UL's Functional Safety 3-Year Certifcate

UL Functional Safety Certificate program covers products that are evaluated for functional safety only, without a UL Listing. The 3-Year Functional Safety Certificate means that UL has evaluated a sample of the product and determined that it complies with the safety requirements of a published functional safety standard. Functional safety is the part of overall safety which depends on the correct functioning of safety related control systems and software. A functional safety investigation involves the evaluation of a safety critical circuit for its efficancy and reliability covering safety aspects related to software, hardware, environmental stress factors (such as EMC) and safety lifecycle management processes.

"These certificates can be valuable in supporting declarations of conformity to European Directives," says Kevin Connelly business development manager at UL. For manufacturers wanting to sell in Europe, their products need to fulfill the relevant European Directives (low voltage, EMC, machinery, etc.) to show the CE mark. The functional safety certificate is a key element in demonstrating compliance with European law based on the manufacturer's declaration of conformity.

Products that receive a UL functional safety certificate only are ineligible to use any UL mark in their advertising or promotions. However, manufacturers may reference that the "product has a UL functional safety certificate" in advertising and promotions. When displaying the UL functional safety certificate or forwarding copies of the UL functional safety certificate to 3rd parties, the manufacturer must forward the certificate in its entirety without excluding any sections or making modifications.

The validity period of the functional safety certificate is unrelated to the proof test interval or mission time. For example, if the device has a 3-Year Functional Safety Certificate, then that device can remain installed and operate throughout its entire mission time, even if that is 10 or 20 years. UL will not have to re-certify, or field-evaluate, after 3 years. The 3-year limited validity of the functional safety certificate applies to the device manufacturer. It means the manufacturer is allowed to produce units of the certified type for three years only. It is the manufacturer's responsibility to ensure that each unit that leaves the factory conforms exactly with the certification report.

The following fields are displayed on UL's Functional Safety Certificate:

• Certificate No.
• Date of Issue
• Certificate Holder
• Certificate Product
• Model
• SIL/PL/Class
• Additional Information
• Conditions of Use (if applicable)
• Tested according to
• Test Report No.
• Expiration Date