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Certifications, certifying bodies and associations, testing, certificates, approvals.
Distinguishing documents and processes.
There is a recurring confusion between certification, type approval, declaration of conformity and test report. They are not synonyms. Each document answers a specific question, and mixing them up means misunderstanding what guarantees what.
An ISO certification says something about the company, not the product. It certifies that the company applies a structured management system for quality, environment or occupational health and safety. The ISO logo on Guidi materials does not attest that a specific valve has passed a particular test: it attests that the people who design and manufacture it work according to controlled procedures, verified by an independent third party.
A type approval says something about the product design. A third-party certification body reviews the technical drawings, evaluates the prototype, and performs or supervises testing. If the design passes, the type approval covers all products subsequently manufactured to that approved design. It is a judgment on the system, not on individual units.
A statement is a declaration on a homogeneous group of products. It confirms that certain items are suitable for a defined use on certain types of vessels, but it is not an individual product test or a certification of a specific piece. In Guidi’s case, RINA Statement 2021/CS/01/4256-001 covers cooling water filters (1160, 1160B, 1162, 1164, 3162, 3164), declaring them suitable for exclusive use on board pleasure craft subject to EC certification and RINA-classified pleasure craft for private use with a gross tonnage below 300 GT.
A testing certificate applies to products intended for essential services on classed ships. Here the responsibility shifts: the approved design is not enough, traceability between test results and delivered products is required. The level of detail depends on the document type specified at the order stage.
A declaration of conformity, finally, is not issued by the component manufacturer but by the system installer. The person who installs the hydraulic system on board certifies that the installation complies with applicable laws and standards. The component needs its own documentation, but the installation declaration is a separate matter.
Guidi’s ISO certifications
Guidi obtained ISO 9001 certification for quality management in 1996, ISO 14001 for environmental management in 1998, and ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety in 2023. All three certifications cover the same activities: design and manufacture of products in bronze, brass, aluminium and steel through the stages of machining, testing and assembly.
The certificate numbers are: 24614/11/S (quality), EMS-3580/S (environment), OHS-5107 (safety). All three are issued within the RINA accreditation system, which itself operates under Accredia accreditation.
Accredia is the Italian national accreditation body designated by the Government under European Regulation 765/2008. Its role is to verify that certification bodies, such as RINA, have the technical competence and impartiality required to do their work. It does not certify companies directly: it accredits those who do. The chain is: Accredia accredits RINA, RINA certifies Guidi.
Certifying bodies
RINA
RINA is the primary reference for Guidi’s certifications and product approvals. It is a multinational group headquartered in Genoa, established in 2000 as a spin-off of the Registro Italiano Navale, the Italian ship classification society founded in 1861. Registro Italiano Navale remains the majority shareholder of RINA.
RINA’s activities cover naval classification, product certification, inspections, technical consultancy and engineering. For Guidi, RINA is the body that issued both the ISO management system certifications and the product type approvals (DIP series and Statement).
Lloyd’s Register
Lloyd’s Register is one of the oldest organisations in the naval classification sector: founded in 1760, it is owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a British charity dedicated to research and education in science and engineering. For Guidi, Lloyd’s Register issued Type Approval LR2556185TA covering the complete seawater filtration and distribution system.
Other organisations in the sector
Bureau Veritas (BV) is a classification and certification company founded in Paris in 1828, among the oldest in the sector. It operates in maritime, industrial, infrastructure and services sectors. In the marine industry it is involved in ship and vessel classification, certification of products and onboard systems, and technical inspection and verification. Future developments in Guidi’s approval strategy may involve Bureau Veritas.
DNV (Det Norske Veritas), founded in Oslo in 1864, is another reference body in the sector. Together with RINA, Lloyd’s Register, Bureau Veritas and ABS, it is a member of IACS (International Association of Classification Societies), the international coordination body for the main classification societies. American Bureau of Shipping (ABS, Houston, 1862) completes the picture of the major naval classification societies operating worldwide.
TÜV is the collective name for the German technical inspection associations (Technischer Überwachungsverein): they operate through independent networks with proprietary brands such as TÜV Süd, TÜV Rheinland and TÜV Nord, and are involved in product certification, management systems and training. UL (Underwriters Laboratories) operates mainly on the US and Canadian markets in safety certification: voluntary in most contexts, but widely recognised internationally.
The international recognition system: IQNet and CISQ
Guidi’s ISO certificates also carry the IQNet and CISQ logos. IQNet is an international network of management system certification bodies operating in over 30 countries: IQNet recognition allows certificates issued by a member, such as RINA, to be recognised in other member countries. CISQ is the Italian federation linked to IQNet; RINA is a member. The two logos on Guidi certificates indicate that the ISO certification holds value beyond the Italian market.
Technical and scientific associations
Technical associations do not certify: they develop and publish voluntary standards that define good practice in the sector.
