General Purpose Chairs and Stools Specification IS 17632 - IS 17632 2022

BIS Certification for General Purpose Chairs and Stools  IS 17632            

Introduction to IS 17632:2022 

IS 17632:2022 – General Purpose Chairs and Stools — Specification was published by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). This standard covers the requirements for general purpose chairs and stools. This standard applies to completely manufactured/fabricated general-purpose chairs and stools. It also applies to ready-to-assemble units; in that case the requirements of this standard shall apply to the assembled units. The requirements related to the performance and safety in the term of strength, stability and durability for general purpose chair and stool have been specified in IS 17632:2022.

IS 17632:2022 does not apply to test for reclining or tilting chairs. It also does not apply to settees and other multiple seating, nor to rocking chairs. The tests are designed to be applied to an article of furniture that is fully assembled and ready for use.

Even, this Standard does not include tests for work chairs with swivel and chair base having castors or studs covered under IS 17631: 2021 Work chairs — Specification. For the purpose of this standard, pouffes are considered as stools.

IS 17632:2022 focuses on Surface Performance & Safety Requirements under normal use.  


Purpose / Why BIS Certification is Needed

• Safety and User Protection – IS 17632:2022 establishes mandatory requirements for stability, strength, durability, and surface performance to ensure chairs and stools do not create unsafe conditions such as overturning, structural failure, or injury during use.
• Quality and performance assurance – Compliance ensures that furniture meets defined test levels for static load, impact, fatigue, and surface resistance, providing consistent functional performance.
• Regulatory compliance – Products conforming to IS 17632:2022 are eligible for certification under the conformity assessment schemes of BIS as per the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016.
• Market acceptance and credibility – BIS-certified chairs and stools demonstrate adherence to nationally recognized performance and safety benchmarks, increasing confidence among buyers, institutions, and procurement agencies.

Uniform assessment framework – The standard provides a harmonized testing methodology applicable irrespective of material, design, or manufacturing process, enabling objective evaluation of products 


Available BIS Schemes (ISI / CRS / Scheme X / FMCS)

For IS 17632:2022 - General Purpose Chairs and Stools, certification is carried out under the BIS Conformity Assessment Product Certification Scheme I as notified under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016:

• ISI Mark Product Certification (Scheme I) is applicable for domestic manufacturers seeking BIS certification.
• Foreign Manufacturer Certification Scheme (FMCS) applies to manufacturers located outside India supplying chairs and stools to the Indian market.
• IS 17632:2022 is not covered under CRS or Scheme X, as it relates to furniture products rather than electronic or machinery categories.

Upon successful certification, products may be marked with the BIS Standard Mark (ISI Mark) as per Clause 9.3 of the standard IS 17632: 2022


Testing & Labelling Requirements

Testing Requirements
 

As per IS 17632:2022, chairs and stools must comply with a comprehensive set of tests, including:

• Surface performance tests for rigid, fabric, synthetic leather, and natural leather surfaces in accordance with IS 17637.
• Stability tests to assess resistance to forward, rearward, and sideways overbalancing under defined loads.
• Strength tests, including static load tests on seats, backs, arms, legs, footrests, and diagonal base loading.
• Impact tests such as seat impact, back impact, arm impact, and drop tests simulating sudden loading conditions.
• Durability (fatigue) tests for seats, backs, and armrests involving repeated cyclic loading to simulate long-term use.
• All tests are conducted under controlled conditions using specified test apparatus, forces, cycles, tolerances, and acceptance criteria defined in Clauses 6, 7, and Annexes A, B, and C.
• The product must show no structural failure, unsafe deformation, joint loosening, overturning, or functional impairment after testing, as defined in Clause 8.4

Labelling & Marking Requirements

As per Clause 9 of IS 17632:2022:

• Each chair or stool shall be indelibly and legibly marked with:
  • Manufacturer’s name or registered trademark
  • Date of manufacture
  • Design/model number
  • Batch or lot number
• Products intended for customer assembly must include assembly instructions in printed or digital form.

Only products certified by BIS may carry the BIS Standard Mark (ISI Mark), subject to continued conformity under surveillance

Documents Required for BIS Certification Licence (ISI Mark) (Domestic)
 

• Application form (Form V)
• Authority letter by CEO of company in favour of the Authorized signatory on company's letterhead (Applicable only in case the application is not signed by CEO of the company).
• Address proof from the Govt. /Ministry of Country (the applicant’s location/premises of your regd. office & factory).
• Declaration of Manufacturing Machinery.
• Process flow chart in line with the manufacturing machinery.
• Declaration of Test Equipment.
• Calibration Certificates of all relevant test equipment.
• Details of Quality Control/Testing Person.
• Raw Material Details.
• In-house Test Report of the Product as per relevant Indian Standard.
• Detailed Factory Layout Plan.
• Proof of Payment (POP) of online payment of Application fee INR 1000.00 (in equivalent USD)
• General Undertaking/Declaration.
• Factory Location Plan, clearly describing in a manner, the BIS officer could easily locate the applicant’s premises.
• Any other document (optional) like Management System Certification.
• Brand name declaration
• Lot offer letter for BIS sampling and Inspection
• Acceptance of Product Manual (PM)/ Scheme of Inspection & Testing (SIT)
• Acceptance of advance annual minimum marking fee

Additional Documents Required for (BIS) Certification (Foreign manufacturers)

• Nomination of Authorized Indian Representative (AIR).
• AIR Agreement with the foreign manufacturer.
• BIS Agreement with Foreign Licensee (this document is to be submitted by AIR on behalf of Licensee, within 15 days from the date of grant of licence).
• Indemnity Bond (this document is to be submitted by AIR on behalf of Licensee, within 15 days from the date of grant of licence).
• Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) (this document is to be submitted by the Indian branch of bank of Licensee, within 45 days from the date of grant of licence)