[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 79 (Friday, April 25, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17460-17462]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-07123]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2007-0042]
TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc.: Applications for Expansion
of Recognition
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In this notice, OSHA announces the applications of TUV
Rheinland of North America, Inc., for expansion of the scope of
recognition as a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) and
presents the agency's preliminary finding to grant the applications.
DATES: Submit comments, information, and documents in response to this
notice, or requests for an extension of time to make a submission, on
or before May 12, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted as follows:
Electronically: You may submit comments, including attachments,
electronically at https://www.regulations.gov, the Federal eRulemaking
Portal. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency's name and
the docket number for this rulemaking (Docket No. OSHA-2007-0042). All
comments, including any personal information you provide, are placed in
the public docket without change and may be made available online at
https://www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions commenters about
submitting information they do not want made available to the public,
or submitting materials that contain personal information (either about
themselves or others), such as Social Security numbers and birthdates.
Docket: To read or download comments or other material in the
docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov. Documents in the docket
(including this Federal Register notice) are listed in the https://www.regulations.gov index; however, some information (e.g., copyrighted
material) is not publicly available to read or download through the
website. All submissions, including copyrighted material, are available
for inspection through the OSHA Docket Office. Contact the OSHA Docket
Office at (202) 693-2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627) for assistance in
locating docket submissions.
Extension of comment period: Submit requests for an extension of
the comment period on or before May 12, 2025 to the Office of Technical
Programs and Coordination Activities, Directorate of Technical Support
and Emergency Management, Occupational Safety and Health
Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW,
Room N-3653, Washington, DC 20210, or by fax to (202) 693-1644.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Information regarding this notice is
available from the following sources:
Press inquiries: Contact Mr. Frank Meilinger, Director, OSHA Office
of Communications, U.S. Department of
Labor, telephone: (202) 693-1999; email: meilinger.francis2@dol.gov.
General and technical information: Contact Mr. Kevin Robinson,
Director, Office of Technical Programs and Coordination Activities,
Directorate of Technical Support and Emergency Management, Occupational
Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, phone:
(202) 693-1911 or email: robinson.kevin@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Notice of the Applications for Expansion
OSHA is providing notice that TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc.
(TUVRNA), is applying for an expansion of current recognition as a
NRTL. TUVRNA requests the addition of one test site and four test
standards to the NRTL scope of recognition.
OSHA recognition of a NRTL signifies that the organization meets
the requirements specified in 29 CFR 1910.7. Recognition is an
acknowledgment that the organization can perform independent safety
testing and certification of the specific products covered within the
scope of recognition. Each NRTL's scope of recognition includes (1) the
type of products the NRTL may test, with each type specified by the
applicable test standard and (2) the recognized site(s) that has/have
the technical capability to perform the product-testing and product-
certification activities for test standards within the NRTL's scope.
Recognition is not a delegation or grant of government authority;
however, recognition enables employers to use products approved by the
NRTL to meet OSHA standards that require product testing and
certification.
The agency processes applications by a NRTL for initial
recognition, as well as for an expansion or renewal of recognition,
following requirements in Appendix A to 29 CFR 1910.7. This appendix
requires that the agency publish two notices in the Federal Register in
processing an application. In the first notice, OSHA announces the
application and provides the preliminary finding. In the second notice,
the agency provides the final decision on the application. These
notices set forth the NRTL's scope of recognition or modifications of
that scope. OSHA maintains an informational web page for each NRTL,
including TUVRNA, which details that NRTL's scope of recognition. These
pages are available from the OSHA website at https://www.osha.gov/dts/otpca/nrtl/index.html.
TUVRNA currently has ten facilities (sites) recognized by OSHA for
product testing and certification, with the headquarters located at:
TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc., 295 Foster Street, Suite 100,
Littleton, Massachusetts 01460. A complete list of TUVRNA sites
recognized by OSHA is available at https://www.osha.gov/nationally-recognized-testing-laboratory-program/tuv.
