KEMA has opened a testing laboratory in Wenzhou in the Chinese province of Zhejiang. The lab was acquired from Chint, China’s largest manufacturer of electric components. This makes KEMA the first foreign enterprise with an independent test lab for industrial electric components in China. This local lab will speed up access to the global market for both Chinese and foreign companies with a manufacturing plant in China. 

The Wenzhou lab is a modern facility specializing in testing of industrial components such as circuit breakers and switch panel components for machines. Installation materials and accessories for household appliances can also be tested in the laboratory. Besides testing for electrical safety, it is also possible to test for electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and the presence of banned raw materials, including bromine and cadmium (RoHS). The lab has low-voltage testing capabilities allowing for a considerable extension of services. Over the next year it will be possible to conduct tests up to a power level of 150 kA.

Further increase
The Wenzhou lab is a joint venture of KEMA and a local test institute and employs a staff of 24. Wenzhou is KEMA’s fourth test lab in China, after the labs in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Guangzhou. These labs primarily test household appliances, power tools, (Christmas) lights and IT and audio/video equipment. With the addition of the Wenzhou lab, KEMA now employs over 180 staff in China, with plans to further increase staff to about 350.