February 25, 2008

With the recent report that Grainger has been accused of not complying with its contracts to supply government agencies, distributors that sell to the government should reexamine their own systems to ensure they are in full compliance with obligations under the law.

Many companies are so intent on getting government contract awards that they later forget about having to comply with the numerous obligations tucked in the contract documents. But forgetting or ignoring federal contract obligations is risky business and not recommended.

This is especially true because government agencies are growing more aggressive about auditing contracts. So all government contractors, whether new to the federal …

Underwriters Laboratories is a not-for-profit organization that tests and certifies products as meeting certain safety standards. UL is worldwide, and tests not only electrical products, but roofing shingles, fire products such as fire doors and fire hoses, bulletproof glass, life jackets, and any other product that may involve fire, electrical shock, mechanical or radiation hazards.

Counterfeiters not only target manufacturer brands, but also UL marks, which certify a product has met certain safety standards.

When you counterfeit a product and it carries a UL mark, then you’re impacting on the safety of the end-user,”says John Dregenberg, UL manager of consumer affairs. “Counterfeiting an extension cord that could burst into flame in the middle of the night …

Here’s an overview of the scope of global counterfeit trade, as well as what a few companies in one industry -electrical goods -have been doing to protect their intellectual property and, more importantly, the health and safety of product end-users. The second article in this series, published March 10, 2008, will focus on the changing face of product liability in regard to both counterfeits and private label.

Square D, best known in the U.S. as the flagship brand for the Schneider Electric North American Operation Division, realized there might be a problem with counterfeiting of its circuit breakers when the manufacturer started seeing an increase in defective product returns.

When we would go to check the returned product, we would find out they were …