Exporting Ceramic Tiles to China? A 3C Certification is Must

　　China is not only exporting ceramic products, but it is also importing them.

　　As known to all, due to the great availability of ceramic products in domestic ceramic industry, China has a comparative advantage in relation to foreign counterparts in terms of ceramic product quality and price. China has been exporting a huge volume of ceramic tiles, bathroom products and ceramic machinery, and on the other hand, it has very little demand for import.

　　佛山出入境检验检疫局检验检疫综合技术中心质量工程师刘亚民受访本报。

　　For example, domestic manufacturers possess very sophisticated production equipment and manufacturing technology for polished tiles, as a result, China barely has any demand for these products in which it already has an advantage.

　　Consequently, as far as the current situation is concerned, domestic ceramics industry’s demand for import mainly consists in some high-end glazed tiles and high-end ceramic machinery and equipment, such as ceramic ink-jet printer for which domestic technology remains unsophisticated.

　　Currently, major imported ceramic brands include Douglas, Versace, GARDENIA and Imola. Imported brands mainly offer premium service, such as providing paving design free of charge, which can maximize satisfaction for specific consumer group, and this is also the reason why high-end consumer group is willing to spend their money on them.

　　Radioactivity is the key to obtain a 3C Certification

　　Unlike in the case of export, in which, certification standards and relevant inspection requirement can vary depending on the country of destination and the difference of qualification procedure.

　　In the case of importing ceramic tiles into China, if these are ceramic tiles with water absorption rate E ≤0.5%, a 3C certification(namely China Compulsory Certification) is needed, which is a compulsory safety certification system required by China’s law, and is also a basic practice broadly adopted worldwide in attempt to protect consumer interest, personal and property safety.

　　The English for 3C Certification is China Compulsory Certification，abbreviated as CCC.

　　In normal case, when ceramic tiles are imported into China, the CIQ will determine if the imported batch of ceramic tiles fall under the category of ceramic tiles with water absorption rate E≤0.5%, if not, they will be released, and if they are, a CCC certificate will need to be provided, without which, import will be forbidden and return will be required.

　　According to Liu Yamin, a quality engineer from the National Key Laboratory for Inspection of Architectural and Sanitary Ceramics and the Comprehensive Inspection and Quarantine Technology Center in Foshan Entry and Exit Inspection and Quarantine, normally speaking, if overseas manufacturer/supplier wish to export ceramic tiles with water absorption rate E≤0.5% to China, they will need to apply for CCC certification , upon which, Chinese certification body will send experts to the original factory for inspection. Normally 2-4 person/day is required for inspecting a manufacturing facility. These experts will firstly conduct evaluation of product radioactivity control condition and product consistency check, then sampling will be conducted, and finally samples will be submitted to appointed inspection institute for inspection.

　　Inspection will be conducted according to the Limit for Radionuclide in Building Materials-GB6566(the version currently in effect should be adopted). Due to the unfavorable factor of distance, this certification process will take much longer time than required for domestic ceramics companies (normally three to six months are required).

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　　Overseas superior products such as glazed tiles are welcome for import

　　Despite China has little demand for import of ceramic tiles and bathroom products, relatively speaking, some domestic high-end consumers still have certain demand for imported glazed tiles.

　　On one hand, foreign products are diversified in terms of pattern, colors and style design, providing complement to domestic products, and foreign glazed tiles manufacturers normally provide professional paving design; on the other hand, glazed tiles(water absorption rate E>0.5%) do not need CCC certification for export to China and the import procedure is relatively much simpler.

　　Certification and inspection are conducted by the CIQ

　　As far as Foshan is concerned, inquiry can be made to Foshan Entry and Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau for all import procedures concerning these products, including the import management policies regarding products such as ceramic tiles, sanitary ware, water heating and ceramic machinery and equipment.

　　Liu, the above-said quality engineer also mentioned that, product inspection mainly consists of two aspects, of which, the first is inspection of product quality, and the second is sampling inspection of product package labeling (including product parameter, purpose and place of origin).

　　Normally speaking, overseas manufacturers are doing pretty well in terms of product labeling, and have a slight advantage in terms of product consistency in relation to domestic manufacturers.

　　However, one thing requiring particular attention is that, as for the import of domestic ceramics, normally the quantity of lead and cadmium release is inspected.

