How hanging lights are made for export in India
A pendant or chandelier from India is usually a metalworking job with electrical parts added at the end. The body, arms and canopy are spun, cast or bent from brass, iron or aluminium, then plated, lacquered or powder-coated. Shades are bought in: mouth-blown glass, rattan, hammered metal or turned wood. Lampholders, cable, ceiling cups and terminal blocks are usually sourced from component traders, sometimes to the buyer's nominated brand.
Much of this metalwork is done in Moradabad, a Town of Export Excellence for handicrafts since the 2023 Foreign Trade Policy. Where the wiring is added by hand at the end of a metal-finishing line, the split matters for the inspection: the metal can be perfect while the wiring inside an arm is pinched or the earth wire is missing.
Unlike a table lamp, a hanging fitting carries its own weight overhead and is usually wired into the building. The two risks the inspection is built around are a fall and an electric shock.
What we check on pendants and chandeliers
| Check | How it is checked | What fails |
|---|---|---|
| Suspension load | Fitting hung from its own hook or canopy bracket with the load set in the buyer's protocol, held for the set time | Chain link opens, cable grip slips, canopy bracket bends, loop pulls out of the body |
| Earth continuity | Tester between the earth terminal and every accessible metal part: canopy, arms, shade gallery | No earth wire, painted contact surfaces, resistance above the protocol limit |
| Dielectric (hi-pot) | On the factory's calibrated tester, calibration certificate checked, at the voltage and time in the buyer's protocol | Breakdown or trip |
| Polarity and function | Each lampholder lit; live connected to the centre contact on Edison screw holders | Reversed polarity, flicker, dead arms on a multi-light fitting |
| Wiring through arms | Arms flexed and the cable ends inspected at each entry; grommets or smooth bushings checked | Insulation cut on a sharp tube end or thread, cable pinched in a joint |
| Cord grip at canopy and lampholder | Pull on the flex at each anchorage | Strain carried by the terminals instead of the grip |
| Shade fixing | Shade ring or gallery screws checked; glass shade turned and lifted | Shade loose enough to drop, glass resting on bare metal |
| Rating label and leaflet | Compared with the approved artwork for the market | Wrong wattage or voltage, missing installation and earth instructions |
These are production checks, done to catch assembly mistakes in the lot. They do not certify the design. Type testing for a UL or ETL listing, or the test reports behind a CE or UKCA declaration, come from an accredited laboratory; we can coordinate that through lab testing coordination.
Common pendant light and chandelier defects and how they are classed
| Defect | Class |
|---|---|
| Hi-pot failure, earth missing or not connected to a metal part | Critical |
| Suspension fails or deforms under the test load | Critical |
| Cable insulation damaged inside an arm | Critical |
| Reversed polarity on a screw lampholder | Major (critical if the buyer's protocol says so) |
| Wrong or missing rating label | Major |
| Arms not level, crystal or glass drops missing from the count | Major |
| Plating peel, lacquer runs, colour off the approved sample | Major or minor by size and position |
| Small scratches on the inside of a shade | Minor |
Rules for hanging lights by market
- US and Canada. A hard-wired pendant or chandelier is a fixed luminaire. UL 1598, issued jointly with CSA and ANCE, covers luminaires installed on branch circuits of 600 V or less. A plug-in "swag" pendant is a portable luminaire and is assessed differently. Retailers ask for a listing mark from a recognised lab; see UL and ETL listing.
- EU. EN 60598-1 with Part 2-1 (fixed general-purpose luminaires) supports the declaration under the Low Voltage and EMC Directives. RoHS limits apply to the electrical parts and solder, and WEEE marking goes on the product.
- UK. UKCA or CE marking, with the UK importer named. See UKCA and CE marking.
- Wood and rattan shades. Lamps and light fittings are not on the list of wood products in Annex I of the EU Deforestation Regulation, which lists Chapter 44 wood articles and wooden furniture. Confirm the customs classification with your broker, because a separate wooden part shipped on its own may be classified differently.
Packing and transit risks
Chandeliers fail in transit at the arms and the glass. Arms soldered or screwed into a central body bend if the carton lets the body drop onto them, so check that the body is held in a fitted insert and the arms are packed separately or supported. Glass shades need their own compartments, not loose paper. Chain should be bagged, not coiled against the plated finish. A drop test on a packed master carton, followed by unpacking and re-running the earth and function test, shows whether the wiring survived as well as the glass. Long multi-arm fittings are tall and light, so loading supervision should keep heavy cartons off them.
What to put in your purchase order
- The target market and the standard and listing mark required, with the certificate holder named.
- Electrical test plan: which tests run on 100% of units and which on a sample, and the test voltages and limits.
- Suspension test load and duration, and the hook or canopy hardware supplied.
- Approved component list: lampholder, cable type and section, terminal block, with brands if you nominate them.
- Drop length, chain or cable length, and the number of glass parts per fitting.
- Rating label artwork, instruction leaflet and warning text for each market.
Compare with table and floor lamps, where stability and plugs matter more than suspension. For the metal finish itself, see brass and copper décor.