General conditions

General conditions 

General conditions for use of the FCBA technologiy Institute's Innovathèque® service

 

Preamble

The FCBA Technology Institute’s Innovathèque® service is the number one European innovative processes and materials resources centre meeting the needs of professionals. A real platform for discussions and connections between materials manufacturers/suppliers, industrial service providers, the creative professions and purchasing advisers, the Innovathèque® offers various services suited to the needs of its users. The primary task of Innovathèque® is to collect together, in its database and in its materials library, international innovations in materials, processes and systems from all sectors, to promote them and introduce them to its users. In order to offer an objective and effective technical service, the Innovathèque® is detached from any commercial interest in the materials, processes or systems which are listed free of charge, and which it selects according to innovation criteria. To sustain its missions and the quality of its services, the Innovathèque® is partially financed by the sale of annual subscriptions, publications, technical support (consultation, special watch) and event organisation (exhibition rental, conferences and training). Any behaviour aimed at circumventing the Innovathèque® general membership conditions will penalise all of the users of this service.

 

Definitions

The following words or expressions must be understood according to the definition that they are given below:

Subscription: act by which a user expresses their wish to register for and enjoy access to the Innovathèque® database

Service: paid service offered by the Innovathèque® intended for its users. 

Listing: act of registering a product (material, process or system) in the computer and physical database.

 

ARTICLE 1 - Opposability -purpose

These general conditions apply to any operation by the FCBA Innovathèque®, such as listing in the database, promotion of products and companies, provision of services, subscriptions, book sales and equipment rental, etc. Any order implies the customer’s agreement with these general sales conditions, and their renouncement of their own general conditions. Express written exemptions may be made to these general conditions by FCBA. All directions and descriptions given in our catalogues, leaflets, printed advertising matter, etc. are for information only and have no contractual value. FCBA may, at any time, make any modifications to the products it may consider appropriate, without the obligation to apply these modifications to products already delivered, being delivered or on order.

 

ARTICLE 2 - Orders

Orders are final only once they have been confirmed in writing and signed by FCBA. The customer is fully and conclusively committed by their order, regardless of any cancellation on their part.

 

ARTICLE 3 - Deadlines

Delivery deadlines for provision of services or equipment are given for reference only. The period begins as soon as FCBA accepts the order. Failure to meet the delivery deadline shall not give rise to damages.

 

ARTICLE 4 - Price

The products, services, subscriptions and equipment are sold at the rate in force at the time of delivery.

 

ARTICLE 5 – Payment terms

Invoices issued by FCBA are paid, without discount, by any means of payment, within thirty days from the date of issue, in the absence of fixed dates on the invoice. A deposit is paid during the order, and the balance is paid upon delivery. Progressive invoicing may be sent to the customer as the service progresses.

 

ARTICLE 6 - lare payment or failure to pay

In the event of late payment, FCBA may suspend all orders in progress without prejudice to any other course of action. Any sum unpaid on the anticipated due date shall give rise, as of right and without prior notice, to the payment of late penalty fees equal to five times the applicable legal interest rate. These penalties shall accrue from the due date until payment in full, and shall be calculated on the sum due including all taxes. If the payment conditions made provision for a deposit paid when ordering, the delivery shall only be made after receipt of the deposit in full.

 

ARTICLE 7 - Liability

The FCBA Innovathèque® may in no case be held liable for damages resulting from errors, omissions or imprecision in the documents submitted by the customer. The FCBA Innovathèque® may only be held liable within the limits of the task with which it has been entrusted, and its consequences shall not exceed damages of 30% of the price paid for this service or delivered equipment. The work carried out by the FCBA Innovathèque®, within the framework of design innovation assistance or technical support, has the purpose of supplying information about a possible solution or solutions to a given problem. There is hence no mutual commitment in the implementation decision for the results of FCBA studies.

 

ARTICLE 8 - Ownership and retention of title

FCBA is the sole owner and holder of the exploitation rights of the Innovathèque®, of its watch system, classification system and physical and computer database. FCBA reserves the right to modify, at any time, either temporary or permanently, all or part of the Innovathèque® service, having informed the users in advance.

The website www.innovatheque.fr is the subject of protection in compliance with the provisions of the French intellectual property code, by virtue of which FCBA is the holder of the copyright over all works appearing on the site, particularly over the images, text, iconographic and photographic representations and documents which may be downloaded from the site, as well as all of the software integrated on the site. Any reproduction or representation in whole or in part, on any medium whatsoever, is strictly forbidden unless expressly authorized by FCBA. You may, however, download or print out pages and/or parts of the website www.innovatheque.fr for personal use only, provided you do not delete any information relating to copyright or to intellectual property rights. FCBA reserves the right to prosecute any individual who is found to be violating these rights and/or endangering their prerogatives. The applicable law shall be French law. In case of dispute, the French courts are the sole competent body.

