Maintaining your coc certificate

In order to maintain its chain of custody certificate, the certified company must comply with the standards and meet any specific requirements set up by the assessment team.

Follow up on corrective action requests

Certified companies must comply with any Non-Conformity Reports (NCRs) issued by the assessment team by the specified deadline. After this date, minor CARs will be upgraded to major NCRs, while non-compliance with major NCRs by the specified timeline will lead to suspension of the certificate. 

Use of trademarks

The certified company is allowed to use the logos of the respective certification systems, while respecting rules of logo and trademark use. Within the FSC system, it is necessary to consult with NEPCon's trademark service providers to obtain approvals for the use of the FSC logo and trademarks. Within the PEFC system, the certified company must obtain a PEFC Logo License before the PEFC logo can be used.

Annual audits

A chain-of-custody certificate is valid for a period of 5 years. During the validity period, both the FSC and PEFC system demand annual audits to be performed by third-party independent auditors, to verify the company's continued system compliance. To remain certified, the company must submit annual reports with purchased and sold volumes to NEPCon prior to our annual audits. The annual audits will focus on weaknesses identified during the assessment (if any) and on continued fulfillment of the certification requirements.

Minor or major NCRs may be issued by the auditor depending on the severity of the identified non-compliances. MinorRs which have not been sufficiently addressed during the previous period will be upgraded to major CARs. Minor CARs must typically be met prior to the next annual audit. Major CARs shall typically be addressed within 3 months.

re-certification

After completing a full validity period of 5 years, the company can choose to undergo a new full chain-of-custody assessment in order to receive a new certificate valid for the next 5 years.

ADDITIONAL AUDITS
NEPCon may conduct additional on-site audits to verify progress towards meeting previously issued non-conformities or in case there is need to change the certificate scope or in case there is reason to believe that the company is not in compliance with some applicable requirements (based on complaints from other parties).

CHANGES in CERTIFICATE SCOPE
The company may wish to change their certificate scope. These changes may involve a new certified product group, change in system for controlling CoC claims, adding or removing sites etc. Depending on the nature of the change audit may be conducted as on-site or desk-audit.

SUSPENSION AND WITHDRAWAL
NEPCon has the right to suspend or withdraw certification if the company is not in compliance with the applicable requirements (e.g., if there is identified major non-conformities with certification standard requirements; the company is refuses to undergo annual audit; due to non-payment). Notice that in some systems a certain number of major NCR-s issued, will automatically lead to suspension of the certificate. For example in case of FSC certification, in case of 5 or more major NCR-s are raised, the certificate shall be suspended, until the identified non-conformities are solved. Company is always notified in written about the suspension or withdrawal decision. After suspension or withdrawal, company cannot make any claims regarding conforming to the certification standard(s) and sale any previously labelled products until certification trademarks are removed.

USE OF TRADEMARKS
The certified company is allowed to use the logos of the respective certification systems, while respecting rules of logo and trademark use. Within the FSC system Trademark License Agreement is signed together with service agreement prior to certification. It is necessary to consult with NEPCon's trademark service providers to obtain approvals for the use of the FSC logo and trademarks. Within the PEFC system, the certified company must obtain a PEFC Logo License from PEFC NGB of Council before the PEFC logo can be used. It is not required to get formal approval prior to the use of the PEFC logo and trademarks.

FSC trademark resources