HMI-Certified Program

2.1 General operating characteristics of the program include:

• 2.1.1 Licensee must be a manufacturer of industrial hoisting equipment.
• 2.1.2 HMI membership is NOT required to receive an HMI-Certified License; however, Applicants shall be able to satisfy all of the requirements for HMI membership with the exception that MHI membership is not required. Download HMI Bylaws (79 kb)
• 2.1.3 HMI-Certified can only be applied to products that conform to one or more of the Standards as listed in the
  Compendium of Basic Information and Standards for Hoists (452 kb).
• 2.1.4 A cognizant and qualified Professional Engineer, who is registered in the United States of America and employed or engaged by the Licensee, must verify, sign and seal that the product meets the requirements of the applicable standard(s) and must construct a supporting Technical File as described in SECTION 5 – Technical File Guide.
• 2.1.5 A listing of the active HMI-Certified products and qualified Licensees is available here.
• 2.1.6 The HMI-Certified mark (40 kb) can only be applied to products that have been certified in accordance with the requirements set forth elsewhere herein.
• 2.1.7 A product that has been altered (i.e., a significant design change) beyond its Certified Configuration can only carry the HMI-Certified mark after a cognizant Professional Engineer verifies, signs and seals that the altered product meets the requirements of the applicable standard(s).

3.1 An Applicant for an HMI-Certified License must contact the Managing Executive of HMI who shall:

• 3.1.1 Oversee a “due diligence” evaluation of the Applicant’s qualifications, and
• 3.1.2 Provide the Applicant with procedural and technical requirements as well as related documents in electronic or other format.

3.2 An Applicant shall prepare an electronic Submittal Package for each product or product family of like design containing the following:

• 3.2.1 Declaration of Conformity-Technical (Attachment "A" 29 kb) certifying that the subject product or product family of like design meets or exceeds every applicable requirement in the identified standard. This Declaration of Conformity-Technical shall be signed and sealed by a cognizant and qualified Professional Engineer who may be employed or otherwise retained by the Applicant and who is registered in the United States of America.
• 3.2.2 Declaration of Conformity-Service and Support (Attachment "B" 29 kb) signed by the CEO or other Officer of the Applicant that provides tangible evidence that the Licensee has in its possession and will continue to be in a position to offer the following:
  • 3.2.2.1 Literature and manuals that address safety, installation, operation, maintenance, warranty and replacement parts.
  • 3.2.2.2 Evidence of product training and technical support.
  • 3.2.2.3 Evidence of availability of spare parts for the "life cycle" of the product.
  • 3.2.2.4 Evidence of qualified service and repair capabilities.
  • 3.2.2.5 Proof of adequate product liability insurance.
• 3.3 Prior to submittal of the aforesaid package for approval, the Applicant and HMI will execute a Hold Harmless Agreement (47 kb).
• 3.4 The Managing Executive of HMI or his/her designee shall review the two reports and shall verify that all requirements have been met.
• 3.5 HMI and the Applicant will enter into a License Agreement regarding the Applicant’s use of the HMI Certification.
• 3.6 An Annual License fee is included in the basic HMI dues for its members which are in good standing. Non-members of HMI which apply for a License shall pay an annual License fee of $5,000.
• 3.7 Having been granted an HMI-Certified License, the Licensee shall be authorized to display the HMI-Certified mark with regard to any qualified product or product family of like design in accordance with the License Agreement.
• 3.8 License Certification shall be reaffirmed in accordance with the aforesaid Approval Process every five (5) years unless a significant design change to the product or product family of like design is made before that date, in which case immediate re-certification is required.
• 3.9 This program may be modified or amended at any time as decided by the HMI alone.

4.1 HMI-Certified Licensees may display evidence of qualified products being HMI-Certified as follows:

• 4.1.1 In specifications for the qualified products
• 4.1.2 On the qualified products themselves
• 4.1.3 On drawings of the qualified products
• 4.1.4 On literature about the qualified products
• 4.1.5 In advertisements for the qualified products
• 4.1.6 At public events involving the qualified products

5.1 The technical file for each product or product family of like design that is HMI Certified shall include the following items:

• 5.1.1 The Declaration of Conformity-Technical (29 kb) (Attachment "A") signed and sealed in accordance with paragraph 3.2.1.
• 5.1.2 The Declaration of Conformity-Service & Support (29 kb) (Attachment "B") signed in accordance with paragraph 3.2.2.
• 5.1.3 Section- by- section response to each pertinent requirement of the applicable standard referenced in the COMPENDIUM of BASIC INFORMATION and STANDARDS for HOISTS (452 kb).
• 5.1.4 Documents describing or otherwise identifying the product or product family of like design that is HMI Certified, including but not limited to design documents, owner’s manual, parts list, and product catalog.
• 5.1.5 Documents that substantiate the Declaration of Conformity – Technical including but not limited to such things as materials that delineate design inputs, calculations, analyses, evaluations and test reports.
• 5.1.6 The aforesaid documents need not be maintained in the same file or in a single physical space, although they must be readily available in the event of a request by the HMI Managing Executive or his/her designee to review the same, as required elsewhere herein.

