What is now called NMMA Product Certification has been around in various forms since the late 1960s but it has always been a voluntary program in which companies pay NMMA technical experts to guide them through the intricacies of regulatory compliance.

NMMA announced its decision in August while reporting on progress of closed-door talks about how the industry can meet the challenge to “grow boating.”

“There were no great surprises,” said Thom Dammrich, NMMA president, “except for the unanimous conclusion that perhaps the time had come to seriously address those factors hindering our growth.” At the top of NMMA’s to-do list is to “improve product quality with standards and certification,” he added.

Until the mid-1990s, NMMA’s certification program was widely viewed as a way for the industry to avoid scrutiny from U.S. Coast Guard factory inspectors and other industry outsiders. The program was set up so that participating companies could certify some, but not all, of their model lines.

However, as NMMA has come to embrace the notion that certification is good for the industry’s image, its technical staff has worked closely with the American Boat & Yacht Council to enhance the scope of NMMA standards. A notable feature of the program is that it applies to boats up to 26 ft., whereas federal manufacturing regulations apply to boats only 20 ft.

Participating boat builders must have certification specialists on staff and NMMA provides education and seminars to help specialists maintain their credentials. In addition, NMMA also conducts short-notice factory inspections to make sure that builders follow guidelines.

NMMA indicates that the 140 boatbuilders currently participating in its certification program produce about 75% of all boats sold. A review of NMMA’s website (www.nmma.org) reveals that the remaining 260 NMMA boatbuilder members that do not participate are such well-known builders as Hatteras, Smokercraft, Bertram and Scout.

Reasons for not participating generally break down into two categories: some boatbuilders believe their standards exceed those promoted by NMMA; for others it is the cost of NMMA certification that can be prohibit for small builders. NMMA’s minimum upfront fee is $200 plus the certification inspector’s costs of $150 per-hour for each boat model certified.

According to the industry group’s recent announcement, NMMA certification will become a requisite for membership beginning with the 2007 model year, which will begin in mid- to late-2006.

For more information about NMMA Product Certification, visit www.NMMA.org/certifcation.

(c) Copyright BoatU.S. Magazine, November 2004