant that the manufacture, use, sale or supply of any product, system or device certified by us will not infringe any copyright, patent or other intellectual property right of any person or other body.
k.You will indemnify us against any financial losses that we might incur as a result of your failure to comply with these terms and conditions.
l. You will use a certification mark or other mark that relates to a particular service only in conjunction with that service and in the way provided for in the rules of that service. In particular, in respect of marketing and publicity, you will not represent or pass off any such mark as your property. You will immediately discontinue any use of such a mark which is unacceptable to us and any form of statement with reference to the authority by which you use the mark which, in our opinion, is misleading.
8. Our responsibilities to you are that:
a. We shall provide suitably qualified personnel to perform work for you, either from our own staff or by employment of sub-contractors that we have approved for the purpose.
b. We shall ensure that any sub-contractors are competent for the work that they undertake and that they and their personnel are bound by such of these terms and conditions as are applicable.
c. We shall use our best endeavors to conduct our work in a professional and competent manner. However, we cannot warrant the quality of any particular product, system or service certified by us. Neither can we accept liability for any consequences arising from the use of such products, systems or services.
d. All information obtained by us in the course of our work shall be treated as confidential in so far as the information is not in the public domain. This undertaking does not preclude us from making available, in confidence, such information as we may be required to provide under national or European Community legislation or under the terms of our accreditation.
e. We shall provide advice in good faith, based upon the professional judgment of our personnel as applicable to the information we have at the time. We accept no responsibility beyond that for the exercise of due diligence for any consequences arising out of that advice.
f. We shall advise you in writing of any complaint from another party regarding the compliance with stated standards of a product, system or service that we have certified.
9. In the event that you wish to appeal against a decision we have taken in respect of these Terms and Conditions, you should follow the Appeals Procedure, published in our Publication Number P08. Such an appeal does not affect your statutory rights.
10. We may alter these Terms and Conditions at any time. We will give you due notice in writing of such alterations.
11. The interpretation of these Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law.
12. Any notice required by these Terms and Conditions to be given to either party shall be deemed to have been given by the sending of a letter by post or fax to the party at its registered address and service shall be deemed to be effected at the time at which the letter would have been delivered in the ordinary course of post or telecommunications.
