Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL), www.ul.com, independent organization certifying the safety of products, has acquired Global ICQ, www.icqglobal.com, a leader in the field of tests on consumer products, based in Italy. With this acquisition UL strengthens its presence in Europe and Asia as part of the overall quality and performance of services in support of the entire supply chain of consumer products. UL develops standards and test procedures for products, materials, components, assemblies, tools and equipment. Assesses and certifies the efficiency of business processes of a company through its management programs of the recording system. Through its subsidiary, UL Environment, also, the organization is involved in analyzing and evaluating products for environmental sustainability. Many of the top brands of consumer electronics and European retailers rely on AIM Global to perform tests of performance in electrical, chemical, flammability, microbiological, and more, in order to verify that the products conform to national standards and international reference. AIM Global is running tests on a wide variety of products including toys, promotional products, textiles, cosmetics, food materials, building materials, furniture, packaging materials, paints and varnishes. “Our entry into UL results in additional benefits for our staff, and for our customers, in terms of experience, more services, and a larger presence in the world and in the supply chain of consumer products,” says Claus Consonni, (pictured above), president of AIM Global. AIM Global is the fourth acquisition in the field of quality assurance by UL last year, along with quality assurance (QA) of Str Holdings business, acquired in August 2011, the Bengali textile Magnus services and the German Eco-Institute acquired during 2012. AIM Global is recognized as laboratory tests by numerous national and international organizations in Europe, United States (CPSC), Brazil (Cgcre), Hong Kong (Hoklas) and others. AIM Global will continue to operate from its offices in Italy and Hong Kong. UL is one of the most recognized companies for verification by the federal safety agency of the U.S. Occupational and Health Administration (OSHA), which holds a list of approved laboratories, known as nationally recognized testing.