The following terms, phrases and words may apply to HMI Certified:

• 6.1 Adequate Product Liability Insurance – An amount of liability insurance that covers the design and manufacture of products that are subject to HMI Certified and that provides the Applicant protection from potential liability associated with the Applicant’s products that are HMI Certified and that names HMI and MHI as “additional insureds.”
  
  The strict interpretation is that the Applicant has determined an appropriate level of liability coverage requirement and has obtained a liability insurance policy in that amount. As proof, the Applicant must provide a Certificate of Insurance naming Material Handling Industry (MHI) and the Hoist Manufacturers Institute (HMI) as additional insureds on the liability policy. It is not the role of Staff to audit or maintain such documents, only to confirm their existence. It is the Applicant’s burden to maintain these documents as current and provide Staff updated documents as changes occur.
• 6.2 Applicable Standard(s) – The Standard(s) that apply to the product in question as referenced in HMI’s COMPENDIUM of BASIC INFORMATION and STANDARDS for HOISTS (452 kb).
• 6.3 Applicant – Company applying for the HMI-Certified License.
• 6.4 Certified Configuration – Product version earning HMI-Certified.
• 6.5 Cognizant – The term is used to describe the Professional Engineer who performs the evaluation and attests to conformance as having awareness, realization, and knowledge of the technical aspects of hoist products.
• 6.6 Declaration of Conformity – Two documents, one Technical and the other Service and Support, which attest to compliance with the HMI-Certified Program.
• 6.7 Due Diligence Evaluation – The process by which the HMI Managing Executive investigates and verifies the Applicant’s submissions.
• 6.8 HMI – Hoist Manufacturers Institute, an Affiliated Trade Association of the MHI.
• 6.9 HMI By-Laws – The rules by which the HMI governs itself.
• 6.10 HMI-Certified – The program for allowing Hoist products to gain a measure of proof of compliance to the Applicable Standard(s).
• 6.11 HMI-Certified Mark – The trade mark that Licensees are authorized to use and to display in association with such product or product family of like design that qualifies for the HMI-Certified status.
• 6.12 HMI-Certified Program – Program by which a hoist product can gain HMI-Certified status.
• 6.13 Hold Harmless Agreement – The contract by which Applicants and Licensees agree to indemnify HMI, MHI, and its officers, executives, and members from all claims or costs relating to the HMI Certified Program.
• 6.14 Issuing Agent – The Professional Engineer who signs and seals the Declaration of Conformity and who certifies that the product or product family of like design complies with the Applicable Standard(s).
• 6.15 License – The permission by HMI to Licensee that it has the rights to display and to promote its qualifying products as HMI-Certified.
• 6.16 License Agreement - Contract between HMI and Licensee agreeing to the conditions of the award of HMI-Certified.
• 6.17 Licensee – Successful Applicant.
• 6.18 Life Cycle of the Product – The time commencing with a product’s release into the stream of commercial market to its withdrawal from the market.
• 6.19 Manufacture – Taking raw material or semi-finished material and through the performance of processes involving engineering and design, fabricating, converting or producing therefrom semi-finished or finished industrial hoisting equipment for sale commercially. “Manufacture” is not merely assembling or combining components manufactured by others.
• 6.20 Marked products – Products for which the HMI-Certified Mark have been licensed.
• 6.21 Member – A company that is a member of HMI.
• 6.22 Product Family of Like Design – A number of products sharing brand, fundamental design objectives, styling, performance and operating characteristics.
• 6.23 Professional Engineer – A person who has gained registration and is licensed as a Professional Engineer in the United States.
• 6.24 Qualified Product – A product that has been approved and is covered by the License.
• 6.25 Qualified Service & Repair Capabilities – The service and repairs that the Applicant offers to meet its obligations in providing safe and effective service and repairs for its products.
• 6.26 Reaffirmed – The process of completion and submitting a new Declaration of Conformity in accordance with Section 3.
• 6.27 Sign and Seal – The Professional Engineer’s attestation as to the compliance of the product to the Applicable Standard(s), in accordance with the rules and regulations governing the institution by which the Professional Engineer is licensed.
• 6.28 Significant Design Change – A change to the design of product covered by the License that could affect the compliance of the product with the Applicable Standard(s).
• 6.29 Technical File – The Professional Engineer’s work product that substantiates and documents his verifications, conclusions and related attestations that the product complies with the Applicable Standard(s).
• 6.30 Verify – Taking appropriate steps and actions including evaluation, analysis, calculation, and tests, to confirm that the product complies with the Applicable Standard(s).