Big mattress makers applaud national FR regs
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, March 13, 2006
High Point — The three largest bedding producers with national fire-resistant mattress lines said they are pleased that a U.S. mandatory standard will go into effect in July 2007.
The three — Sealy, Serta and Tempur-Pedic — are leaders in adding FR protection well in advance of the establishment of the federal standard.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission approved a federal standard on Feb. 16. It is tougher than the mattress flammability standard already on the books in California, but uses the same test procedure.
Sealy used the occasion to urge other producers to add FR protection to their lines.
Mike Murray, vice president and legal counsel at Sealy, said, "Given the clarity of the CPSC's decision, advances in FR technologies and supply chain, the time has come for responsible manufacturers to not only meet the regulations — but step up their readiness to provide FR-compliant products in advance of July 2007."
Murray said that at Sealy, "we're not going to wait for regulations to make products better and safer, which is why we chose to launch our new lines of Sealy Posturepedic and Stearns & Foster with Sealy's FlameGuard system.... We will continue to develop products that meet or exceed these new standards and pursue technologies and processes to provide better and safer products to the market."
He called the FlameGuard system "an effective and non-toxic FR-compliant solution."
In its statement, Serta asserted its leadership on the FR issue.
"Serta wholeheartedly endorses CPSC's new regulations," said Al Klancnik, Serta's group vice president. "All of our beds meet this standard and have met it since January 2005. Serta is the first national mattress manufacturer to provide open-flame protection in all its mattresses throughout the nation. We did this because it is the right thing to do. Mattresses that meet CPSC's national standard will save many lives and significantly reduce injuries."
Tempur-Pedic, the leader in visco-elastic foam bedding, made all its beds compliant with the California standard last year.
"The safety and comfort of our customers in the U.S. and around the world is top priority for Tempur-Pedic, which is why we made this important change last year," said Tom Bryant, president of Tempur-Pedic International. "While we felt compelled to adopt the new higher standard for all of our mattress models in all states, we are pleased to see that by next year the whole industry will follow suit."
Tempur-Pedic said its FR barrier material, which sits directly under the mattress cover and encases the mattress, provides "a breathable, comfortable sleep surface, while giving consumers the full benefit of the Tempur material."