All of the physical samples listed in the FCBA INNOVATHEQUE® belong to it.

The documents, books and equipment intended for sale remain the property of FCBA until payment of the price in full. In the event of failure to pay on the agreed due date, FCBA may reclaim possession of the products, provisions of services, books and equipment of which it has remained the owner, and may, at its discretion, cancel the contract by registered letter addressed to the customer. From delivery onwards, the customer must insure themselves against all risks associated with the possession of documents, books and equipment intended for sale, until payment in full. The customer shall ensure that it is always possible to identify the documents, books and equipment intended for sale, and shall be prohibited to sell them until FCBA has been paid for them in full.

 

ARTICLE 9 - Reporting of results

The results of services carried out by the FCBA Innovathèque® are compiled in documents on the customer’s behalf in a single copy. For an additional fee, translations and certified copies of the documents can be provided for a period of ten years after the original document is issued. In the event of discrepancies in the translated document, the original document takes precedence. Only original documents and certified copies are considered legal in dealings with third parties. No modification or alteration may be made to these documents after they are sent. Reproduction of a document issued by the FCBA is only authorised in its full version with the disclaimer “copy.” No written document prior to the final results of the service and issued by FCBA may be sent by the customer to a third party except with the express written permission of FCBA.  Any other form of reference to the services of the FCBA Innovathèque® must be subject to prior written consent from FCBA.

 

ARTICLE 10 - Confidentiality

FCBA is prohibited from communicating to third parties, without prior consent, any confidential information concerning the work it is assigned.

 

ARTICLE 11 - Brand protection

The names Innovathèque® and FBCA, and the logos and brands belonging to them, are protected nationally and internationally. Unauthorised use shall be considered infringement and will be subject to legal proceedings.

 

ARTICLE 12 - Legislation - assigment of jurisdiction

The legality, interpretation and execution of this contract is governed by French law. Any dispute resulting from this contract shall be under the exclusive authority of the French courts in the jurisdiction of Paris where the head offices of the FCBA are located, notwithstanding the introduction of third parties or multiple defendants.

 

Conditions specific to listing in Innovathèque®

Basic listing of one or more materials, processes or systems in the Innovathèque® physical and/or computer database is free of charge. The Innovathèque® may, however, in agreement with the supplier, offer to promote their listing in the Innovathèque® physical and/or computer database with a specific paid service.

 

ARTICLE 13 - Samples

For each product reference submitted for listing, the supplier must, free of charge, provide the FCBA Innovathèque® with 5 samples in a format equivalent to a sheet of A4 paper, as well as the products or equipment required for presentation of the sample. The FCBA Innovathèque® reserves the right to resize, cut, drill or glue the samples if they do not correspond to the required dimensions.

 

ARTICLE 14 – Transport costs

The shipping costs for the samples and documentation are at the supplier’s expense. If the FCBA Innovathèque® has to take responsibility for purchasing them, the corresponding costs may be passed on to the supplier. For any returns, the transport, insurance and packaging costs are charged in addition. The samples, products and equipment are transported at the supplier’s risk, both during delivery and return. The FCBA Innovathèque® can under no circumstances be held responsible for damage to the samples, products or equipment solely as a result of the use or experimentation for the purposes of which they were entrusted to it

 

ARTICLE 15 - Reporting of information

The supplier must communicate to the FCBA Innovathèque®, free of charge, all useful information for the understanding of the material / process or systemp to be listed in the database, either using the category-specific listing from supplied by the FCBA Innovathèque® on request, or directly online at www.innovatheque.fr / Supplier section. This information will be made available to all users with access to the database and to the FCBA Innovathèque® materials libraries. The FCBA Innovathèque® reserves the right to distribute this information through various communication media and at various events.

By listing its company and its material / process or system at the FCBA Innovathèque®, the supplier is responsible for the information that it communicates, and undertakes to inform the FCBA Innovathèque® about any changes to this data. 

The FCBA Innovathèque® reserves the right to verify and modify this information if it appears subject to doubt or incomplete, and shall communicate it after validation by the corresponding supplier.

 

Conditions specific to Innovathèque® subscriptions

 

ARTICLE 16 – Subscriptions

Subscription: refers to either just the right to access the online database on www.innovatheque.fr, or the right to access the online database on www.innovatheque.fr and the materials library, depending on the chosen option.

