The validator of the CAPA Certification Program, Intertek – a company that provides testing, inspection and certification services – has been selected by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for enforcement testing for Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 (FMVSS108), which covers headlamps, tail lamps, brake lights, reflective devices and associated equipment. Intertek has been the CAPA validator since 1991.
“Full compliance with FMVSS 108 is a critical component of the CAPA 301 Lighting Certification Standard. Intertek’s selection as an enforcement mechanism for the U.S. DOT is evidence that their testing is of the highest quality,” said Jack Gillis, CAPA executive director. “When we began the lighting certification program in 2002, it was the testing conducted by Intertek that revealed a significant number of aftermarket lights did not comply with the FMVSS 108 requirements. That is one reason why CAPA Certification of lighting is so critically important.”
To ensure the safety of automotive lighting products, FMVSS 108 contains stringent requirements for photometric (light intensity), mechanical (vibration) and environmental (corrosion, moisture, and dust) performance. Enforcement testing ensures that both OEM and aftermarket automotive lighting products meet the performance requirements prescribed in FMVSS 108.
Intertek’s testing reports will be submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration to determine compliance with FMVSS 108.
“When the CAPA 301 Lighting Standard was issued in April 2002, it was imperative that Certified lights not only meet all of CAPA’s fit, material and performance standards, but that they fully comply with FMVSS 108,” said Gillis. “Government safety standards are critical, and when it comes to aftermarket lighting, the best way to ensure full compliance is by insisting on CAPA Certified parts.”
Gillis added, “As CAPA’s Validator, Intertek continues to work closely with the lighting manufacturers in the CAPA program to ensure that their certified parts are compliant to U.S. laws.”
More information:
• CAPA
• CAPA Says Survey Questioning Quality of Its Parts Is False
