Product Markings
Every DMM product carries at least the minimum marking requirements as stipulated by CE norms. This usually involves two distinct sets of markings:
Strength and Certification markings
These markings show the breaking strength of the product or component in various situations as well as relevant CE and instructional information. E.g. an alloy connector would show:
- Gate Closed strength
- Minor Axis strength
- Gate Open strength
- A ‘Read the instructions’ pictogram and the notified body number for quality management system and CE Mark.
Unique I.D. Markings
All DMM metal products carry a unique serial number. The number allows every single item to be individually traced back to its original date and order of production. The way it works is as follows:
YRDAYXXXX#
YR – Year of Manufacture
08 – 2008
09 – 2009
10 – 2010
11 – 2011
12 – 2012 etc.
DAY – The day of the year on which the product was marked
004 – would be the 4th of January
032 – would be the 1st of February
344 – would be the 10th of December
XXXX – Individual serial number
0001 – would be the first component marked on that day
0050 – would be the fiftieth component marked during the day
# – The machine with which the component was serialized
A = Rotary Laser Marker
B or M = Max Box Laser Marker
C = Dot Marker
Example: 081001450A
Yr 2008 – Day 100 – Serial Number 1450 – Machine A
California Proposition 65 Warning on DMM Product Packaging
Why does our packaging have a Proposition 65 warning on it?
Proposition 65 (Prop 65) is a Californian law that requires that all products containing a Prop 65 listed chemical to carry a clear and reasonable warning notifying the consumer of the presence of the chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer and/or reproductive harm. If you live in California, you have likely noticed this warning on many products.
The Prop 65 chemicals (https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/proposition-65-list) include additives or ingredients that can be found in common household products, food, drugs, dyes, pesticides, and/or solvents. For example, everyday items such as computer keyboards, electrical items, clothing, and even coffee may contain chemicals subject to Prop 65.
All companies selling products in California that contain any of the over 1000 chemicals must display a warning notifying consumers that such chemical(s) are present in the product.
As an example, Chromium is on the list of Prop 65 chemicals and is present in trace amounts embedded in the aluminium alloys and steels that we use to make our climbing and working at height hardware. It can also be present in the zippers on soft goods and even in the staples we use for packaging.
DMM values its customers health and desires to comply with prop 65. However, the process of testing all products that may contain components with Prop 65 chemicals from numerous manufacturers from many different countries is complex, time consuming, and very expensive. In addition, if a company fails to provide a prop 65 warning for any product, Prop 65 allows private parties and their attorneys to sue companies for such failure and these lawsuits can be very expensive to defend against.
DMM is an international company that sells goods throughout the world, including the United States and California. When manufacturing and labelling products, we often do not know whether a particular product will ultimately be sold or used in California. If one of our products is sold in California and it contains one of the Prop 65 chemicals, DMM is subject to suit if the product does not contain include a Prop 65 warning. As a result, to comply with Prop 65, DMM has placed a Prop 65 warning on the packaging of all products that may contain Prop 65 chemicals, irrespective of whether or not they are intended to be sold in the USA.
For more information, please see this article from the NY Times https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/what-is-prop-65/ and if you have any questions please contact us at
