Counterfeit labels

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ceb58

ceb58

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Raeford, NC
Had an inspection with a state inspector today. We got on the subject of counterfeit listed material. He said that Graybar had been duped and got a bunch of counterfeit Sq D breakers. He also said that he inspected some Lithonia light fixtures. He said the UL label "looked" strange. He took a photo and sent it to a local UL office where they confirmed it was a counterfeit UL label with a counterfeit Lithonia label. All of this by the country that brought us contaminated sheet rock. Has any one else heard any thing about this?
 
ceb58 said:
Had an inspection with a state inspector today. We got on the subject of counterfeit listed material. He said that Graybar had been duped and got a bunch of counterfeit Sq D breakers. He also said that he inspected some Lithonia light fixtures. He said the UL label "looked" strange. He took a photo and sent it to a local UL office where they confirmed it was a counterfeit UL label with a counterfeit Lithonia label. All of this by the country that brought us contaminated sheet rock. Has any one else heard any thing about this?
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Damn China fakes.....now what???
 
I have had several in-depth, 'off the record' chats with the very folks at UL who police their accounts in China. The views I shall present are as universally accepted as they will be stridently denied if UL is ever officially asked.

Simply put, China is hopeless. The very culture, the entire government, the whole army is corrupt- at least, under our concept of 'corruption.'

The whole Chinese thing is to make it and sell it. Once sold, it's yours. You got fooled? Do sorry, it's your fault you were so stupid as to trust them. A culture that admires cleverness, they didn't hesitate a second to add poison to pet food a few years back - just to kick up the 'protein' test results.

Sure, every now and then there's a scandal, or an enforcement action. Tons of product are piled in the town square and torched for the cameras. Some poor saps -and their families- are marched off to slave labor, or simply shot. Before the ashes have cooled, the same factory is back with new staff, making the very same stuff. You want UL label? No problem, fifty cents extra.

Ban "Made in China?" They'll just stamp it 'made in Mexico,' or whatever other tag they can get away with.

So, what are we to do? Well, to begin with, let's stop helping them cheat. For example, let's look at AFCI's. How do you test an AFCI? Why, we're told, the test button is the only way. This requirement has to make the Chinese dance with joy. "Hey, Wong - these stupid gweilo's want an 'off' button with 'test'[ written on it!" No problem.
 
I'd like to share a true story about importing products from China. Some 30 or so years ago, before I started my EC business (and when between jobs as an electrician) I worked for a friend who imported and sold wicker and rattan products from China. There were many times when we received containerized freight from China and upon opening the container realized that we got some of the worst crap they had produced. Bear in mind that when importing products from other countries, everything is done with a "letter of credit" and the merchandise you purchase is FOB point of shipment. That means you have to have $$ already in your bank account and shortly after that shipment leaves their port they get paid via wire transfer.

Now, once you cut the security tag on the container and find out you have this junk you have two choices : 1) If you really believe you got screwed you have to make an appeal through the Chinese consulate and try to get your $$ back. Meanwhile, you're out X $$. That usually leads to a dead end. Or 2) You can sell the merchandise at a reduced profit or even make an attempt at breaking even just to get your $$ back bearing in mind that the next time you buy from China you won't buy products from that particular company. You may end up buying products from many companies over the course of several years until you get to buy from a company that has the best products.

Having said all that, you must be aware that there are many AMERICAN wholesalers that sell these sub-standard products to unsuspecting companies (like Walmart, dollar stores, etc.) even companies like Graybar. For those of you who are doing solar work I'm sure you're aware that a vast majority of the solar panels are made in China. China has a "most favored nation" status with the US and they are currently holding the major portion of our country's debt. They're not going away any time soon. It will take many, many years before they (as a nation) will come up to the level of quality production that Japan has.

So, the next time you go and buy a product like 100 blank CD's for $10 from Staples, or an SDS hammer drill for $50 from Harbor Freight, or a lap top computer for $250 from Best Buy know full well that you're probably buying something that China dumped on the American market. It's no different with circuit breakers. They will buy a legitimate product here, bring it back to their home base and clone it in such a way that you cannot tell the difference. And, unless customs agents at the port of entry believe that there is contraband, weapons, explosives or drugs inside that container they're not going to open it and remove or inspect the contents.

Sad but true !!!
 
goldstar said:
Having said all that, you must be aware that there are many AMERICAN wholesalers that sell these sub-standard products to unsuspecting companies (like Walmart, dollar stores, etc.) even companies like Graybar.
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I will agree with you on everything but the "unsuspecting". Large retail chains like Walmart usually have a perfectly good idea what they are getting when they go to off-brand suppliers or have their own private label. They just hope the consumer does not.
Sorry for continuing the slow drift off topic.
 
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