the wood shall be manufactured at sawmills or treated at appropriate premises approved and audited by the US National Hardwood Lumber Association (NHLA) to participate in the Kiln Drying Sawn Hardwood Lumber Certification Program (‘the programme’);

the wood shall undergo kiln-drying to below 20 % moisture content, expressed as a percentage of dry matter, achieved through an appropriate time/temperature schedule;

once the condition laid down in point (2) is fulfilled, a standard steel ID clip shall be affixed to each bundle by, or under the supervision of, the designated officer of the mill referred to in point (1). Each ID clip shall be stamped with ‘NHLA — KD’ along with a unique number assigned to each bundle;

in order to ensure that the conditions laid down in points (2) and (3) are fulfilled, the wood shall be subject to a checking system which is set up under the programme and which includes pre-shipment inspection and monitoring at the approved sawmills carried out by independent third party auditors qualified and authorised for that purpose. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, US Department of Agriculture shall carry out occasional pre-shipment inspections and six-monthly audits of NHLA records and procedures relating to the programme, of the independent third party auditors and of the sawmills and other appropriate premises that participate in the programme;

the wood shall be accompanied by a standard ‘Certificate of Kiln Drying’ which complies with the model set out in Part II of this Annex, and which is issued by a person or persons authorised to participate in the programme and is validated by an inspector of the NHLA. The Certificate of Kiln Drying shall be completed and shall include information on the amount of bark-free sawn wood in board feet and cubic metres. The certificate shall also specify the total number of bundles and each of the ID clip numbers assigned to those bundles.