International Research Center LLC is the group's accredited testing laboratory. The laboratory works to a set of test methods common to the whole Union: its test reports are accepted by certification bodies in every member state and serve as the evidence base for certification, declaration and state registration.
Most positions fall under food products (TR CU 021/2011), food additives (TR CU 029/2012) and children's goods (TR CU 007/2011).
Toys for children under 14, teats and soothers of latex, rubber and silicone, sanitary and hygiene articles and children's haberdashery, tableware and cutlery, toothbrushes, school and writing supplies, publishing and book products.
Clothing, knitted and sewn articles including children's ranges; footwear of all kinds including felted; leather and leather goods, furs; carpet coverings, felt and non-woven materials.
Metal, polymer, paper and board, glass, textile, wooden and ceramic packaging, combined materials, cork and other closures.
Perfumery and cosmetic products, cosmetic and essential oils, toilet soap, oral hygiene products.
Domestic and contract furniture by intended use, including children's furniture.
Meat and meat products, poultry and eggs, dairy products, fish, fats and oils, grain and bakery products, sugar and confectionery, honey, fruit and vegetable and juice products, salt, soft drinks and alcohol, food additives, supplements, specialised and infant nutrition, packaged drinking water.
Migration of harmful substances from materials into model media, water, air and food: formaldehyde, phenol, ε-caprolactam, styrene, acrylonitrile, benzene, toluene, xylenes, phthalates, alcohols, esters and monomers, organochlorine compounds, N-nitrosamines, vulcanisation accelerators, bisphenol A, melamine.
Lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury, tin, total and hexavalent chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, iron, aluminium, barium, antimony, selenium, silver, cobalt, manganese, molybdenum, strontium, titanium, boron, lithium, tungsten, silicon, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium.
Total viable count, coliforms and Enterobacteriaceae, pathogens including Salmonella, L. monocytogenes, E. coli, S. aureus, B. cereus, P. aeruginosa, C. albicans, sulphite-reducing clostridia, yeasts and moulds, industrial sterility requirements.
Aflatoxins B1 and M1, ochratoxin A, deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, patulin, T-2 toxin; chloramphenicol, tetracyclines, penicillin, streptomycin; pesticides — HCH, lindane, DDT and metabolites, heptachlor, aldrin; benzo(a)pyrene, nitrates, nitrites.
Specific activity of caesium-137 and strontium-90, specific activity of natural radionuclides, total specific alpha activity, radiation safety of products.
Toys — choking and injury risk, resistance to mechanical load, flammability; footwear and leather — flexibility, strength of sole and heel attachment; textiles — breaking load, seam strength, colour fastness; packaging — tightness, seam strength, thermal stability; publishing products — typographic layout.
Electrostatic field strength, magnetic, electric and electromagnetic field levels, sound level, vibration level, infrared radiation level.
Toxicity index in aqueous and air media, general toxic effect by alternative in vitro methods — mandatory characteristics for children's goods, skin-contact articles and food-contact materials.
Appearance, colour, odour at 20 °C and 60 °C, taste and aftertaste, odour intensity, turbidity, sediment, clarity, and the food sorbent test for food-contact articles.
Mass fractions of fat, protein, moisture, dry matter, non-fat milk solids, sucrose, starch and salt; acidity, peroxide value, pH; vitamins A, D, E, C, B group and PP; preservatives, sweeteners, colourants, phosphates; alcohol and water characteristics; grain pest infestation; honey authenticity indicators.
All measuring instruments are verified and test equipment is certified in the established manner.
Beyond testing for conformity assessment, the laboratory carries out research and development work. Results are issued as test reports, technical reports and expert opinions, which the client uses internally, to substantiate technical documentation, and in talks with partners and retail chains.
Testing of samples of a new formulation or design, composition selection, safety substantiation before the official procedure begins.
Storage of samples under controlled conditions with periodic control of microbiological, physico-chemical and organoleptic characteristics.
Migration testing in model media, selection of a packaging solution for a specific product.
Regular testing under the enterprise's production control programme.
In disputes between supplier and buyer, in claims, and in disputes with supervisory authorities.
Development and adaptation of methods, comparative studies, participation in research projects.
Rapid checking of a sample against critical characteristics before the official procedure starts.
Development of test programmes and methods where existing standards do not cover the product.
You describe the product and the purpose of testing: conformity assessment, production control, R&D or arbitration.
We determine the list of characteristics, the applicable methods, the quantity of samples and the sampling procedure.
Agreement on deadlines and price.
Sampling may be carried out by our own specialists — for a number of positions, sampling is included in the scope of accreditation.
Within the agreed deadlines, with primary records kept under standard operating procedures.
On paper and in electronic form.
Where results are negative we explain the causes and the possible ways to rework the product.