Request for Information Regarding Mattress Materials, 8923-8925 [2017-02058]

Agencies

• Consumer Product Safety Commission

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 20 (Wednesday, February 1, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8923-8925]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-02058]


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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

[Docket No. CPSC-2017-0008]


Request for Information Regarding Mattress Materials

AGENCY: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or Commission) is 
requesting information on the materials,

[[Page 8924]]

components, and methods of assembly currently used to comply with the 
Standard for the Flammability of Mattresses and Mattress Pads, and the 
Standard for the Flammability (Open Flame) of Mattress Sets.

DATES: Submit comments by April 3, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2017-
0008, by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. The Commission does not accept 
comments submitted by electronic mail (email), except through 
www.regulations.gov. The Commission encourages you to submit electronic 
comments by using the Federal eRulemaking Portal, as described above.
    Written Submissions: Submit written submissions by mail/hand 
delivery/courier to: Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product Safety 
Commission, Room 820, 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; 
telephone (301) 504-7923.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number for this notice. All comments received may be posted 
without change, including any personal identifiers, contact 
information, or other personal information provided, to: https://www.regulations.gov. Do not submit confidential business information, 
trade secret information, or other sensitive or protected information 
that you do not want to be available to the public. If furnished at 
all, such information should be submitted in writing.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to: https://www.regulations.gov, and insert the 
docket number CPSC-2017-0008, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the 
prompts.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa L. Scott, Fire Protection 
Engineer, Laboratory Sciences, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 
5 Research Place, Rockville, MD 20850; telephone: 301.987.2064; email: 
lscott@cpsc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Commission has issued two federal flammability standards for 
mattresses under the Flammable Fabrics Act (FFA), 15 U.S.C. 1191: The 
Standard for the Flammability of Mattresses and Mattress Pads 
(Cigarette Ignition Standard), 16 CFR part 1632 and the Standard for 
the Flammability (Open Flame) of Mattress Sets (Open Flame Standard), 
16 CFR part 1633. Each standard prescribes requirements for testing of 
mattress prototypes. Both the Cigarette Ignition Standard and the Open 
Flame Standard prescribe requirements for testing of prototype designs 
before products using those designs are introduced into commerce. Both 
standards allow changes to ticking materials used in prototypes under 
certain conditions. The ticking substitution procedure of the Cigarette 
Ignition Standard provides procedures for evaluating the cigarette 
ignition characteristics of ticking and classifying ticking into one of 
three performance classes based on the results. The procedures may be 
used to change ticking in a particular prototype of a mattress or 
mattress pad without conducting a new cigarette ignition prototype 
test. When the Open Flame Standard was developed, CPSC staff believed 
that the ticking substitution procedures in the Cigarette Ignition 
Standard could be used to allow for ticking changes under the Open 
Flame Standard. Although staff expected that manufacturers would be 
relying on the ticking substitution procedures to make changes to 
ticking and use those procedures to comply with the Open Flame 
Standard, staff seeks information regarding the usefulness of the 
ticking substitution procedure for meeting the Open Flame Standard.
    The ticking substitution procedure in the Cigarette Ignition 
Standard prescribes testing representative specimens of ticking 
material over a wooden box filled with cotton felt and a urethane foam 
pad using a standard cigarette ignition source. Depending on the 
results of that test, the test is repeated without the urethane foam 
pad. The Cigarette Ignition Standard defines a schedule of 
classifications (Class A, Class B, or Class C) based on the results of 
the test and identifies the scope and application of these 
classifications for substituting ticking. There is no specific test 
procedure in the Open Flame Standard related to ticking substitution.
    CPSC staff is requesting information on the materials, components, 
and methods of assembly currently being used to comply with both 
standards, as described below. This information will be used to inform 
CPSC staff of current practices in the industry and determine whether 
the current testing protocols used for the ticking substitution 
procedure in the Cigarette Ignition Standard (16 CFR 1632.6) are 
adequate or need revision to reduce variability in the current test 
procedure. In addition, based on CPSC staff's recent rule review of the 
Open Flame Standard, (81 FR 91923 (Dec. 19, 2016)), staff concluded 
that the industry could benefit from additional outreach and guidance 
from CPSC staff to ensure compliance with the requirements. 
Accordingly, CPSC staff is interested in learning about stakeholder 
experiences related to prototyping to meet the requirements of the Open 
Flame Standard so that staff can provide appropriate guidance on these 
topics.

