Twenty-Seven Years. Four Product Categories. 600+ Individual Profiles.
A local brat company near me is promoting America’s 249th anniversary in their Fourth of July advertising because “Why wait for the 250th?” The Polymeric Exterior Products Association (PEPA) shares these sentiments about the 27th anniversary of its VSI Product Certification Program with the same enthusiasm as the association’s silver anniversary commemorations in 2023.
“The VSI Product Certification Program’s history was never about resting on milestones and recent accomplishments,” said Sara Krompholz, PEPA’s Senior Director, Technical and Certification.
“There has always been a sense of urgency from our staff and members for continuous improvements in standardization and best practices.”
The program was born from a critical need to improve product quality consistency industry-wide, as well as consumer confidence. Once established in partnership with Intertek (formerly known as ATI in the 1990s), the VSI Product Certification Program (and the trade association) grew in direct relationship with the explosive growth of the vinyl siding industry, adding:
- Standards for colors (2006)
- Wind load (2008)
- In-plant impact testing processes (2015)
- An expansion to include polypropylene siding (2010), insulated vinyl siding (2012) and backed vinyl siding (2024), including the development and maintenance of ASTM standards for each of these product categories
- Recognition of these standards by both the International Residential Code (IRC) and the International Building Code (IBC)
In 2019, after hearing association members’ frustrations dealing with multiple certifying bodies and their desire to make the manufacturers’ self-certification program more robust, PEPA put the wheels in motion to create a one-stop ISO/IEC 17065 accreditation program with certification provided by an accredited certification body. This three-year process included establishing a newly branded certification mark (to replace the multiple certifying labels that were a requirement on every approved product) and two new deliverables (both publicly available): PCLs (Product Certification Listings) and PERs (Product Evaluation Reports).
The focus of this 27th-Anniversary celebration is two-fold:
- Recognize the metrics of the VSI Product Certification Program
- Four separate product categories: vinyl siding, insulated vinyl, polypropylene siding and backed vinyl siding
- 630 individual profiles: 520 vinyl siding, 47 insulated vinyl siding and 63 polypropylene (backed vinyl siding profiles are in development)
- Communicate the successful components of this model for future programs, especially for PEPA’s new member categories – polymeric roofing and vinyl fencing.
- One-click to a database of products updated monthly
- Ongoing compliance to ensure standardization moving forward, including:
- Semi-annual unannounced plant inspections and follow-up testing per ISO/IEC 17020 and ISO/EC 17025 respectively. Inspection includes a review of the quality manual, observations of the manufacturing process and evaluations of carton labeling for accuracy to ensure labels are applied only to products and accuracy in relation to PERs and PCLs and pulling physical samples to be shipped to the test lab.
- ASTM product standards compliance testing. Product samples are pulled and tested at a lab in accordance with ASTM standards – e.g., vinyl siding ASTM D3679.
- Inspection reports. The certification body delivers finalized reports to the plant that will include any findings discovered.
“Our website has a great web page that explains differences between product categories and products,” Sara said. “It shows pictures of individual profiles and what’s specifically being tested. It also features a button, ‘Find Certified Products,’ that takes users to the public directory of published PCLs and PERs. This is how manufacturers access their own deliverables – on this directory. Having the program structured to recognize certification through an independent certification body has provided great credibility and continued verification of uniform production by PEPA manufacturers.”
In a previous blog, Sara described the VSI Product Certification best in one word – evergreen. That’s why each anniversary and each year is special thanks to the hard work and efforts led by the PEPA team and its members, continuing to make the program fresh, relevant and valuable.
To add to the big celebration, the National Building Code of Canada (NBC) will recognize vinyl-backed siding. Stay tuned for more on this, and happy 27th!
For more information about PEPA’s VSI Product Certification Program, contact Sara at skrompholz@polymericexteriors.org.
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Don Browne is a writer, entrepreneur and local legislator who believes that the power of words can change the world. He provides unique writing services for clients in the construction, health care, IT and hospitality sectors. He has a passion for small business and start-ups, as well as writing about Irish history, family and corporate biographies. As a homeowner and father of four who is passionate about community development, Don looks forward to writing more about the exciting possibilities of creating traditional neighborhoods and more sustainable communities using modern materials.