Exporting Machinery To The USA

If you're an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) who's thinking of breaking into the North American market, there are a few legal and safety requirements that you must fulfil. The machines you produce for the UK or European market will have a different set of regulations and will be constructed for a different infrastructure. Exporting your machinery to the USA will, therefore, require some modifications to be made. The same also applies to anyone transporting existing equipment to a North American facility, and those who might have acquired used equipment (or any machinery without the proper certification) for use in the USA.

OSHA And Jurisdiction

In all instances, you must comply with all the existing electrical safety requirements in the machine's new destination. Many local jurisdictions in the USA will not permit the installation or use of 'unlabelled' equipment at any commercial or manufacturing sites within their communities. If any unlabelled equipment is discovered in use by local inspectors, they are within their rights to ban the business from turning it on. They may also be subject to a fine or closure of your premises by the Occupational Health & Safety Authority, OSHA, in the United States. Further, anyone found using non-compliant machinery runs the risk of being hit with liability-related lawsuits.

If you can meet the relevant local safety requirements and are keen on exporting machinery to the USA, you must therefore ensure that all equipment is appropriately certified. There are two ways of doing this in North America. The first is known as Field Labelling, and there's a more complex certification by the Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL). Not all OEMs are clear about which one of these to pursue, particularly as the NRTL certification is part of both labelling systems.

As in British and European jurisdictions, all electrical and electronic products used in North America are subject to a set of standards and regulations. The NRTLs are third-party private bodies who run the certification programme under the authority of OSHA. They satisfy the legal requirements of the standard known as 29 CFR 1910.7, insofar as it concerns services for safety testing and certification of equipment.