II. Request for Information

    If you provide any information in response to the request for 
information that contains confidential business information, trade 
secret information, or other sensitive or protected information that 
you do not want to be available to the public, you should submit such 
information in writing to the Office of the Secretary, as provided in 
the ADDRESSES section above.

A. The Cigarette Ignition Standard

    CPSC staff is seeking information about industry experience with 
the test procedure, apparatus, and materials used in the ticking 
substitution procedure in the Cigarette Ignition Standard. 
Additionally, CPSC staff is interested in the specifications of the 
components used and the availability of specified testing materials for 
this procedure. CPSC staff is aware that stakeholders have expressed 
concerns related to conducting both parts of the procedure as described 
above, and staff requests information from manufacturers, importers, 
laboratories and suppliers to better understand these concerns.
    1. What types of procedures or alternative test protocols are 
likely to be used for evaluating or substituting tickings? Are there 
alternative test protocols that may result in different ticking 
classifications? Please provide information about the benefits of these 
alternatives and whether and why the different ticking classification 
results are more or less accurate for the different methods.
    2. How are sources for the test materials specified in the ticking 
substitution procedure selected? Are there alternative test materials 
or material specifications that may improve the repeatability of the 
test?
    3. If the test described in 16 CFR 1632.6(e) Test Procedure is 
performed, who is likely to perform the test (e.g., the mattress 
manufacturer or the ticking supplier or another party)? Please explain. 
Is the ticking classification verified by a lab report or some other 
documentation?

[[Page 8925]]

    4. If a ticking is to be substituted on a qualified mattress 
prototype, how are candidate tickings for a substitution selected? 
Other than ticking classification, what factors or features are 
important when selecting a ticking material? Please explain the 
benefits and/or concerns related to structure (e.g., knit, woven, 
nonwoven), fiber content, or other factors that may affect the 
decision. Is effect on compliance with the Open Flame Standard a 
consideration in the selection process?
    5. How do different ticking design features, when used in 
combination with flat areas or non-designed sections, impact the 
placement of cigarettes during the test (e.g., color patterns, weave 
pattern features, heat-bonded sections, quilted sections, 3-D designs, 
etc.)?

B. The Open Flame Standard

    Under the Open Flame Standard, a prototype is tested and serves as 
a model for production. The Open Flame Standard distinguishes between a 
qualified prototype, confirmed prototype, and subordinate prototype. 
CPSC staff is interested in learning about stakeholder experiences 
related to prototyping to meet the requirements of the Open Flame 
Standard so that staff can provide appropriate guidance on these 
topics.
    6. What are the materials, components and, methods of assembly used 
to comply with the performance requirements of the Open Flame Standard?
    7. Does the fiber content, barrier type, material construction, and 
method of assembly impact the performance of a mattress tested using 
the procedure in 16 CFR 1633.7?
    8. What conditions might influence a decision to include specific 
technologies to comply with the Open Flame Standard (e.g., inherently 
flame resistant material, topically applied flame retardant chemical 
treatment, FR thread, etc.)?
    9. A subordinate prototype is a mattress set that is based on a 
qualified or confirmed prototype and is the same as the qualified or 
confirmed prototype, except with respect to length and/or width, not 
depth; ticking material, unless the ticking of the qualified prototype 
has characteristics designed to improve test performance; and/or any 
component, material, design or method of assembly, so long as the 
manufacturer can demonstrate on an objectively reasonable basis that 
such differences will not cause the mattress set to exceed the test 
criteria of the Open Flame Standard. See 16 CFR 1633.4(b).
    Please provide examples of how the subordinate prototype provisions 
are implemented in production.
    10. For purposes of the Open Flame Standard, each factory location 
is considered a manufacturer. Prototype pooling is a cooperative 
arrangement--whereby one or more manufacturers build mattress sets 
based on a qualified prototype produced by another manufacturer or 
prototype developer. A manufacturer who relies on another 
manufacturer's or prototype developer's qualified prototype must 
perform a confirmation test on the mattress set it manufactures. See 16 
CFR 1633.5.
    What are some examples of how a prototype pooling arrangement may 
be accomplished? How frequently are confirmation tests performed, as 
described in 16 CFR 1633.2(r)?
    11. What types of quality assurance programs are in use? What 
controls, inspection procedures, and production testing schemes are 
most effective? When mattresses are produced by a secondary firm under 
contract for a primary firm (e.g., under private label) or are 
imported, what quality assurance controls are in place to ensure that 
the mattresses that are produced are the same as those used in the 
qualified and/or confirmed prototype on which they are based?

    Dated: January 26, 2017.
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2017-02058 Filed 1-31-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P