Surveillance audits and Reviews are carried out to verify and validate the authenticity of the originally certified product, and/or to review any changes so that we can determine whether any amendments need to be made to the certificate. Remember that changes in certificates are not always down to actions relating to the product or the way it is manufactured but may be as a result of changes in regulations or legislation that may require amendments to the certificate.
Depending on the lifecycle of the product itself, a number of outcomes could occur as a result of the maintenance period:
- Certificate Technical Re-issue: A Technical Re-issue is usually recommended when a substantial change of the certificate is required following additional technical assessment. For example, if a new product is added to the scope of the Certificate. If a technical re-issue is deemed necessary, this is a compulsory change that has to be made, in order to continue the validity of a certificate.
- Certificate Non-Technical Re-issue: A Non-Technical Re-issue relates to changes of a non technical changes, that are still required for the validity of the Certificate to continue. For example, updates to the titles of Standards or Regulations, but not changes to the technical content of the documents.
- Certificate Amendment: Amendments are permissible for very basic changes for non technical, such as a change of address of the certificate holder, where no other more significance amendments are required for the Certificate.
- Review Reissue contact: This is a contract between the BBA and an existing Certificate holder covering both the Review of their Certificate, but also a non-technical Reissue at the end of the Review process. It is important to note that, should the Review identify additional changes of a technical nature, this will require an additional contract and cost to assess and amend the Certificate accordingly.
- Certificate Suspension: Suspension is usually applied where a serious issue is identified where it is identified that the Certificate no longer accurately describes the product. It may also be appropriate in circumstances, for example when the site of production is being changed Suspension means that the existing certificate is paused (rendering it invalid during this time) and removed from the website while the issues raised are dealt with, after which it could resume and the product could then be sold once again as a BBA-certified product. However, we encourage our clients, should they know that major changes are due to occur, let us know in advance, so that our assessors can review the changes and work with you to deal with any issues raised, avoiding the least amount of certificate down-time or disruption.
- Certificate Withdrawal: A certificate withdrawal usually relates to a product no longer conforming to the original criteria it was certified against. It may be that the product itself has been withdrawn, or that processes of production or materials have changed significantly, which means that the certificate is no longer valid against the original certification scheme. When this happens, the certificate is removed from our website and is no longer searchable. When withdrawals happen, that means that the certificate is closed, and cannot be re-opened. If the product needs to be re-certified, the process is started as a new project, under a new certificate.
