[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 234 (Tuesday, December 7, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68388-68389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-31684]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. NRTL-1-97]


Applied Research Laboratories, Inc., Application for Expansion of 
Recognition

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the application of Applied Research 
Laboratories, Inc. (ARL), for expansion of its recognition as a 
Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) under 29 CFR 1910.7, 
and presents the Agency's preliminary finding. This preliminary finding 
does not constitute an interim or temporary approval of this 
application.

DATES: Comments submitted by interested parties must be received no 
later than February 7, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Send comments concerning this notice to: Office of Technical 
Programs and Coordination Activities, NRTL Program, Occupational Safety 
and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 
Avenue, NW, Room N3653, Washington, DC 20210.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bernard Pasquet, Office of Technical 
Programs and Coordination Activities, NRTL Program at the above 
address, or phone (202) 693-2110.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Notice of Application

    The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hereby 
gives notice that Applied Research Laboratories, Inc. (ARL), has 
applied for expansion of its current recognition as a Nationally 
Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL). ARL's expansion request covers 
the use of additional test standards. ARL has also requested 
recognition to use additional programs. OSHA recognizes an organization 
as an NRTL, and processes applications related to such recognitions, 
following requirements in Section 1910.7 of Title 29, Code of Federal 
Regulations (29 CFR 1910.7). Appendix A to this section requires that 
OSHA publish this public notice of the preliminary finding on an 
application.
    ARL's previous application as an NRTL covered its initial 
recognition (62 FR 42827, 8/8/97), which OSHA granted on November 21, 
1997 (62 FR 62356).
    The current address of the ARL testing facility recognized by OSHA 
is: Applied Research Laboratories, Inc., 5371 N.W. 161st Street, Miami, 
Florida 33014.

General Background on the Application

    ARL submitted a request, dated January 22, 1998 (see Exhibit 6A), 
to expand its recognition as an NRTL for 181 additional test standards. 
After performing an initial review of this request, OSHA informed ARL 
that only 93 of the test standards met the requirements of an 
``appropriate test standard'' set forth in 29 CFR 1910.7. OSHA then 
performed an on-site review of ARL's testing facility in connection 
with the expansion request. Following the review, ARL amended its 
application in a letter dated July 10, 1998 (see Exhibit 6B) to reduce 
the number of test standards requested to the 47 listed below. In its 
July 10 request, ARL also requested recognition for additional 
programs. OSHA temporarily withheld its consideration of ARL's requests 
pending resolution by the NRTL of discrepancies noted during an OSHA 
audit at its facilities. ARL responded to these discrepancies in March 
1999 and, after additional review, staff of the OSHA NRTL Program 
accepted resolution of the discrepancies in September, permitting OSHA 
to resume processing ARL's expansion request.
    ARL seeks recognition for testing and certification of products to 
demonstrate compliance to the following 47 test standards, and OSHA has 
determined the standards are appropriate, as prescribed by 29 CFR 
1910.7(c). However, OSHA plans to include certain limitations on the 
recognition of some standards. Also, as is the case for any NRTL, ARL's 
recognition for a particular test standard is further limited to 
equipment or materials (i.e., products) for which OSHA standards 
require third party testing and certification before use in the 
workplace. As a result, OSHA's recognition of an NRTL for a test 
standard excludes any product(s), falling within the scope of the test 
standard, for which OSHA has no such requirements.

Test Standards Requested for Recognition

ANSI/ASME A17.5 Elevators and Escalator Electrical Equipment
ANSI Z21.1 Household Cooking Gas Appliances
ANSI Z83.7 Gas-Fired Construction Heaters
ANSI Z83.12 Gas Food Service Equipment--Baking and Roasting Ovens
ANSI Z83.18 Direct Gas-Fired Industrial Air Heaters
ANSI/UL 65 Electric Wired Cabinets
ANSI/UL 67 Electric Panelboards
ANSI/UL 73 Electric-Motor-Operated Appliances
UL 104 Elevator Door Locking Devices and Contacts
ANSI/UL 174 Household Electric Storage-Tank Water Heaters
UL 181 Factory-Made Air Ducts and Air Connectors
ANSI/UL 197 Commercial Electric Cooking Appliances
ANSI/UL 231 Power Outlets
ANSI/UL 325 Door, Drapery, Gate, Louver and Window Operator and Systems
UL 416 Refrigerated Medical Equipment
ANSI/UL 471 Commercial Refrigerators and Freezers
ANSI/UL 474 Dehumidifiers
ANSI/UL 499 Electric Heating Appliances
ANSI/UL 506 Specialty Transformers
ANSI/UL 508 Electric Industrial Control Equipment
UL 544 Electric Medical and Dental Equipment
ANSI/UL 555 Fire Dampers (previously Fire Dampers and Ceiling Dampers)
ANSI/UL 563 Ice Makers
UL 664 Commercial (Class IV) Electric Dry-Cleaning Machines
ANSI/UL 676 Underwater Lighting Fixtures
ANSI/UL 710 Exhaust Hoods for Commercial Cooking Equipment
UL 733 Oil-Fired Air Heaters and Direct-Fired Heaters
ANSI/UL 749 Household Electric Dishwashers
ANSI/UL 778 Motor-Operated Water Pumps
UL 795 Commercial-Industrial Gas-Heating Equipment
ANSI/UL 834 Heating, Water Supply, and Power Boilers--Electric
ANSI/UL 845 Motor Control Centers
ANSI/UL 935 Fluorescent-Lamp Ballasts
ANSI/UL 1004 Electric Motors 2
ANSI/UL 1026 Electric Household Cooking and Food-Serving Appliances

