ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores here has launched an online network designed to help retailers access manufacturer certificates showing that a product has been tested in conformance with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

Beginning in February 2010, the Act, which is overseen by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) but administered at the state level, will require manufacturers to provide retailers with "general conformity certificates," and retailers will be expected to present them in the event of an inspection by state authorities.

The products subject to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, while primarily those intended for children 12 and under, include a wide range of Nonfood items. The online network—dubbed the Certificate Exchange Network (CEN)—will be available at no cost to retailers, distributors and manufacturers who are members of NACDS.

Companies that are not NACDS members will be able to access the network for a size-based fee ranging from $200 to $10,000, and averaging in the "high hundreds of dollars," said Nick Parnaby, founder and chief operating officer of Rollstream, McLean, Va. Rollstream is the provider of the network infrastructure supporting CEN.

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