A Giant Change is Coming: The date is looming = Dec. 20, 2020. On that date, two of the most utilized standards in the product safety world will be replaced by a completely new standard. This includes North America, the European Union, and many other free trade countries around the world.
Standards Being Replaced: UL-CSA-EN-IEC62368, the Standard for Audio/Video, Information and Communication Technology Equipment, will replace these heavily used standards:
- UL-CSA-EN-IEC60950-1 the Standard for Information Technology Equipment, including Business Equipment and Associated Equipment
- UL-CSA-EN-IEC60065 the Standard for Audio, Video & Similar Electronic Apparatus
Products Impacted Include:
- Information Technology Equipment (ITE) including data communications equipment, scanners, large scale computing, etc.
- Business Equipment including copiers, shredders, data storage devices, cash registers, point-of-sale terminals, postage and mail processing equipment, kiosks, etc.
- Banking Equipment including automated teller machines, counting machines, etc.
- Personal Computing Equipment including PC’s, tablets, monitors, etc.
- Consumer Electronics including cell phones, video game systems, wearables, etc.
- Telecom Equipment including wired and wireless telephone sets, telephone switching systems, fax machines, telecom networking equipment, etc.
- Networking Equipment including routers, bridges, networking powering systems such as PoE, etc.
- Audio Equipment including personal and professional audio equipment, music players, electronic instruments, tone generators, etc.
- Video Equipment including video cameras, video projectors, tape and disc players & recorders, cable and satellite converter boxes, antenna positioners, etc.
When a Standard is Replaced: This is not a standard amendment or a new edition, this is a mandatory shift to a completely new standard. That means that all products that are currently certified to 60950 or 60065 must be certified to 62368 by December 20 of next year. Considering the size of the industries and extremely high number of certifications to the current standards, it is likely that this “standard update” will cause quite a backlog at the certifications agencies. You are highly encouraged to begin preparation now.
A Complete New Direction: The new standard is a Hazard Based Safety Engineering (HBSE) standard, whereas the standards being replaced do not include HBSE requirements. This change in direction offers manufacturers who know how to create and use a Risk Assessment more options in verifying compliance. Whereas those who have never prepared a Risk Assessment are at a significant disadvantage. See whitepaper #62 for details on Risk Assessments.
More Stringent Requirements: Continued compliance cannot be assumed. While some requirements are being reduced or eliminated, there are some new and more stringent requirements. You cannot assume you comply. There will be products that do not comply with the new requirements = manufacturers must allow time for product revision and certification of the revised product by Dec. 20, 2020. You are highly encouraged to begin preparation now.
Summary: If you have products that are US-UL, CAN-CSA, and/or EU/CE-LVD certified to UL-CSA-EN-IEC60950 or UL-CSA-EN-IEC60065, this whitepaper is intended to encourage you to start now in updating your product certifications to the new standard, UL-CSA-EN-IEC62368. Future whitepapers will discuss technical aspects of this new standard.
CertifiGroup can help you develop a Risk Assessment for your product
CertifiGroup can help you update your products to the new standard
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Preliminary Design Reviews, Design Guidance, Training
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