In Search of Competent Testers
Manufacturers, architects, general contractors and building owners should beware of any self-proclaimed window tester or one who may have an axe to grind in establishing product liability and/or is in search of deeper pockets. Anecdotal evidence exists indicating that unofficial “garden hose” tests have been loosely applied by unscrupulous activists in window-leakage and mold-litigation cases.
In some cases, even the more capable investigators have used inappropriate field-testing adaptations to AAMA 502 and AAMA 503 to investigate reported water penetration. A common mistake while testing for water penetration involves testing at a differential pressure that exceeds the product’s rating originally generated during prototype testing in the laboratory. Field testing at higher pressures may actually create leaks and lead to the false conclusion that the fenestration product is the cause. Conversely, field testing at elevated pressures may also conceal defects that would have produced leakage at lower pressures. In the hands of the misinformed or ill-willed, field testing can be misused to apply a false mantle of scientific propriety to tenuous claims of alleged poor product performance.
It is concern for such problems as these that prompted the development of an accreditation program for field-testing organizations. Using an AAMA-accredited laboratory or agency assures the specifier that the field test agency has the staff, training, experience, and calibrated instruments and equipment to properly perform field testing.
The FTA Accreditation Program
The AAMA Field Testing Agency (FTA) Accreditation Program validates that FTAs are capable of testing installed fenestration products to the AAMA 502 and 503 field test specifications, as well as the ASTM test methods referenced therein.
Requirements are detailed in the program’s Procedural Guide, AAMA LAP-3, Laboratory Accreditation Program Operations Manual – Laboratories and Test Agencies Performing Onsite Testing of Fenestration Products.
An FTA is defined as a business entity providing fenestration-testing services in a non-laboratory environment that can be held legally responsible to carry out its testing and calibration activities in full compliance with ISO/IEC 17025, “General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories”. Note that “brick and mortar” testing laboratories carrying other accreditations can become approved as FTAs, as well.
Acceptance into the program requires that AAMA’s independent validator, Associated Laboratories Inc., Dallas, confirms the applicant has demonstrated independence from the manufacturers or suppliers of the products being tested or the components thereof. This is done through an initial inspection, conducted at the prospective FTA’s facilities or at a mutually agreed upon site. The prospective FTA also must demonstrate its ability to perform (at a minimum) the methods of field testing outlined in ASTM E783, E1105 and AAMA 502. This must be done using the actual equipment used for testing products in the field, as well as adherence to the required calibration of test instruments and documentation standards as set forth in ISO/IEC 17025 and AAMA LAP-3. The prospective FTA also must provide evidence of a comprehensive training program for all personnel performing the tests.
Each FTA must have a documented Quality Management System (QMS). The QMS documentation (quality manual, operations manual, etc.) is submitted to AAMA and the validator with the application for accreditation and will be audited for compliance with ISO/IEC 17025, as well as AAMA requirements.
Whether it’s during a service call or in the courtroom, window manufacturers should be ready with the facts when their products are tested to the wrong specification, tested incorrectly or by inexperienced personnel, or held to inappropriate or unreasonable expectations of installed performance (compared to laboratory test data).
Competent field testing can provide the backup needed to deal with such situations. Just make sure the results are meaningful and defensible by using an AAMA-accredited FTA.
Photo: Melissa Baldwin
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