By 1 October 2023, a copy of a manufacturing contract is required as proof for all factories on the CB certificate that are not listed on TCO Certified Accepted Factory List.
Criterion 2.1 (supply chain responsibility) states that all final assembly factories manufacturing certified products must be registered on TCO Certified Accepted Factory List. To prove compliance with this requirement, brand owners must submit a copy of the CB certificate factory list, including names and addresses of all final assembly factories manufacturing the certified product model. There might be a valid reason to list a factory that is not manufacturing certified products on the CB certificate. Regardless of the reason, this must be proved with documentation.
If any of the factories listed on the CB certificate are not registered to TCO Certified Accepted Factory List, the brand owner must either:
- submit the factory identification template to the verification organization, so that the factory can be registered to TCO Certified Accepted Factory List,
or
- prove that factories that are missing on TCO Certified Accepted Factory List do not manufacture product models certified according to TCO Certified. This is done by submitting a copy of the contract/agreement between the brand owner and the factory, to the verification organization. The submitted document must prove that the factory manufactures non-certified models covered by the CB certificate. (Sensitive information in the agreement may be censored as long as the above can be proved.)
If you have questions or want to discuss other alternatives for proving compliance, please contact Stefan Carlberg, Certification Manager, TCO Development.
