A certified product is one that has passed certain tests carried out by TÜV Rheinland Group for, say, safety and quality. TÜV issues a certificate of the test findings. It certifies the product properties tested and specifies the norms to which they were tested.

For the buyer, that is a great help with the purchasing decision. He is no longer dependent solely on the details supplied by the manufacturer and can rely on a disinterested expert's independent judgment.

That is why more and more companies are entrusting TÜV Rheinland Group with tests of this kind. Its principals include manufacturers from 75 countries. The product range is practically unlimited and extends from toys and sporting goods to IT equipment and complex industrial plants.

TÜV Rheinland Group first tests a representative product sample on the basis of the appropriate criteria. As a rule these tests are carried out in TÜV test laboratories. In exceptional cases, such as very large machinery, experts test the product on the manufacturer's premises.

To ensure that the certificate amounts to more than a mere snapshot, TÜV employees go on to monitor the manufacturer's production facilities at regular intervals and to check whether products manufactured there correspond to the sample tested. In this way, they can ensure that certified products continue deserve their certification.

Product Certificate –
A certificate issued to a company (holder) for a product complying to specified standards.