Orgalime’s comments on the new USA OSHA draft version of the NRTL Program Directive

Orgalime considers the present US OSHA draft version of the NRTL Program Directive clearer compared to the previous NRTL Draft Program Directive Extract from 22 August 2014. We welcome the comprehensive draft legislation, but we reaffirm the need for further progress in view of a future transatlantic mutual recognition of product test reports, certification, and approvals. We also invite OSHA to further analyse the idea of a single NRTL marking.

We believe that the planned NRTL Program Directive has the potential to facilitate US trade with the EU, especially in areas where the European Accreditation system has already been producing satisfactory results since 2010 (date of entry into force of Regulation EU 765/2008). With the above-mentioned amendments duly taken into consideration, such legislation would represent a real and pragmatic step towards further developing the transatlantic market in the engineering sectors in the framework of the ongoing TTIP discussions.