With the widespread use of lithium batteries and power banks in daily life and industrial applications, their safety has become a focus of social attention. For battery and power bank products that have obtained China Compulsory Certification (CCC), obtaining certification is just the first step. Conducting annual confirmation inspection reports is the key to ensuring products continuously meet national standards and maintaining market access qualifications. This article deeply analyzes the importance, legal basis, specific content, and implementation process of confirmation inspection reports, providing clear guidance for relevant enterprises.

What is a Confirmation Inspection Report? Why Is It Required Annually?

A confirmation inspection report refers to a document issued by certification bodies or designated laboratories after conducting regular follow-up inspections and tests on certified products of manufacturing enterprises in accordance with original certification standards, subsequent to obtaining CCC certification. For high-safety products such as batteries and power banks, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation clearly stipulates that certified enterprises must conduct at least one confirmation inspection annually to ensure mass-produced products consistently comply with mandatory standards such as GB 31241-2014 "Safety Requirements for Lithium-Ion Batteries and Battery Packs for Portable Electronic Products" and GB 4943.1.

The essence of the annual confirmation inspection is a "health check" for products. Fluctuations in production processes, changes in raw materials, and subtle variations in production environments may all affect the safety performance of final products. Annual inspections effectively monitor product quality consistency, prevent safety accidents caused by quality degradation, and represent the core manifestation of enterprises fulfilling their primary responsibility for product quality.

Legal and Standard Basis: More Than a Formality, a Legal Requirement

China’s Measures for the Administration of Compulsory Product Certification and Implementation Rules for Compulsory Product Certification explicitly require continuous follow-up inspections of certified products, including factory quality assurance capability inspections and product consistency confirmation inspections. Specifically for batteries and power banks, confirmation inspections are mainly conducted in accordance with the following standards:

Safety Standards:

• GB 31241-2014 (Applicable to lithium batteries for portable devices)
• GB 40165-2021 (Safety requirements for lithium batteries for fixed electronic devices)
• Key Test Items: Electrical safety (overcharge, overdischarge, short circuit, forced discharge, etc.), mechanical safety (crush, vibration, shock, etc.), environmental safety (high temperature, low pressure, temperature cycling, etc.), and critical battery system protection functions.

Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Standards:

While some battery products may involve EMC during full certification, annual confirmation inspections typically focus more on safety items. Specific requirements shall be implemented in accordance with the Factory Inspection Requirements or Product Confirmation Inspection Requirements issued by the certification body.

Enterprises that fail to conduct annual confirmation inspections as required or continue to deliver and sell non-compliant products after failed inspections will face suspension or revocation of certification, as well as administrative penalties from market supervision authorities, with products removed from the market.

Specific Content and Process of Confirmation Inspection Reports

A complete annual confirmation inspection is not a simple re-test but a systematic quality traceability and verification process.

Core Inspection Content

1. Product Consistency Verification: Verify consistency between mass-produced products and certified samples in terms of key structures, critical components (e.g., cells, protection boards, PCBs), and key materials (e.g., separators, electrolytes).

2. Key Safety Item Testing: Randomly sample products from current or recent production batches and send them to qualified laboratories (e.g., CNAS and CMA-accredited laboratories such as Guangdong Energy Storage Testing Technology Co., Ltd.) for key safety tests specified by standards. Common mandatory items may include:

   • Overcharge protection test
   • Short circuit protection test
   • Thermal abuse test
   • Crush test (or alternative items based on risk assessment)

3. Factory Quality Assurance Capability Inspection: Certification bodies will dispatch auditors to factories to inspect the effective operation of quality management systems, with a focus on supplier management, production process control, inspection equipment calibration, and non-conforming product control.

Standard Implementation Process

1. Planning and Application: Enterprises should take the initiative to contact their certification body or designated testing laboratory to apply for the annual confirmation inspection around the certificate’s anniversary date.

2. Sampling and Sample Submission: Under the supervision of certification body or laboratory personnel, extract the specified number of samples from the factory’s finished product warehouse or production line end, seal them, and send them to the laboratory.

3. Laboratory Testing: The laboratory conducts tests on samples in accordance with standards and certification body requirements, recording detailed data.

4. Report Issuance: After passing the tests, the laboratory issues the confirmation inspection report. If non-conformities are found, the enterprise must rectify immediately and conduct re-testing if necessary.

5. Result Filing and Certification Maintenance: The enterprise submits the qualified confirmation inspection report to the certification body as necessary evidence to maintain the validity of its CCC certificate. The certification body updates its follow-up inspection records accordingly.

Risks and Consequences of Ignoring Annual Confirmation Inspections

Many enterprises mistakenly believe that "once certified, forever compliant"—a dangerous mindset in today’s increasingly strict regulatory environment.

1. Legal and Compliance Risks

Direct violation of compulsory product certification management regulations, leading to suspension or revocation of certification and inability to legally sell products.

2. Market and Brand Risks

Safety accidents caused by untested or missed products will trigger large-scale recalls and media exposure, inflicting devastating damage to corporate reputation. E-commerce platforms and offline stores also regularly verify the validity of suppliers’ product certifications.

3. Supply Chain Risks

Downstream brand customers or purchasers will regard the annual confirmation inspection report as a core audit document during factory inspections; its absence will result in lost orders.

4. Technical Out-of-Control Risks

Failure to timely detect systemic quality hazards in production processes may lead to batch quality issues, resulting in more severe losses.

Choose a Professional Partner for Efficient and Compliant Confirmation Inspections

For enterprises, entrusting the annual confirmation inspection to an experienced, fully qualified third-party testing and certification institution is the most worry-free, labor-saving, and effective choice. For example, Guangdong Energy Storage Testing Technology Co., Ltd., a professional institution specializing in battery testing, not only holds comprehensive CNAS and CMA qualifications and is familiar with all standards and certification processes for battery products but also provides enterprises with:

1. One-Stop Service

End-to-end managed services from sample preparation guidance, appointment sampling, full-process test follow-up, report interpretation, to submission to certification bodies.

2. Technical Guidance

Pre-evaluation before inspection to help enterprises identify potential risks in advance; professional technical rectification suggestions if non-conformities arise.

3. Efficiency and Cost Optimization

Leveraging rich project experience and laboratory resources to help enterprises reasonably arrange inspection timelines, avoid certificate status impacts due to inspection delays, and save long-term compliance costs.

Conclusion

For enterprises producing CCC-certified batteries and power banks, the annual confirmation inspection report is by no means a dispensable "formality" but a lifeline to strengthen product safety lines, fulfill corporate social responsibility, and maintain market competition qualifications. It is a solemn commitment to consumer safety and a solid foundation for enterprises to achieve stable and long-term development. Incorporate confirmation inspections into the enterprise’s annual quality priorities and choose a reliable testing partner to ensure the product’s safety "light" remains bright and the "ship" of safety sails far.

Plan your product’s annual confirmation inspection today—guard long-term trust with an authoritative report.