Leveraging Your NSF Certification: Now that you've received NSF Certification ... why not leverage the Mark to your advantage.
WaterMark certification is required for products to be legally installed in the water supply system in Australia and New Zealand. The WaterMark logo can only be issued by an JAS-ANZ accredited certification body such as NSF International.
The WaterMark logo allows products to be easily identified and recognized by plumbers, regulators and consumers as compliant with the mandatory Australian standards and plumbing requirements.
While the testing methods for the Australian and USA standards are different, the certification process is very similar. The process to obtain certification is shown in Table A.
| NSF International Certification Requirements | WaterMark Certification Requirements |
|---|---|
| Application including wetted parts list, product drawing and the manufacturing facility(s) quality manual Application including wetted parts list and product drawing | Initial audit of the manufacturing facility including review of the quality manual Initial audit of the manufacturing facility |
| Material safety testing of the product to NSF/ANSI Standard 61 | Material safety testing of the product to AS/NZS Standard 4020 |
| Performance testing to the appropriate ASME/ASTM method Performance testing to the relevant Australian standard | Review of the product marking and application of the NSF mark according to NSF certification policies Review of the product marking and application of the WaterMark logo according to the Australian standard |
| Issuance of NSF certification | Issuance of WaterMark certification including WaterMark certificate and license number |
| Listing of certified product on NSF website | Listing of certified product on NSF website and on WaterMark listings database |
After manufacturers have been certified by completing the steps outlined in Table A, they must adhere to the certifier’s guidelines to the WaterMark Certification Scheme to maintain their certification. For example, the NSF guidelines require the manufacturer to undergo an annual audit of the manufacturing facility. In addition, any desired changes to the certified product require review and re-testing, if deemed necessary, to ensure the changed product conforms to the appropriate standard before the change is implemented. Following these guidelines allows the manufacturer to maintain approval for five years.
Manufacturers frequently ask if the testing performed to the U.S. requirements can be applied towards the Australian requirements. The answer is highly dependent on the type of performance testing required for the product seeking WaterMark approval. For material safety testing, the answer is simply no due to the difference in test methods. Table B highlights the differences, illustrating why the test data is not interchangeable.
| NSF/ANSI 61 | AS/NZS 4020 |
|---|---|
| Recognized in the U.S. and Canada | Recognized in Australia and New Zealand |
| Disclosure of chemical composition information required | Full disclosure of chemical composition not required |
| Materials and products designated for hot and/or cold water use | Materials and products designated for hot and/or cold water use |
| Focused on contaminants that may cause adverse human health affects | Six individual tests under the standard |
| Analysis of chemicals that leach from a material into drinking water requires a toxicological evaluation of chemical concentrations to ensure they are below levels that may cause adverse human health effects. | Not addressed |
| Chemical analyses including broad-based scans for metallic and organic contaminants via GCMS, ICAP, etc. are evaluated at trace levels (ppb). |
|
| Comparison of Odor and Flavor - AS/NZS 4020 | |
| NSF 61 does not address odor and flavor, but NSF can perform this testing at the request of manufacturers. | Performed to determine if material imparts discernible odor or flavor to product. |
| Comparison of Extraction of Metals - AS/NZS 4020 | |
| Set battery of metals to extract from the whole product, both metallic and non-metallic materials | Set list of metals to extract from organic materials |
| Comparison of Growth of Aquatic Microorganisms - AS/NZS 4020 | |
| This test was removed from NSF 61 in the 1990s because suitable pass/fail criteria related to human health effects could not be established. | Addresses the potential of microbial growth. |
| Comparison of Cytotox - AS/NZS 4020 | |
| NSF 61 focuses on product material safety. Evaluates contaminant levels in extraction water by comparing the concentration to health-based criteria which are based on chronic exposure to contaminants on a daily basis over the course of a lifetime. | Test of the extraction water on mammalian cells to determine if the material presents a concern to humans. This is a study of gross acute toxicity. |
| Comparison of Mutagenic - AS/NZS 4020 | |
| NSF 61 focuses on product material safety. Evaluates contaminant levels in extraction water by comparing the concentration to health-based criteria which are based on chronic exposure to contaminants on a daily basis over the course of a lifetime. | The Ames test is a biological assay to assess the mutagenic potential of chemical compounds. A positive test indicates that the chemical is mutagenic and therefore may act as a carcinogen, as cancer is often linked to mutation. |
While material safety data between the U.S. and Australian standards is not interchangeable, all data for performance testing is reviewed.
For additional information on WaterMark certification, please contact passport@nsf.org.