Running or belt conveyor with electric motors and control panel need a kind of certification to be sold in US market?

Question

We want to provide new machinery of a runner conveyor and a belt conveyor in the US market.

The equipment consists of:

1. the basic construction (metal parts, runners, drums, and belts),
2. electric motors which give the movement to the system of the runners and drums, and also
3. the electric control panel with appropriate buttons.

We would like to ask if anyone could clarify th following:

• whether some type of test certification is needed to meet US legislation like a test of an NRTL for the final product with all the parts of the product including the electric and electronic equipment,
• or the NRTL tests certification of the electric and electronic equipment could fulfill somehow legislation requirements.

Please consider that the product is constructed in EU towards EN ISO Standards and has CE mark and the Declaration of Conformity. Towards the European Directives, the final product with electric and electronic equipment is not necessary to Certify towards LVD and EMC Directive since it is intended to be used in industry and all the electric and electronic parts are certified by a certified body.

We have already been informed that the CE mark is not acceptable to the US and all the machinery fulfills 29 CFR Part 1910 and NFPA 79 Electrical Standards for Industrial Machinery, also UL 508A-Standard for Safety-Industrial Control Panels.

Also, we would like to ask you if there some type of responsible authority in the US to inform us and clarify these type of questions.

Answer 1

The requirement for NRTL listing of electrical equipment is not universally applied; it is actually a State by State addition to the National Electric Code. But the only reasonable way to deal with it from the standpoint of a manufacturer wanting to export to here is to attain an NRTL listing from someone like UL or ETL (Intek) since you don't know where it may end up. You are correct though, CE and other EU approvals mean nothing here.

For something like a conveyor though, you will probably not need other approvals for the machinery itself, unless it is intended to be used in some specific industry that has its own set of regulations. For example mining conveyors often need approval from MSHA (Mine Safety and Health Administration) due to some added safety requirements in case someone falls on the belt.