Authors:
Kevin Hyland – Principal Engineer, Fire Resistance and Containment, Built Environment
Matthew Schumann – Industry Manager Building Materials, Built Environment; Distinguished Member of Technical Staff, William Henry Merrill Society
UL Solutions provides testing, inspection and certification (TIC) services globally. UL Marks appear differently for products certified to different countries or schemes.
Due to the variation of the UL Mark on firestopping products, questions often surface, including:
- What do those Marks look like?
- In accordance with which standard or standards are they delivered?
- What are the differences between them?
- Which Mark applies to which market?
Continue reading below for answers to these questions.
Life safety products and systems for the built environment
UL Solutions provides TIC services for many critical life safety products. Life safety products are the various devices, materials and compounds collectively referred to as fire containment, fire detection and fire suppression products. Fire containment includes firestop products and systems, which are used to restore the fire resistance ratings of fire walls, fire barriers, and fire partitions and horizontal assemblies (floor-ceiling assemblies) to protect penetrations or joints as required by model building codes. Firestopping materials are made, sold and used globally with often unique compliance requirements for each market. These requirements have driven demand for market-specific certification marks to show products are certified, listed or classified to the appropriate standards for the location where they will be used.
North America
In the United States, UL Solutions offers customers the option to use the legacy UL Mark or the enhanced and smart UL Mark and badge system.
Legacy UL Marks, Enhanced Mark, optional smart Mark and badge
The standalone legacy UL Mark can be accompanied by a “C” or a “C” and a “US” to indicate compliance with just Canadian or Canadian and American standards, respectively. The enhanced Mark uses modular artwork that can include attributes like safety, two-digit country codes, and the product’s file or certification number. If any of these UL Marks are applied to a product, this indicates the product is under the UL Solutions U.S. Safety Certification Scheme and is only tested and certified to standards specified in their certification documentation available on UL Product iQ®. The product’s certification is accompanied by a UL Solutions-issued test report to the UL Solutions Follow-up Services Program which assess continued compliance. This means the product meets the common definition of “listed and labeled” as cited in various installation standards and building codes.
In Canada, compliance with Canadian National Standards such as CAN/ULC-S115 for firestopping products is demonstrated by one of three options. There are two legacy Marks used for the Canadian market — the ULC Mark, which features “ULC” in a circle with the word “Listed,” or the legacy UL Mark shown above complemented by the letters “C” or “C” and “US.” The “C” indicates the product has been certified to comply with the applicable Canadian Standard. The combination of “C” and “US” indicates a product has been certified to comply with both U.S. and Canadian requirements.
The enhanced UL Mark can be used interchangeably with the legacy Marks. This Mark may include attributes such as “safety” or “sûreté “with U.S. and CA country codes and the product’s file number, all embedded in the Mark artwork. Enhanced UL Marks can also be made “smart” with the inclusion of an optional QR code that opens a certification page featuring additional information about the certified product. Enhanced UL Marks, like legacy Marks, are also accompanied by a UL Solutions-issued test report to the UL Solutions Follow-Up Services Program.
Europe
The UL-EU Certification Program provides an optional, third-party certification for products that have been found in compliance with an appropriate European standard or European Assessment Document (EAD), such as EN 1366-3 and EAD 350454-00-1104 for firestopping. The legacy Mark for this service features “UL” in a circle with the letters “EU” below or the UL Enhanced Mark with “EU” included as a country code either alone or alongside others. When the product is placed onto the European Economic Area (EEA) market, the customer must complete all steps required by the European Union (EU) regulations for building products. Test reports, classifications and surveillance of factory production control must be undertaken by EU-based entities with the correct accreditations/notifications. UL Solutions then layers on additional quality and follow-up service requirements to provide customers with an optional third-party certification program intended for markets where third-party certification is required. A UL-EU certification must not be used as a substitute for a European Technical Assessment (ETA) within the EEA.
Brazil and Australia
UL Solutions also offers firestop certification programs for the Brazilian and Australian Markets. These programs feature certification options for firestopping manufacturers when they test and certify their products against local standards. Products certified for Brazil use the legacy UL-BR certification Mark. Australian firestop certifications feature the enhanced Mark with the AU country code, the “Safety” attribute and the product’s file number.
United Arab Emirates
While both U.S. and EU UL Marks are accepted and recognized by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Civil Defense, according to the UAE Fire and Life Safety Code of Practice 2018 edition, the firestop system ratings are established in accordance with different standards.
Different test standards, different requirements
While the intent of all the aforementioned firestop test standards is the same — to evaluate the ability of the firestop materials to restore the fire ratings of fire-resistive walls and floors once penetrations or joints are installed — there are some key differences between them. Below is a partial summary of notable differences.
UL 1479, the Standard for Fire Tests of Penetration Firestops, and, in some instances, UL 2079, the Standard for Tests for Fire Resistance of Building Joint Systems, require the assembly to be subjected to a hose stream test, whereas ULC S115 considers the hose stream test optional, and EN 1366-3 and EN 1366-4 do not require it.
UL 1479, UL 2079, EAD 350454-00-1104 and EAD 350141-00-1106 require intumescent firestop materials to be subjected and evaluated against aging and high-humidity exposures, whereas ULC S115 does not.
For the F rating (UL 1479, UL 2079, ULC S115) and the integrity rating (EN 1366-3, EN 1366-4), the North American standards do not allow any flaming, whereas the European standards do not allow continuous flaming for a period of time greater than 10 seconds. However, the European standards are conducted with significantly higher furnace chamber pressure, which may result in heightened flaming or hot gases passing through the firestop, and a cotton waste pad is also used when such an event occurs.
Due to these differences in testing requirements, successfully testing a product to one standard does not provide certification of compliance with the other standards.
Look for the proper UL Mark
A UL Certified product bearing the UL Mark without the correct accompanying region identifier does not indicate compliance with United States or Canadian standards, just as a North American UL Mark does not indicate compliance with a European test standard. Those products that comply with multiple standards or are being sold in multiple markets may have multiple regions indicated as part of the enhanced UL Mark itself or the certification label, which includes the certification Mark and other important information.
A UL Mark will be accepted in Canada if it has specific Canadian indicators, like “CA” on the enhanced Mark, “C” on the legacy Mark or the ULC Mark or the “CAN” modifiers for the label. Inversely, the cUL, ULC or UL enhanced Marks only featuring the “CA” country code would not be accepted within the United States, as it implies testing and certification to Canadian standards only.
Summary
It is crucial that the proper product is selected to align with the correct standard and accompanying certification Mark to meet the specifications and requirements issued for a specific project. The presence of a UL certification Mark does not grant equivalency for a material, as there are differences in test standards and code requirements as you move to different countries or regions.
Design professionals and code authorities should consult the Product iQ online search directory, to associate the certification indicated on the product label with the test standards and marking information provided in the published guide cards. The manufacturer’s technical services staff can also be a resource to help specify firestop systems for specific building applications that are Listed and would meet a building code, standard or local country requirement, as they may have different options available.
Registration for Product iQ is complimentary, or you can search using an abridged version of the site without registering. For additional information or technical guidance from UL Solutions, email ulregulatoryservices@ul.com.