contact us
Routine Tests and Type Tests: Two Different Promises
products
- Main Products
technical articles
Company News
Type testing is performed on a sample of a design to show that the design meets the standard. Routine testing is performed on every unit produced to show that the manufacturing process has not introduced a defect. Both are required by a mature safety system, and confusing them is a common source of false confidence.
What a type test involves
The full set of applicable clauses, including the destructive and the long-duration tests: dielectric strength, temperature rise, abnormal operation, mechanical impact, and the constructional assessments. It is performed once for a design, repeated when the design changes in a way that could affect the result, and documented in a report that names the sample and the configuration.
What a routine test involves
A short, non-destructive set that can be applied to every unit: a dielectric strength test at a reduced duration or an insulation resistance measurement, a protective bonding check where applicable, and a functional check of the safety interlocks. It is fast, and it is designed to catch manufacturing defects such as a missing earth connection or a pinched wire.
Where systems fail
Producing a type test report and no routine test record, so a manufacturing defect reaches the customer under cover of a valid design approval. Or the reverse: treating routine test results as type evidence, which produces a file full of data that does not address the design questions the standard asks.
