BUILDING PRODUCT CONFORMANCE ACTIVITIES May
2014
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS OF THE UNITED STATES
1.
Regulatory Interventions – Product Recalls
In the United States, the government agency that monitors consumer products is the U.S. Consumer Products
Safety Commission (CPSC). The CPSC works at the national level to monitor products that are used by
consumers, such as toys, cribs, power tools, and household products. The CPSC also provides the public with
a list of products that have been found to be faulty or noncompliant.
http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/
There is some debate in the U.S. whether the CPSC’s authority extends to building materials, as was seen
during the concerns over imported drywall from China. Ultimately, the CPSC worked with other federal
agencies on a joint task force to identify the scope and extent of the problems with drywall imported from China.
It is important to note that this product was never subject to a formal recall by the CPSC.
The Federal Interagency Task Force on Problem Drywall was made up of the following federal government
agencies: the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. See, Interagency Drywall Investigation,
available at http://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education- Centers/Drywall-InformationCenter/Interagency-Drywall-Investigation/.
Because of the problems associated with identifying building materials that do not conform to existing voluntary
product standards, NAHB monitors legal cases brought against building product manufacturers.
2.
Current Compliance Activities
NAHB works with other organizations, industry groups, and stakeholders who manufacture building materials to
provide information on new products and assist it s members in developing procedures to assess incorporating
new products into their construction projects.
NAHB also reaches out to other industry organizations if it identifies areas of concern for existing or new
products, in order to encourage product testing or further review, to ensure products conform to current codes
and standards requirements, and also to ensure that products can be used for their intended purposes.
NAHB works closely with other industry groups and organizations involved with developing standards to ensure
building materials and products conform to accepted performance standards and labeling for use in construction
projects.
3.
Industry Education
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) monitors and collects information regarding emerging and
existing building product defect problems, studies and recommends to the Association methods of reducing
builder liability from product and construction defects, and works cooperatively with manufacturers, insurers,
product/trade groups and other interested parties on builder liability issues.
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As part of its efforts, NAHB developed web pages that contain education materials, papers, pamphlets, articles,
substantive information about current industry issues, legal briefs filed b NAHB, and information about legal
settlements involving product defects.
Starting in January 2014, NAHB attorneys have developed an update published every two months that
compiles summaries of legal cases, new statutes and regulations, information on potential product defects, and
other topics of interest to builders. The most recent edition was published 30 July 2014.
While this information does not specifically identify whether certain building materials are counterfeit or nonconforming, it does provide builders with information for additional research and consideration.
4.
Industry Developed Conformance Schemes
In the United States, there are number of voluntary performance or consensus-based standards for different
products and components. Voluntary performance standards organizations include, as examples, the following:
ASTM International (formerly American Society for Testing and Materials),
American National
Standards Institute (ANSI), the International Code Council (ICC), and the Voluntary Product Standards
(published by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) (for
wood products), and the American Lumber Standards Committee (grades and sizes of wood products).
In the United States, there are also national standards which set the minimum standards for safety and
installation for certain types of components such as electrical or plumbing components. An example of the
national standard for electrical components can be found in the National Electric Code (NEC). For plumbing
fixtures and components, the National Standard Plumbing Code was developed to ensure plumbing systems
are properly installed while protecting public health and safety. There is also a model code for plumbing called
the Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) which was developed by the International Association of Plumbing
Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) to govern installation and inspection of plumbing systems using the ANSI
consensus development process. As with other uniform codes, the UPC works to standardize processes used
during installation of these products.
In addition, there are organizations such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and other independent testing
facilities, that will test certain products and provide a recognized certification mark indicating the product meets
certain safety requirements as tested by that facility. An example would be the UL mark on electrical
components such as power cords or switches.
Frequently, these uniform standards are incorporated into the voluntary building codes developed by the
International Code Council and its members, who are made up of building code officials. The ICC codes are
updated every few years and may become law in the individual states if a state legislature adopts all or part of
the relevant code. The ICC develops codes for residential and commercial buildings. In order to comply with a
state or local jurisdiction’s building codes, builders must ensure that these products are listed and labeled, and
then installed according to their intended purpose (e.g., electrical or plumbing components) to ensure
compliance with existing building code requirements. Building code inspectors or code officials will inspect
projects during construction to ensure compliance with national standards requirements.
Additionally, NAHB and its builder members participate in a number of voluntary groups that work on
developing and reviewing changes, updates, or additions to national standards. For example, NAHB staff and
members participate in the ICC code development review process, as well as a number of working groups
within the ICC and ANSI as those groups develop new standards to recommend or implement.
Examples:
ASTM International: www.astm.org
American National Standards Institute: www.ansi.org
International Code Council: www.iccsafe.org
National Institute of Standards and Technology: www.nist.gov
Underwriters Laboratory: www.ul.com
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American Lumber Standards Committee: www.alsc.org
APA – The Engineered Wood Association: www.apawood.org
National Electric Code (NEC) developed by the National Fire Protection Association: www.nfpa.org
International Association of Plumbing Mechanical Officials: www.iapmo.org :
5.
Regulatory Framework
As mentioned in Section 4, in the United States, no single regulatory framework exists for building products and
materials, although voluntary performance or consensus-based standards are used to develop some standardization in
how certain products are used. Instead, states develop or adopt their own building codes, often starting with
voluntary consensus-based building codes such as those developed by the ICC, and incorporating them into
their own state building requirement. State building codes will also include sections of other national standards
such as the National Electric Code, or the Uniform Plumbing Code to standardize the quality and performance
of certain components.
For example, electrical and plumbing products are regulated as part of their manufacturing process and are
required to meet necessary safety standards to be used legally in residential and commercial buildings. These
products must be listed and labeled for the purpose in which they are used and deviations are not allowed.
Other products are also tested and labeled before they can be used in construction including steel, lumber, and
drywall. Although these products are subject to voluntary standards, they cannot be used in construction unless
they are listed and labeled as meeting certain standards for use.
In addition, state building code officials and inspectors will conduct inspections during construction and at
project completion to ensure that builders use products that are identified as meeting minimal national
standards requirements. State building codes are applied during construction and compliance is confirmed by
building inspectors as part of the permit and inspections conducted by building code officials before the building
or housing can be occupied.
Often, these voluntary consensus-based standards and codes will require building products to meet certain
quality standards for consistency, but these voluntary codes are not legally binding until a state or local
government formally adopts them as part of their laws or regulations.
IHA Secretariat
1201 15th Street, NW Washington, DC 20005 Office (202) 266-8182, Fax (202) 266 8521