Ensuring St. Nick Stays Safe
Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house...
You have everything in place for a wonderful morning of holiday gift-giving and memories to be made.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care…
So you settle down with a mug of warm cocoa, light the log in the fireplace, and unwind from the hustle and bustle of the holiday.
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter…
I thought, “Uh, oh. What is that noise out there? Kids messing around with my 6 foot inflatable Abominable Snowman? Someone on their way home from a party?”
Just then, I see a burly man slide down the chimney as I rub my eyes wondering what is in the hot cocoa I am drinking or if I had watched too many Harry Potter movies recently. As he comes down, I see sparks flying when his boots hit the logs. If he hurries, he can make it unscathed, but with all of this magical stuff going on, maybe he has a fireproof suit anyway.
Just then, I awoke abruptly. I had nodded asleep and this was all just a bad dream…or was it. The combination of the comforting setting along with the discussions I had earlier in the week with the Chief Supply Chain Risk Officer at work contributed to the bizarre scenario. But the hallucination got me to think about the regulatory directives from government agencies all around the world.
For instance, the United States Federal Government requires clothing and textiles intended to be used for clothing to have “Normal Flammability” as tested with 16 CFR 1610 (ASTM D 1230 Standard Test Method for Flammability of Apparel Textiles); quite a mouthful of jargon, I know. The means in which testing labs conduct this type of analysis is similar to the way Santa came down the chimney – the fabric is mounted at a 45° angle from ignition source and the rate of burn is measured.
Some exemptions apply:
- Certain hats
- Gloves
- Footwear
- Interlining fabric
- Plain surface fabrics, regardless of fiber content, weighing 2.6 oz/yd2 or more
- Fabric made entirely with these fibers, or blends of these fibers:
- acrylic
- nylon
- polyester
- modacrylic
- olefin
- wool
In an effort to increase margins while offering customers more choice, many retailers have turned to lower priced imports. This strategy enables retailers to better manage purchasing costs but often comes with hidden costs - returns, recalls and most importantly, the potential loss of consumer confidence. With the abundance of products manufactured overseas, reduced quality control is inevitable. Everyday around the world, manufacturers, brands and retailers turn to expert testing labs with questions. “Can we make it better, faster, more efficient and maintain the tough regulatory standards mandated by all levels and regions of government? How do we strike the balance between quality, profitability and compliance?”
- Reduced quality problems
- Reduced customer complaints due to lack of quality, safety and usability
- Increased verification of legal requirements and laws
- Increased customer satisfaction through higher product quality, safety and performance
After the sparks fall and the smoke dissipates I come to realize that it was all just a dream after all. The image of Saint Nicholas making his entrance through the chimney had me wondering what it is that keeps him unharmed in the presence of a large blazing fire. Having been lost in the thought of government regulatory directives for fire and safety, it’s possible to believe that Santa’s suit had in fact been tested under the 16 CFR Part 1610 for flammability. It’s critical that materials used in apparel comply with the standards within regulation prior to resale, therefore taking precaution whether at work or home can simply reduce putting both yourself and another’s life in danger. That said I believe now it is time to put out the fire and go to bed.
Gary Barraco is Senior Director of Product Marketing for ecVision. ecVision®, the leader in supply chain collaboration solutions for retailers and brands, is an integration partner with many of the world’s foremost product testing company with labs around the world. Together these organizations exchange data through ecVision’s cloud-based supply chain collaboration platform enabling users to seamlessly build, request and receive testing data through a single solution.
This post was published on November 11, 2014 and updated on September 8, 2017.
