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Three Basic Types of Testing Programs
Certification Test
Official pre-market evaluation for admission to the Foundation's Certification programs. The manufacturer submits a number of helmet samples, depending on the helmet type and Snell standard to the Foundation for testing. Snell technicians at Snell laboratories subject these samples to the most rigorous testing permitted by the Standard. Any failure on any sample is a cause for rejection.
Random Sample Test (RST)
Required testing and evaluation for all certified helmets. The Foundation acquires helmet test samples directly from stocks of helmets that are meant for sale or distribution to the general public, or specific groups of users, usually from retail or distribution sources. The number of samples we will buy is based on the number of Snell certified helmets the manufacturer has produced. Snell technicians in Snell laboratories inspect and test each sample to check that the helmets used by the public continue to meet the Foundation's high standards. If it is found that these RST helmets fail to meet the testing criteria, three more samples are obtained and tested to confirm the findings of the first tests. If any of these three follow up tests result in failure, the Foundation first demands that the manufacturer discontinue production of these helmets as Snell certified products. The Foundation will then continue to investigate the matter and determine a suitable course of action. These actions can range from requiring the manufacturer fix the problem and recertify the helmet, to a complete decertification of the manufacturer's certified product line. In some cases Snell will require that all Snell decals distributed to that manufacturer be returned.. This basically amounts to a full scale recall. Gratefully, this rarely occurs because of the procedures taken during the certification and Random Sample Testing.
More on RST
Prototype Test
Unofficial evaluation. Manufacturers may submit one or more helmet samples and request specific tests and test configurations. The Foundation will not consider prototype test data in evaluation for Certification. However, manufacturers may find prototype testing useful in product development.
Ovvero: la certificazione è fatta su caschi forniti dai produttori, ma poi Snell esegue comunque controlli a campione su caschi presi nei negozi. Se i numeri non dovessero quadrare il casco perde la certificazione Snell e deve rifare i test, e se il produttore continua a fare il furbo gli decertificano tutta la linea di prodotti, o addirittura gli richiedono indietro tutte le etichette Snell che ha avuto, costringendolo di fatto a togliere i caschi dal mercato.