Beijing, February 17 (Xinhua) -- According to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently jointly issued a notice requiring the strengthening of major equipment supervision work. Heavy equipment or key equipment in 9 industries, including metallurgy, power, petroleum and petrochemical, and environmental protection, and 35 equipment specialties, will be included in the first batch of major equipment catalogs encouraged by the state to implement equipment supervision. It is reported that this is the first time since the establishment of the equipment supervision system in China in 2001 that the three departments have jointly issued a specific catalog for implementing equipment supervision.

Equipment supervision refers to the specialized services provided by units that meet legal requirements and accept commissions from clients, in accordance with relevant national laws and regulations, mandatory standards, and procurement contracts, to ensure equipment quality, investment, progress, and safety. The notice from three departments pointed out that major equipment in China currently presents characteristics such as large investment scale, high technical complexity, long manufacturing and installation cycle, and difficulty in replacement during production and operation. Once a quality and safety accident occurs, it will inevitably cause significant personal injury and property damage, which must be highly valued.

The notice emphasizes the need to effectively implement major equipment quality and safety responsibilities. Contractors or suppliers of major equipment shall be responsible for the design, manufacturing, and installation quality of the major equipment they contract or undertake; The owners of major equipment should improve their investment decision-making procedures and project management systems; The equipment supervision unit accepts the commission of the client to provide management services and professional supervision on equipment quality, investment, progress, and safety.

The notice requires that equipment supervision should be implemented for major equipment involved in the catalog of investment projects that require government approval for government investment projects, state-owned enterprises, or state-owned holding enterprises. The country will also explore the establishment of a liability insurance system to support the localization of the first (set) of major equipment.

The notice proposes that the three departments will establish and improve a collaborative management mechanism for major equipment supervision, and will timely organize joint or special supervision, inspection, and auditing of major projects and equipment related to the catalog.