Cary, NC -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/07/2009 -- In many cases, non-certified laboratory equipment is never identified as a high risk category in the workplace. Scientists and facility owners assume the manufacturers have considered electrical and product safety merely because the equipment is often expensive. The CertifiGroup laboratory equipment evaluation team has been collecting data on the hazards for operators and facilities, and the results are startling.

In a review of 5 years of laboratory equipment evaluated, 80% of this equipment was shown to have critical deficiencies, including: incorrect grounding, accessible live parts, non-certified / unknown custom components, incorrect fusing or supplementary protectors, flammable enclosures, chemical and radiation and other hazards. This equipment is manufactured in the US, Europe and Asia. Some of this equipment is intended for use with flammable chemicals or for explosive atmospheres, and is used for everything from analysis to monitoring and processing hazardous and volatile materials.

Many equipment buyers order from a catalogue and never check to see if the equipment has been certified by a reputable third party testing laboratory, such as UL, ETL, MET, CSA or TUV. They are unknowingly exposing their technicians to potential electrical and product safety hazards and putting their employers at risk for lawsuits and expensive insurance premiums. Federal (OSHA) workplace law 29CFR1910.303 allows OSHA to fine employers for owning non-certified equipment, and more when the equipment is involved in an incident such as shock, electrocution, chemical spill or explosion.

CertifiGroup is offering a special no cost program for designers and manufacturers of laboratory equipment, including time with an engineer in this specialty category. US manufacturers and overseas manufacturers with North American distribution headquarters can apply online at www.certifigroup.com, or call 800-422-1651. Companies and designers who participate in this program will gain an advantage for UL certification and CE marking, and establish a product regulatory resource with the CertifiGroup laboratory equipment product safety team.