BIS QCO for Ropes and Cordages Quality Control Order 2024

Recently, the Bureau of Indian Standards announced a Quality Control Order regarding Ropes and Cordages products. First, let's understand the Quality Control Orders (QCOs).

The Government of India comes out with the Quality Control Orders which commissions the usage of the Standard Mark with a BIS Certificate of Conformity (CoC).  The objective behind this mandate is the protection of public health, ensuring the safety of the environment, controlling and arresting unfair trade practices and national security, etc.

Overview: BIS QCO for Ropes and Cordages

This article is important for all the stakeholders in the Ropes and Cordages industry as the Ministry of Textiles published the Ropes and Cordages (Quality Control) Order, 2024 on 3rd October 2024 in the Gazette of India. This update applies to all current license holders, new applicants, manufacturers, importers, and product dealers.

1. Date of Implementation:

• This order shall come into force on -1st April 2025
• For Small and Micro enterprises (for domestic production only), as defined under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006 (27 of 2006), it shall come into force on - 1st July 2025.

2. Applicability:

• This order shall apply to Ropes and Cordages products as mentioned below: 

To comply with the quality requirements, Ropes and Cordages products mentioned below must abide by the appropriate Indian Standards as given below -                                  

Sr. No. | Goods or Articles | Indian Standard
1. | Textiles - Manila Ropes | IS 1084: 2005
2. | Fibre ropes - Polyester 3-, 4- , 8- and 12- strand ropes | IS 11066: 2022
3. | Textiles - Composite synthetic fibre ropes | IS 14928: 2001
4. | Textiles - Mixed PolyolefinFibre Ropes | IS 14929: 2022
5. | Steel wire ropes - Fibremain cores | IS 1804: 2004
6. | Fibre ropes - Polyamide 3-4- 8- and 12-Strand ropes | IS 4572: 2022
7. | Fiber ropes - Polypropylene split film, monofilament and multifilament (PP2) andpolypropylene high-tenacity multifilament(PP3) – 3-, 4-, 8- and 12- strand ropes | IS 5175: 2022
8. | Fibre ropes Polyethylene 3 - and 4 - strand ropes | IS 8674: 2013
9. | Fiber ropes of polyester/ polyolefin dual fibers | IS 17609: 2021

Exemptions:

This order does not apply to the articles and goods meant for export.

3. Standards Compliance:

Please refer to the BIS Quality control order QCO for the context of the information specified below -

The goods or article specified in column (2) of the said Schedule shall conform to the corresponding Indian Standard specified in column (3) thereof and shall bear the Standard Mark under a license from the Bureau of Indian Standards by Scheme-I of Schedule-II to the Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018.

4. Certification and Enforcement:

The Bureau of Indian Standards is recognized as the responsible authority for certifying and enforcing the quality standards pertinent to Ropes and Cordages products. Breach of this order will attract the penalty as stipulated in the applicable Act.

Note: For the Schedule, it is clarified that the most recent version of Indian Standards established and published by the Bureau of Indian Standards as per the provisions of clause (17) of Section 2 of the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 (11 of 2016), shall apply from the date of such publication.

How does the BIS work for Ropes and Cordages?

The BIS certification procedure requires licensing and surveillance processes. Let’s look into the details. The licensing procedure encompasses the following steps:

• The manufacturer should apply to the BIS website for BIS certification.
• The preliminary examination of the factory will be conducted by the BIS officer.
• After the preliminary examination, the product samples will be examined.
• Subsequently, the BIS officer will determine the result.
• After the inspection procedure, the officer will employ surveillance techniques to inspect the factory.

The surveillance technique encompasses the following steps:

• The inspection committee will visit the manufacturing factory to check the test results.
• The inspection officer will dispatch the test samples to the autonomous laboratories.
• The test report will include remarks and a summary of the inquiry-related complaint.
• After the review of the report, the BIS license is granted to the Ropes and Cordages products.