certification mark for outdoor luminaires

Durability Range for Maintenance
Painting: 7 to 15 years or 15 to 25 years
C4 Atmospheric Corrosivity Category or C5 Atmospheric Corrosivity Category

Due to the environmental pollution and atmosphere painting/coating will be corroded and usually durability tests will be conducted to guarantee the maintenance of painting for the painting/coating to the expected time period of the protective paint/coating.

According to ISO standard, 7 to 15 years was defined as the medium durability range, and 15 to 25 years was defined as the high durability range.

Durability Ranges are evaluated under different environmental circumstances and they are defined in Atmospheric Corrosivity Categories from C1 to C5 and CX, where C4 and C5 are high and very high corrosivity, according to ISO standard.

Examples for C4 (high corrosivity category) of outdoor typical environments are: polluted urban areas, industrial areas, coastal areas without spray of salt water or, exposure to strong effect of deicing salts.

Examples for C5 (very high corrosivity category) of outdoor typical environments are: industrial areas, coastal areas, sheltered positions on coastline.

UV resistance was tested by the specified standard to assess the color change and mechanical strength retention after UV aging test. Such as the coating of enclosure with or without the obviously color change, and/or the plastic of cover be able to provide enough mechanical strength for supporting and/or the IP protection as initial, and/or the plastic lens be able to withstand the UV aging and maintain more than 75% of the initial output lumen flux of the luminaires.

The most important indicator for light pollution is the upward light ratio which is the amount of light emitted above the horizontal plane at the position of the luminaire. Based on the ambient brightness of the environment to be experienced, the CIE standard specified the maximum values of upward light ratio of luminaire at 15%, 5.0%, 2.5%, and 0.0% used for environmental zone from E4: High district brightness to E0: Intrinsically dark.

Another focus in addition to product quality is product safety, which TÜV SÜD determines by performing safety-related tests on the series-manufactured products. The voluntary certification mark with the statement "Safety tested" is issued for products, indicating that the product was tested and certified for conformity with the essential technical safety requirements.

The certification criteria vary depending on the products in question. While the focus in the case of a hair dryer, for example, is on electrical safety, the focus in the case of a car jack is on the mechanical characteristics. Certification is based on product-specific standards and test programmes, which are identified on the relevant certificate.

Periodic surveillance of the manufacturer of a product constitutes the basic premise for certification that includes the award of a certification mark. Certification always requires product testing and regular factory inspections.

As a third-party expert organisation, TÜV SÜD Product Service verifies that the manufacturer is able to maintain consistent quality in line with the requirements throughout high-volume production and has established the necessary quality system, including incoming goods inspections, lists of materials and final product testing.

In addition, calibration of the necessary measuring and monitoring equipment must be ensured. Surveillance and/or monitoring covers the testing of safety-critical components and other materials used. TÜV SÜD also carries out "shipment inspections" during the manufacture of the product. Within the scope of this inspection, the TÜV SÜD inspectors check products according to a defined random-sampling procedure directly on site at the factory.

Moreover, the inspectors take random samples and send them to Germany for further tests. If unauthorised changes are made to the product, the certificate will be withdrawn and the TÜV SÜD certification mark may no longer be used.