Solid Surface Materials

The NAHB Research Center’s solid surface material certification program, which is endorsed by the International Cast Polymer Association (ICPA), verifies that products meet or exceed the performance requirements of the ANSI national consensus standard for solid surface materials (ANSI/ICPA SS-1-2001).

The ANSI national standard establishes the test methods pertaining to the structure, water resistance, colorfastness, stain resistance, cleanability, and other significant properties of solid surface materials, including their ability to be fabricated with inconspicuous seams and to be restored to their original finish, as well as general requirements of materials, workmanship and finish. ANSI/ICPA SS-1-2001 establishes a common set of performance criteria for solid surface materials.

Certification Process

Participation in the NAHB Research Center's voluntary certification program includes:

• An in-plant qualification inspection. This is an audit of a manufacturer's quality control program and includes a random selection of product for testing from the manufacturing facility's finished goods inventory.
• Product sampling and testing. During the initial and subsequent annual inspections, randomly selected solid surface materials, which adequately represent the variety of materials a manufacturer produces, are subjected to full series testing to all provisions of ANSI/ICPA SS-1-2001. Between annual inspections, randomly selected products undergo short series testing that includes Point Impact; Colorfastness and Aging; Stain Resistance; Heated Pan; and Ability to be Renewed as specified in the standard.
• Verification of a written quality control program. This program must include a quality check of incoming raw materials, an in-process manufacturing process control, and finished product quality checks.