　　In short, the key is to understand the demand for the country of destination before export, including understanding the products lacked and the import certification standard in the country of destination. There will be no major problems in exporting products to China as long as works are done properly in these two aspects.

　　不仅仅是出口，国内的陶瓷产品同样也有进口。众所周知，由于我国陶瓷产业在产能供应上的充足，在产品质量和价格上的相对优势，国内瓷砖、卫浴和陶瓷机械等产品出口量非常大，反之，对这些产品的进口需求相对就比较少。比如国内抛光砖产品生产设备、生产工艺等方面已经相当成熟，这类我们国内本身就做得很好的产品，可以说几乎没有进口需求了。所以，就目前的形势来看，国内陶瓷行业的进口需求主要集中在一些高档釉面砖、高端陶瓷机械设备等。比如陶瓷喷墨打印机，我国在此领域的技术尚不成熟。目前主要进口瓷砖品牌有道格拉斯(Daugres)、范思哲(Versace)、加德尼亚(GARDENIA ORCHIDEA)、蜜蜂(IMOLA)等，进口品牌主要是从做好服务入手，如提供免费铺贴设计等，能最大限度满足特定消费群的需求，这些都是高端消费群愿意花钱购买的原因。

　　办好3C认证，放射性是关键

　　不像出口因目的国的不同，合格评定程序的差异，需要认证的标准以及相关的检验要求也不一样。在中国进口陶瓷砖时，如果是属于瓷质砖(吸水率E≤0.5%)，那就需要办理3C认证，即 “强制性产品认证制度”，是一种法定的强制性安全认证制度，也是国际上广泛采用的保护消费者权益、维护消费者人身财产安全的基本做法。英文名称China Compulsory Certification，英文缩写CCC。通常情况下，如果陶瓷砖进口到中国，那么中国检验检疫会确认该批陶瓷砖是否是属于瓷质砖(吸水率E≤0.5%)，如果不是，那么就正常放行，如果是属于瓷质砖(吸水率E≤0.5%)，那么就需要提供CCC证书，没有CCC证书就不能进口，将要求其退运。

　　据国家建筑卫生陶瓷检测重点实验室、佛山出入境检验检疫局检验检疫综合技术中心质量工程师刘亚民透露，通常来说，国外客户欲对华出口吸水率E≤0.5%的瓷质砖，那么就要申请CCC认证，中国的认证机构根据申请，会派专家进行初始工厂检查，一般一个加工场所为2至4人/日，首先会对产品放射性控制情况评价以及产品一致性检查;然后进行抽样;最后将样品送至指定的检测机构进行检测。检测要求根据《建筑材料放射性核素限量》(GB6566，标准采用现行有效的版本)，由于距离上的不利因素，将较国内陶瓷企业3C认证耗时更久(可能通常需要三到六个月左右)。

　　欢迎釉面砖等国外优势产品进口

　　虽说中国在瓷砖、卫浴等方面的进口需求量不大，但相对而言，目前国内一些高档消费阶层，对进口的釉面砖还是有一定需求的。一方面，国外的釉面砖在花色、款式设计等比较丰富，弥补了我国的一些不足，同时他们会提供专业一些铺贴设计;另一方面，釉面砖(吸水率E>0.5%)的产品进口到中国不需要办理CCC认证，进口程序相对简单很多。

　　认证检测到出入境检验检疫局

　　对于陶瓷砖、卫生洁具、水暖及陶瓷机械设备等产品的进口管理政策，就佛山而言，所有关于这些的产品的进口程序都可以向佛山出入境检验检疫局咨询。

　　佛山出入境检验检疫局检验检疫综合技术中心质量工程师刘亚民还表示，产品检测这一块，主要包括两个方面：一是对产品质量的检测，二是对产品包装标识(包括产品参数、用途和生产国等方面)的抽检。通常说来，国外厂家相在这产品标识这方面做得都相对规范，且在产品的稳定性上也较国内的略有优势。

　　不过，需要特别注意的是，在对日用陶瓷的进口这方面，主要是对日用陶瓷铅、镉溶出量的检验。

　　总而言之，出口前了解目的国家需求是关键，包括了解目的国家欠缺产品及进口认证标准等。只要这两方面的工作都做好了，对华出口就不会存在太大的问题。