[[Page 68389]]

ANSI/UL 1029 High-Intensity Discharge Lamp Ballasts
ANSI/UL 1081 Electric Swimming Pool Pumps, Filters and Chlorinators
ANSI/UL 1262 Laboratory Equipment 3
ANSI/UL 1450 Motor-Operated Air Compressors, Vacuum Pumps and Painting 
Equipment
ANSI/UL 1570 Fluorescent Lighting Fixtures
ANSI/UL 1571 Incandescent Lighting Fixtures
ANSI/UL 1572 High Intensity Discharge Lighting Fixtures
ANSI/UL 1585 Class 2 and Class 3 Transformers
ANSI/UL 1996 Duct Heaters
UL 2021 Fixed and Location-Dedicated Electric Room Heaters
ANSI/UL 2157 Electric Clothes Washing Machines and Extractors
ANSI/UL 2158 Electric Clothes Dryers

    (1) Recognition under ANSI/ASME A17.5 is limited to 
cab construction and associated electrics.
    (2) Recognition under ANSI/UL 1004 is limited to 10HP 
maximum electric motors.
    (3) Recognition under ANSI/UL 1262 is limited to 
sample processing equipment.

    The designations and titles of the above test standards were 
current at the time of the preparation of this notice.

Programs and Procedures

    ARL also seeks to use the supplemental programs listed below, based 
upon the criteria detailed in the March 9, 1995 Federal Register notice 
(60 FR 12980, 3/9/95). This notice lists nine (9) programs and 
procedures (collectively, programs), eight of which (called 
supplemental programs) an NRTL may use to control and audit, but not 
actually to generate, the data relied upon for product certification. 
An NRTL's initial recognition will always include the first or basic 
program, which requires that all product testing and evaluation be 
performed in-house by the NRTL that will certify the product. For ARL, 
the initial recognition also included use of Program 4 (Acceptance of 
witnessed testing data). The on-site review report indicates that ARL 
appears to meet the criteria for use of all the following supplemental 
programs, for which it has applied:
    Program 2: Acceptance of testing data from independent 
organizations, other than NRTLs.
    Program 9: Acceptance of services other than testing or evaluation 
performed by subcontractors or agents.
    OSHA developed the program descriptions to limit how an NRTL may 
perform certain aspects of its work and to permit the activities 
covered under a program only when the NRTL meets certain criteria. In 
this sense, they are special conditions that the Agency places on an 
NRTL's recognition. OSHA does not consider these programs in 
determining whether an NRTL meets the requirements for recognition 
under 29 CFR 1910.7. However, OSHA does treat these programs as one of 
the three elements that defines an NRTL's scope of recognition.
    Under Appendix A to 1910.7, the Agency has no obligation to provide 
notice of recognition for these programs. However, The NRTL Program 
staff has typically included such recognition in a notice when the NRTL 
has requested it in conjunction with a regular application. When 
processing an NRTL's request solely to use one or more supplemental 
programs, the NRTL Program staff informs the NRTL of the decision to 
grant or deny the request by letter only. If granted, the staff 
includes the additional program(s) in OSHA's web page for each NRTL.

Preliminary Finding on the Application

    ARL has submitted an acceptable request for expansion of its 
recognition as an NRTL. In connection with the request, OSHA performed 
an on-site assessment (review) of ARL's facility in Miami, Florida, on 
June 8-11, 1998. Discrepancies noted by the assessor during the on-site 
review were addressed by ARL following the on-site evaluation and are 
factored into the recommendation in the on-site review memo (see 
Exhibit 7).
    Following a review of the application file, the assessor's 
recommendation, and other pertinent documents, the NRTL Program staff 
has concluded that OSHA can grant, to the ARL facility listed above, 
the expansion of recognition to use the additional 47 test standards, 
with the limitations to be applied as noted. The staff also grants use 
of the additional programs. The staff therefore recommended to the 
Assistant Secretary that the application be preliminarily approved.
    Based upon the recommendation of the staff, the Assistant Secretary 
has made a preliminary finding that the Applied Research Laboratories, 
Inc. facility listed above can meet the recognition requirements, as 
prescribed by 29 CFR 1910.7, for the expansion of recognition, subject 
to the above limitations. This preliminary finding does not constitute 
an interim or temporary approval of the application.
    OSHA welcomes public comments, in sufficient detail, as to whether 
ARL has met the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.7 for the expansion of its 
recognition as a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory. Your comment 
should consist of pertinent written documents and exhibits. To consider 
it, OSHA must receive the comment at the address provided above (see 
ADDRESS), no later than the last date for comments (see DATES above). 
You may obtain or review copies of ARL's requests, the memo on the on-
site review, and all submitted comments, as received, by contacting the 
Docket Office, Room N2625, Occupational Safety and Health 
Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, at the above address. You 
should refer to Docket No. NRTL-1-97, the permanent record of public 
information on ARL's recognition.
    The NRTL Program staff will review all timely comments and, after 
resolution of issues raised by these comments, will recommend whether 
to grant ARL's expansion request. The Assistant Secretary will make the 
final decision on granting the expansion and, in making this decision, 
may undertake other proceedings prescribed in Appendix A to 29 CFR 
1910.7. OSHA will publish a public notice of this final decision in the 
Federal Register.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 30th day of November, 1999.
Charles N. Jeffress,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 99-31684 Filed 12-6-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-U