One digit on a certificate decides whether an audit passes or a batch goes into quarantine. What each document type proves, what it doesn't, and how to order the right one.
EN 10204:2004 defines the types of inspection documents a manufacturer can issue for metallic products — and exactly what each one is worth.
The standard separates two families: non-specific documents (types 2.1 and 2.2, whose statements do not have to come from your actual delivery) and specific documents (types 3.1 and 3.2, whose test results come from the batch that is physically in your box).
That boundary — "general" versus "your batch" — is why quality departments insist on a 3.1. At Brassland, an EN 10204 3.1 certificate with batch analysis accompanies every shipment; 3.2 is available on request.
Supplier approvals, incoming inspection and warranty claims all hinge on whether the paper proves your batch. A 2.1 where a 3.1 was required means quarantine — not because the brass was wrong, but because the evidence was.
The practical jump is between 2.2 and 3.1 — only from 3.1 upward do the numbers on the paper provably describe the material in your delivery.
| Type | Name (EN 10204:2004) | Inspection | Test results? | Validated by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | Declaration of compliance with the order | Non-specific | None | Manufacturer |
| 2.2 | Test report | Non-specific | Yes — but not necessarily from your delivered batch | Manufacturer |
| 3.1 | Inspection certificate 3.1 | Specific | Yes — from your delivered batch | Manufacturer's inspection representative, independent of the production department |
| 3.2 | Inspection certificate 3.2 | Specific | Yes — from your delivered batch | Manufacturer's independent representative plus the purchaser's authorised representative or an officially appointed inspector |
For a machined component in free-machining brass, a 3.1 certificate typically carries five blocks of information — each with a specific job in your quality file.
3.1 (the vast majority): batch traceability, confirmed analysis, clear delivery reference — for almost all machined brass components the 3.1 is the correct and sufficient evidence. That is why it accompanies every Brassland delivery without being ordered separately.
3.2: when an external acceptance representative — a notified body or your own appointed expert — must countersign the batch: typically safety-critical or contractually regulated projects. Available on request; plan the extra lead time deliberately, because the external party joins the release process.
What is written on the drawing or purchase order is what gets supplied — and what can be enforced. E-mail history gets debated; order text gets delivered.
Add "3.2 with external acceptance by [body]" only where your project genuinely requires it.
It proves that the material matches the ordered specification. It is not a product approval:
Our role is precisely bounded: we supply the alloy exactly to your specification plus the 3.1 batch analysis as the evidence base. Fitness-for-application release belongs to the buyer. Brassland machines components — not finished valves — and does not cast: CNC in-house, hot forging through qualified partner forges.
EN 10204 3.1 with batch analysis on every delivery; 3.2 on request. First-article reports to your template. ISO 9001 / 14001 / 45001 (DQS). Swiss-type tolerances to ±0.005 mm (Ø 2–32 mm), CNC to Ø 150 mm.
Request a Quote EN 12164 Rod GuideThis standard touches most of what we make. Jump straight to the products, alloys, sectors and guides it applies to.
Quotation typically within 24 hours — 3.1 certificate included with every delivery.
Dedicated reference pages with full value tables, diagrams and honest limits — one standard per page.