n the vast world of conferences there are only a handful centric to the areas of safety and compliance that are relevant to the electronics field. The annual IEEE Symposium on Product Compliance Engineering (ISPCE) is one of these events. In fact, for those with a stake in safety and compliance issues (including EMC and environmental requirements) with a need to stay current, it's a must attend event. I (Kevin) was privileged to be among the approximately 250 participants at this year's symposium in San Jose. ISPCE addressed all of the proximate issues in this field.

Regional requirements have always been crucial in compliance. ISPCE addresses such requirements in a very focused way. (Images courtesy of ISPCE)

Among the notable topics discussed at the symposium were risk and hazard management, IEC 60601 4th edition EMC, RoHS, WEEE and all things environmental related such as chemical content halogens. Also covered were Hazloc or hazardous location regulatory issues, mechanical safety issues and tests. Even the subject of cyber security, which is being discussed in so many forums, was covered. Here, the perspective was on safety such as ways products could be compromised or made unsafe by hacking, for example. 

Several sessions were presented on regional safety and compliance standards in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Mexico, the Caribbean, China and Central America. These extended to labeling requirements for various global locations. Of course, standards of interest here in the U.S. were on the agenda. For instance, there was a session on the National Electrical code for Division 2 vs Zone 2 protection techniques.

Many talks are by subject area. Two of those of high interest were the ones on lightning protection techniques and hipot testing. Even more germane were the presentations on "Power Supply Safety Evaluation" and "Certification Challenges for Power Banks". But one of the most relevant and often discussed sessions concerned IEC 62368 compliance, which is the new standard for power supplies replacing IEC 60950, which has been with us for a long time. These are topics we routinely discuss and review in the PSMA Safety and Compliance committee. (For a full list of the presentations, see the ISPCE 2018 conference schedule here.)

One of the benefits of attending ISPCE is that you get to hear about these standards from the top experts in the field. By that I mean the people who are actually doing the work of getting products through compliance testing and into production and the representatives of the NRTLs (nationally recognized test laboratories) and related test equipment makers. With all of these standards and testing experts gathered in one place, you can get questions answered on the spot.

Broadly speaking, participating in a symposium like ISPCE is a means to preparing for compliance requirements and approaching them in a logical, planned way. Reflecting on what we have observed in industry, it always amazes us how little time or thought is given to compliance needs during product definition, development and design. So often these requirements do not receive proper consideration until one arrives in the compliance test lab where the customer is being charged $1000 an hour or more. At that point everyone becomes very open minded for discussion.

Some talks were very relevant to power electronics. (Images courtesy of ISPCE)

Yet many of the costs and project delays associated with compliance lab crises could be avoided with just a modest investment in pre-compliance testing. Probably $2500 spent on a small pre-compliance area in a lab would pay for itself during the first use. Doing pre-compliance testing and gaining 90% confidence that a product will pass the first time in the expensive test lab would be well worth the upfront investment. 

Unfortunately, there is often no time or resources allocated to these activities UNTIL there is an issue–then budget must and will be provided. This is a frequent topic of discussion at events like ISPCE where you'll hear the consultants and the labs say how thankful they are that companies are completely reactive when it comes to compliance and see no reason to change. This is also a source of humor for the compliance consultants who get called in for firefighting when money is no object.

At many companies, the status quo on compliance is unlikely to change. But if you can help your organization take a more proactive approach, it should ultimately pay dividends. Whether you are new to product safety and compliance, or an old hand—especially in the power electronics industry—attending ISPCE annually should be part of your pre-compliance preparation. I already have it on my calendar for next year.

The ISPCE exhibition features displays by an array of test agencies and test labs as well as test instrument manufacturers. Look closely and you may spot some familiar power supply companies and the PSMA.

Authors:

Kevin Parmenter, Director of Applications Engineering Taiwan Semiconductor America

Jim Spangler, President, Spangler Prototype Inc. (SPI)

Editor's Note: This article was first published in the July 2018 issue of  How2Power Today (www.how2power.com/newsletters).

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