II. General Background on the Applications
TUVRNA submitted four applications to OSHA requesting expansion of
its scope of recognition as a NRTL. The first application dated May 24,
2021 (OSHA-2007-0042-0087), requested expansion of the NRTL scope of
recognition to include one standard. The second application dated
February 13, 2024 (OSHA-2007-0042-0084), requested expansion of the
NRTL scope of recognition to include one additional testing site
located at: TUV Rheinland Taiwan Ltd. Taichung City No. 32, Zhonghe 2nd
Rd, Daya District, Taichung City 428, Taiwan, R.O.C. The third
application dated April 17, 2024 (OSHA-2007-0042-0085), requested
expansion of the NRTL scope of recognition to include two additional
test standards. The fourth application dated July 2, 2024 (OSHA-2007-
0042-0086), requested the addition of one standard to the NRTL scope of
recognition. In total, the expansion applications request the addition
of one recognized test site and four recognized test standards that
will be covered in this notice. OSHA staff performed a detailed
analysis of the application packets and reviewed other pertinent
information. OSHA performed an on-site review of TUVRNA's Taichung City
facility on May 6-7, 2024, in which assessors found some
nonconformances with the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.7. TUVRNA has
addressed these issues sufficiently, and OSHA staff has preliminarily
determined that OSHA should grant the applications.
Table 1, below, lists the test standards found in TUVRNA's
applications for expansion for testing and certification of products
under the NRTL Program.
Table 1--Proposed Test Standards for Inclusion in TUVRNA's NRTL Scope of
Recognition
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Test standard Test standard title
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UL 60079-0........................... Explosive Atmospheres--Part 0:
Equipment--General Requirements.
UL 60079-1 *......................... Explosive Atmospheres--Part 1:
Equipment Protection by
Flameproof Enclosures ``d''.
UL 458............................... Power Converters/Inverters and
Power Converter/Inverter Systems
for Land Vehicles and Marine
Crafts.
UL 60335-2-24........................ Safety Requirements for Household
and Similar Electrical
Appliances, Part 2:
Refrigerating Appliances, Ice-
Cream Appliances, and Ice-
Makers.
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* OSHA notes that the title to this standard in the table is taken from
OSHA's List of Appropriate Test Standards (see https://www.osha.gov/nationally-recognized-testing-laboratory-program/list-standards). This
title is not the same as the title currently used by the Standards
Developing Organization that issued the test standard. OSHA intends to
update the List of Appropriate Test Standards to reflect the currently
used title in the near future.
III. Preliminary Finding on the Applications
TUVRNA submitted acceptable applications for expansion of the scope
of recognition. OSHA's review of the application files and pertinent
documentation preliminarily indicates that TUVRNA can meet the
requirements prescribed by 29 CFR 1910.7 for expanding its recognition
to include one additional test site and four additional test standards
for NRTL testing and certification. This preliminary finding does not
constitute an interim or temporary approval of TUVRNA's applications.
OSHA seeks public comment on this preliminary determination.
IV. Public Participation
OSHA welcomes public comment as to whether TUVRNA meets the
requirements of 29 CFR 1910.7 for expansion of recognition as a NRTL.
Comments should consist of pertinent written documents and exhibits.
Commenters needing more time to comment must submit a request in
writing, stating the reasons for the request by the due date for
comments. OSHA will limit any extension to 10 days unless the requester
justifies a longer time period. OSHA may deny a request for an
extension if it is not adequately justified.
To review copies of the exhibits identified in this notice, as well
as comments submitted to the docket, contact the Docket Office,
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of
Labor. These materials also are generally available online at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. OSHA-2007-0042 (for further
information, see the ``Docket'' heading in the section of this notice
titled ADDRESSES).
OSHA staff will review all comments to the docket submitted in a
timely manner. After addressing the issues raised by these comments,
staff will make a recommendation to the Assistant Secretary of Labor
for Occupational Safety and Health on whether to grant TUVRNA's
applications for expansion of the scope of recognition. The Assistant
Secretary will make the final decision on granting the applications. In
making this decision, the Assistant Secretary may undertake other
proceedings prescribed in Appendix A to 29 CFR 1910.7.
OSHA will publish a public notice of the final decision in the
Federal Register.
V. Authority and Signature
Amanda Wood Laihow, Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Occupational Safety and Health, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20210, authorized the preparation of this notice. Accordingly, the
agency is issuing this notice pursuant to 29 U.S.C. 657(g)(2),
Secretary of Labor's Order No. 8-2020 (85 FR 58393; Sept. 18, 2020),
and 29 CFR 1910.7.
Signed at Washington, DC, on March 27, 2025.
Amanda Wood Laihow,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2025-07123 Filed 4-24-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P