All subscriptions are subject to an order using the official Innovathèque® form accompanied by the corresponding payment. Access rights shall only take effect on receipt of this order and shall be active for one year, which is renewable. By subscribing to the Innovathèque®, the customer undertakes to respect the general conditions, and never to communicate their access codes to people who are not registered in the subscription contract.

 

Conditions specific to sale or rental of equipment

 

ARTICLE 17 - Equipment delivery terms

The delivery is made on FCBA premises, unless otherwise stipulated in writing. Delivery is made either by direct handover of the product to the customer, or by simple notice of availability, or by delivery to a shipper or carrier. Transport and packaging costs are at the customer’s expense.

 

ARTICLE 18 - Transfer of risks

Risks are transferred on delivery, the terms of which are defined in article 15, unless otherwise stipulated on the acknowledgement of receipt of the order. Consequently, under no circumstances whatsoever can FCBA be held responsible for anything that may happen to the equipment after delivery and especially, including but not limited to, during shipping or handover to a carrier.

 

ARTICLE 19 - Complaints

Complaints pertaining to visible defects or non-conformity of the delivered products must be formulated in writing, within a thirty-day period from receipt of the products by the customer. Any return of equipment must be the subject of a formal agreement between the customer and FCBA. The customer is always responsible for the costs and risks of the return. Once the visible defect or non-conformity of the delivered products has been duly noted by FCBA, it undertakes to, at its discretion, either refurbish or replace the equipment free of charge, or provide reimbursement for it, to the exclusion of any compensation.

 

ARTICLE 20 - Contractual warranty

As the equipment sold is made up of various externally-manufactured elements, these shall be covered by the manufacturer’s direct warranty. FCBA shall guarantee only the elements that it has manufactured and the services that it has carried out on this equipment. As such, FCBA grants a warranty against any malfunction for a period of six months from the delivery date, unless otherwise stipulated on the acknowledgement of receipt of the order. Operations under the warranty shall not have the effect of prolonging the duration thereof. Under this warranty, the only obligation on FCBA shall be the replacement, free of charge, or repair in its workshops of the product or element that it has recognised as defective.

Any shipping costs are at the customer’s expense. Defects or damage caused by natural wear or by accidents not imputable to FCBA (incorrect assembly, poor maintenance, abnormal use, etc.) or by a modification of the product that was not anticipated or specified by FCBA are excluded from the warranty.

 

ARTICLE 21 - Export

The customer undertakes to respect the legislation in force (including decrees and regulations) concerning restrictions on the right to export or formalities to be met in order to export. The customer shall check with FCBA that the delivered equipment is not the subject of a contractual prohibition of export to certain countries

 

Conditions specific to the sale of publications

 

ARTICLE 22 - Liability

FCBA is released from all responsibility with regard to the use of the content of the publications that it sells. For the publications that it publishes, FCBA is released from all responsibility in the event of any use of their content that does not comply with current best practice.

 

ARTICLE 23 - Price

FCBA respects French law 81-766 of 10 August 1981 on fixed prices for recent books, which limits to 5% the possible discount on the tax-inclusive retail price set by the publisher.

 

ARTICLE 24 - Shipping costs

Shipping costs are at the customer’s expense. These include a contribution to postage, packaging and handling costs.

 

Conditions specific to training

 

ARTICLE 25 - Terms

The directions and descriptions given in the training catalogue are for information only and have no contractual value.

Under no circumstances may FCBA be held responsible for any personal injury caused by inappropriate use of the tool made available, and for any material, intangible, commercial or other damage caused directly or indirectly to the customer or any natural or legal person as a result of the training service. The payment must be attached to the registration form. Registration only takes effect after the payment has been made. In the event of the trainee withdrawing:

- More than 10 days before the start of the course: the reimbursement shall be 80% of the total sum for the training (20% being retained by FCBA for application fees).

- Between 2 and 10 days before the start of the course: the reimbursement shall be 50%.

- Less than 2 days before the start of the course: the entire sum will be retained by FCBA. Any course started is due in full. FCBA reserves the right to cancel the course or to modify its dates and location. Any company may replace a trainee with another one, up until the day before the course.

 

ARTICLE 26 - Fees

The prices indicated do not include taxes or transport and accommodation costs. Under certain conditions, training fund management organisations may take responsibility for the costs of the course. In this event, the company must provide FCBA with an agreement to cover the costs. In the event of non-payment by the organisation, FCBA will invoice the company for the cost of the course.