CPSC to ISPA: 'Good job' on FR
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, November 19, 2007
Weston, Fla. — An official with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said the mattress industry is working hard to comply with a tough new federal mattress flammability standard.
"Overall, you are doing a good job," said Mary Toro, associate director of CPSC's Office of Compliance.
Her comments at the International Sleep Products Assn. Industry Conference and Exhibition here were among the highlights of a busy afternoon devoted to the FR, or flame resistance, issue. The topic has taken on added urgency now that U.S. and foreign mattress producers must meet tough new FR provisions on mattresses sold in the United States.
In a question-and-answer session, Toro declined to provide any figures on the number of inspections the CPSC has conducted since the FR standard took effect in July. She said inspectors have found "some violations of testing requirements" but did not specify what those were.
While Toro kept mum about FR inspections, other speakers didn't.
Curtis Cantwell, president of Cantwell Mattress, a Texas-based factory-direct operator, was described by ISPA as the first to be inspected by CPSC. Flashing a lively sense of humor, Cantwell described the day-long inspection he underwent in July, which he summarized in an e-mail he sent to friends that was widely circulated in the industry.
He advised keeping FR records in an easily accessible format. "Your day (with CPSC inspectors) will be shorter and your anxiety level will be lower."
Toro agreed that good organization of FR records "is the key to getting our inspectors out of your office." Hard copies aren't required, but she said producers might want to have a hard copy or backup electronic copy of electronic data.
Toro was asked about CPSC monitoring of mattress importers, but again would reveal no specifics about how many have been inspected. Have retail inspections started? Retailers "are in the pool," she replied, without elaborating.
In response to another question, she revealed that CPSC is using California inspectors to assist with some, although not all, FR inspections in that state.
Also providing insights on the extent of CPSC inspections was Curt Hutton, bedding marketing manager for Hanes Inds., who said his survey of 18 bedding producers and suppliers turned up few companies that had been audited.
Survey respondents also told Hutton they would like to see FR documentation requirements reduced and cigarette and open flame FR standards integrated, and want to assure that offshore bedding producers are held to the same FR requirements as U.S. manufacturers.