DVGW (Deutscher Verein des Gas- und Wasserfaches) is the German reference association for gas and water systems. ABYC (American Boat and Yacht Council) develops voluntary safety standards for recreational boating in the United States and is a member of ANSI (American National Standards Institute), the body that coordinates the American national standardisation system.
Type approval: what it is and what it is for
A type approval is an approval of a product design, issued by a classification society after an independent technical verification process. It does not concern a single unit but the design: if a product obtains type approval, the approval extends to all products manufactured to that design, without repeating the evaluation for each unit produced.
The process involves several stages. The classification society reviews the product’s technical documentation: construction drawings, material specifications, structural calculations, and verifies that the design meets the applicable requirements. This is followed by prototype evaluation, which includes physical testing performed or supervised by the body. If the assessments are satisfactory, a type approval certificate is issued, identifying the approved product, the permissible conditions of use and the applicable standard.
Type approval is designed for standardised products and series production. It establishes design conformity upfront, leaving production controls to ensure that each manufactured piece conforms to that design. The scheme works when the product does not change between batches.
From the perspective of the designer or owner selecting components, type approval has a specific function: it confirms that the product has been evaluated by a competent independent body, according to known rules, and that the evaluation is documented and traceable. It is not an absolute guarantee on an individual piece, but it is the level of certification that maritime regulations require for products intended for critical onboard applications.
The main naval classification societies, including RINA, Lloyd’s Register, DNV, Bureau Veritas and ABS, each operate their own type approval system, defined by their own technical regulations. Certificates issued by one society are not automatically recognised by the others, although mutual recognition agreements exist in specific areas. When a product is approved by multiple bodies, the manufacturer manages separate certifications, each with its own reference standards and conditions of use.
A note on the ISO 9093 standard and its designations
ISO 9093:2020, EN ISO 9093:2021 and UNI EN ISO 9093:2021 refer to the same technical content. The different dates reflect the adoption sequence: international ISO publication (2020), European CEN adoption (2021), Italian UNI adoption (2021).
The standard specifies requirements for through-hull fittings, sea inlets, hose fittings and related installations on small craft with a hull length LH up to 24 m (ISO 8666:2020). Previous editions separated metallic components (ISO 9093-1) from non-metallic ones (ISO 9093-2); the current standard integrates both into a single document.
Testing and test procedures
Air-pressure test
All Guidi products are air-pressure tested at the end of production. The body is pressurised internally and the seal is monitored. The method is fast, clean and requires no external supervision. The document produced is an internal quality certificate: it is not supervised by an external certification body, even though the procedures followed are part of the certified ISO 9001 quality system.
Hydrostatic test with external body attendance
The hydrostatic test is performed with water emulsified with oil, recycled from machinery cooling. The white colour of the emulsion makes leaks easier to detect. The product is held under pressure for a defined period. The test pressure is 1.5 times the nominal pressure rating (PN). These tests are carried out under external laboratory supervision.
For valves: the test in the open position verifies the integrity of the body and the absence of external leakage; the test in the closed position verifies the internal seat seal. Depending on the valve type, a minimal leakage in the closed position may be physically acceptable and does not necessarily constitute non-conformity.
Inspection schemes for classed ships
For products intended for essential services on classed ships, there are two main schemes.
The alternative scheme (A.) allows tests to be performed according to manufacturer-approved procedures, without the continuous presence of an external inspector. It is reserved for manufacturers with a certified ISO 9001 quality system and proven production reliability. Guidi operates under this scheme.
The individual scheme (I.) requires the final acceptance of the product to be carried out directly by RINA inspectors at the manufacturer’s premises. It applies when required by class rules or a specific contract.
UNI EN 10204:2005 • Control documents
UNI EN 10204:2005 defines the types of document that attest the conformity of metallic products to order requirements. The most important distinction is between non-specific inspection and specific inspection.
Under non-specific inspection (types 2.1 and 2.2), the products tested may not be the same as those delivered. Type 2.1 is a declaration of conformity to the order with no test results attached, issued by the manufacturer. Type 2.2 is a test report that adds the results of non-specific inspections, also issued by the manufacturer.
Under specific inspection (types 3.1 and 3.2), tests are performed on the products actually supplied, before delivery. Type 3.1 includes chemical analysis, mechanical testing and hardness testing, and is validated by a manufacturer’s representative independent of the production department. Type 3.2 adds joint validation by a customer representative or an inspector designated by applicable regulations, such as a RINA surveyor.
The term “certificate” applies only to types 3.1 and 3.2. Types 2.1 and 2.2 are declarations or reports issued by the manufacturer, not third-party certifications.
Types 3.1 and 3.2 documents must be explicitly requested at the order stage. They cannot be applied retroactively after production has started or delivery has taken place, because the specific tests and validation must be completed before delivery.