Canada SCC Safety Approval

In Canada, the responsibility for health and safety lies with the Provinces and Territories. Each Province and Territory has specific separate legislation governing electrical safety in its jurisdiction, which includes the adoption of codes and standards and the establishment or delegating of an authority to administer the legislation, to Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs).

The Provinces and Territories all adopt the Canadian Electrical Code (CE Code), Part I, with few amendments, which provides uniform electrical codes and standards throughout Canada. With regards to equipment standards, these requirements are basically set through the Canadian Electrical Code Part II. This ensures that equipment installed in conjunction with the CE Code will be compatible and safe to use under the installation rules.

The Federal Government also plays a role through establishment and funding of the Standards Council of Canada (SCC), a Crown corporation which regulates all electrical products in Canada by accrediting conformity assessment bodies, such as testing laboratories and product certification bodies, to internationally recognized standards. 

The Canadian Advisory Council on Electrical Safety (CACES) has been recognized as the central regulatory authority for electrical safety in the SCC accreditation requirements. CACES provides a forum for discussing the safety, technical, and regulatory aspects of developing, promoting, and implementing electrical standards for Canada.

Each Province and Territory designates a representative to participate on the Canadian Electrical Code Committee and on the CACES. The CACES is an independent organization, and its recommendations have no legal standing, but, because its membership includes important influencers in electrical safety at the Federal, Provincial, Territorial and Municipal level, the committee’s decisions can have a major influence on how jurisdictions across Canada deal with similar issues concerning electrical safety and regulation.

There are three main organizations developing standards and certifying products in the electrical safety area: 

• Underwriter's Laboratories of Canada (ULC) for fire alarm related electrical technologies

• Canadian Gas Association (CGA) for electrical features of gas products

• Canadian Standards Association (CSA) for all other electrical products

Each of these organizations had separate interaction with regulatory authorities as required by the SCC accreditation requirements. 

This provides a framework upon which regulation of electrical safety in Canada takes place.

All electrical equipment  which are sold, displayed, used, or disposed in Canada must be tested and certified by a certification body accredited by the SCC against a recognized Canadian product standards. Also equipment must bear a recognized mark or label. The product can then be safely installed according to the rules of the relevant province’s or territory’s adoption of the CE Code. However, for products moved across provincial borders there are neither customs nor border services; consequently, regulators rely more heavily on the post-market oversight and surveillance.

In Canada, there are two different options for product certification:

1. “Field evaluation” is a service that allows a qualified certification expert to assess your uncertified product against required CSA safety and other applicable standards and codes. These are also known as special inspections in Canada. 

Field evaluations are available for a wide variety of products, such as all electrical, gas, and mechanical equipment, including:

industrial control panels

automated manufacturing

semiconductor fabrication

luminaires

switchboards
robotics

heating and cooling systems

commercial food service systems

distributed generation systems

energy storage systems

PV

microgrid systems

2. “Safety Evaluation and Certification”. Electrical and electronic equipment must perform reliably and should be evaluated for compliance with applicable functional safety standards CSA. Products are in scope: 

• Household appliances, such as refrigerators and freezers, laundry equipment, dishwashers, room air conditioners, cooking appliances, floor cleaning appliances, etc.

• Information & Communication Technology (ICT):

- consumer electronics such as professional and high-end audio equipment, consumer-grade 3D printers, flat panel TVs, projectors, computer and recording products, speakers (powered), multi-track recorders, microphones (cabled and wireless), audio control panels, paper folding and printing machines

- power supplies and backup power systems

- computers and workstations including desktop computers, notebooks, laptops, commercials printers, displays, tablets, and more

• Lighting products

• etc.

Testing includes electrical safety, energy efficiency, and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) for devices that utilize wireless technology.

Electrical equipment must bear evidence of either a mark or a label of a certification agency accredited by the SCC or an approval label issued by Provincial and Territorial Safety Authority under of the local Regulation. 

List of certification agencies accredited by the SCC and approved labels could be found here.

Additionally there is also the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (CCPSA) that applies to a wide variety of consumer products, including children's toys, household products and sporting goods, but excludes products like motor vehicles and their integral parts, etc. as these are regulated by other Canadian laws.

Under the CCPSA, a "consumer product" is defined as a product, including its components, parts or accessories that may reasonably be expected to be obtained by an individual to be used for non-commercial purposes, including for domestic, recreational and sports purposes, and includes its packaging.

The CCPSA places special obligations on manufacturers or importers of a consumer products for commercial purposes, including preparing and maintaining required documents, mandatory incident reporting to the Health Canada regarding any incidents related to their products and the requirement to provide tests or studies that indicate whether a consumer product meets the requirements of the CCPSA upon request. 

△ The above picture and text are from the Internet. If there is any infringement, please contact us in time and we will delete it immediately.

As the first global market access digital platform, BWTCmall.com offers a new and unprecedented online service experience for its many users.

As a technology-driven company, BWTCmall.com is committed to developing a powerful and scalable platform that not only enables global manufacturers to quickly and accurately find the best way to reach the global market, but also to experience cost-effective cutting-edge technology and services. Let the global market access market truly enter a virtuous circle of fairness, objectivity, harmony and win-win.

Please visit the solution for get your best way of testing and certification / approvals to the target market.