PRODUCT SAFETY
Product-related legislation applies to companies manufacturing products and articles, e.g. furniture, printed products (books, publications, newspaper, labels), electric equipment, metal products for construction, cars etc. It prohibits the placing on the market of products which pose a risk for consumers’ health, caused by dangerous substances or by unsafe construction.
Principally product safety legislation may concern all parts of product (e.g. textile, plastic, metal, wood, etc). For example from chemicals usage it regulates product safety by prohibiting using certain hazardous substances in the furniture products or defining acceptable releases from the products, e.g.
- restricts usage of brominated flame retardants or
- formaldehyde emissions from chipboard or
- restricts arsenic compounds in wood treatment, etc.
|
|
Safe is specified as posing no risk for
human health and the environment under
normal use of a product |
Also from chemicals usage it regulates product safety by prohibiting using certain hazardous substances in the metal processing chemicals, metal products itself or defining acceptable releases from the products, e.g. restricts usage of cadmium, nickel, chromium, number of chlororganic substances etc.
Production companies have a “duty of care” and take the responsibility that products placed on the market are safe. Sometime you might make tests in laboratories to prove that your product is safe. Beside legal norms clients can also pose your company specific requirements; there can also exist product related standards in other countries.
Following chapter concentrates to the safety of non-food products.
Supply chain aspects
|
 TOP
|
Production companies have a “duty of care” and take the responsibility that products placed on the market are safe. It means that company needs to care that raw materials he supplies are environmentally and health friendly and complying with legal norms.
Legislation
|
TOP
|
Main EU legislation
|
Requirements |
General Product Safety (01/95/EC) |
- Generally prohibits the placing on the market of products which pose a risk for human health and the environment under normal use of a product
- So called daughter directives are sector specific and list requirements and procedures for conformity assessment for certain goods which have to be followed:
- Simple pressure vessels directive, 87/404/EEC
- Personal protective equipment (PPE), 89/686/EC
- Machinery, 98/37/EC
- Lifts, 95/16/EC
- Pressure equipment, 97/23/EC
- Equipment explosive atmospheres (ATEX), 94/9/EK
- Transportable pressure equipment, 1999/36/EC
- Cableway installations designed to carry persons, 2000/9/EC
- Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), 89/336/EEC
- Low Voltage, 73/23/EEC
- Radio Equipment and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment and the Mutual Recognition of their Conformity, 99/5/EC
- Safety of toys, 88/378/EEC
- Appliances burning gaseous fuels, 90/396/EEC
- Noise emission in the environment by equipment for use outdoors, 2000/14/EC
- Construction products, 89/106/EEC
- Non-automatic weighing instruments, 90/384/EEC
- Active implantable medical devices, 90/385/EEC
- Medical devices, 93/42/EEC
- Recreational craft, 94/25/EC
- In vitro diagnostic medical devices, 98/79/EC
- Efficiency requirements for new hot-water boilers fired with liquid or gaseous fuels, 98/79/EC
- Interoperability of the trans-European high-speed rail system, 96/48/EC
- Measuring instruments, 2004/22/EC
- Energy efficiency requirements for household electric refrigerators, freezers and combinations thereof, 96/57/EC
- Energy efficiency requirements for ballasts for fluorescent lighting, 2000/55/EC
For those articles where no specific directive and EU standards exist, requirements of the general product safety directive have to be followed. |
Bans, Marketing and Use restrictions (76/769/EEC) |
- Requires chemicals users not to use specified chemicals in certain products. Some substances are totally banned.
- Restrictions of brominated flame retardants for furniture and upholstery
- Restrictions of flame retardants in textile
- Restrictions for use of CCA (copper, chrome, arsenic) containing preservatives
- Prohibition of the marketing of wood treated with creosote oil
- Restricts occurrence of cadmium in the paints and for use in coating, as stabiliser;
- Prohibits use of hexachlorethane in processing metals, excluding iron;
- Restricts use of pentachlorphenol for cleaning;
- Restricts use of Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr VI, polibrominated biphenyls and their ethers in most of electric and electronic equipment.
More information see under ‘List of restricted and banned chemicals’ in this chapter. |
Related EU legislation
|
Requirements |
Classification, packaging and labelling of chemical substances and dangerous preparations
(67/548/EEC)
(1999/45/EC)
|
- Carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic substances as listed in Annex I are generally not allowed in any consumer products (preparations meant for consumers) |
European Eco–label Award (regulation No1980/2000) |
- Makes reference to the content of certain substances for some of the products, e.g. different appliances, such as computers, refrigerators, television, vacuum cleaners or lubricants.
However, applications for the label are voluntary and can therefore not be regarded as legally binding. |
Product related legislation – ELV, WEEE, ROHS |
- Restricts the use of certain substances in the products
- ELV: lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent Cr
- WEEE: PCB, Hg, brominated flame retardants, asbestos, CFC, HCFC, HFC, HC, radioactive substances
- ROHS: lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) or polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE);
- Requires to take certain actions to reduce use of those substances in the products
- Requires to report on measures taken, content of substance in the products |
|
Further information sources
|
TOP
|
Risk assessment with regard to consumers
|
TOP
|
If your monitoring procedures suggest one of your products may pose a risk to consumers, you need to assess the risk to determine whether corrective action is needed. This is mainly the producer's responsibility but distributors may be able to supply information that will help.
| The product safety directive (2001/95/EC) requires all consumer products placed on the market to be “safe”, however no explicit standards are set. |
|
A “safe” product is defined as a product that does not pose any unacceptable risk when reasonably used for its intended purpose. The composition of a product and its labelling as well as interaction with other products and hazards to specifically sensitive consumer groups as children and elder persons are factors influencing the safety of the product. |
For some product groups you need to have standardised testing and you need to follow it (e.g. wooden toys, construction details). There are no specific requirements which requests risk assessments for consumer products for furniture or metal or printing product groups. If standardised testing is not requested then we recommend to use next approach (based on publication ‘Product safety in Europe: A Guide to corrective action including recalls - helping businesses to protect consumers from unsafe products'):
 |
Analyse the information:
- What is the nature of the hazard?
- What is the cause of the hazard? (occasional product defect, product deterioration, unusual operating conditions, misuse of product, random failure etc)
- What range of products (models) is affected?
- Who is affected by the hazard? (user, bystander)
- What factors could affect the severity and probability of injury? (competence of user, age of product, etc)
|
 |
Probability is affected by the following factors:
- The probability of a product being or becoming defective and the time to failure.
- The frequency with which a user is exposed to the hazard.
- The probability of being injured when exposed to the hazard.
- The severity and probability estimates are combined to give an overall risk estimation.
|
 |
To decide whether you need to take action you also need to assess whether or not the level of risk is acceptable to consumers.
Certain types of products (such as tools with sharp blades) have obvious hazards that are accepted by consumers if they consider that the manufacturer has taken appropriate safety measures. For products likely to be used by more vulnerable people, consumers would not accept anything more than a very low level of risk. |
 |
Having evaluated all factors you should make an overall risk assessment which may be expressed as one of the following levels:
- Serious risk – requiring rapid action
- Moderate risk – requiring some action
- Low risk – not generally requiring action for products on the market
|
List of restricted and banned chemicals
|
TOP
|
List of restricted and banned chemicals in furniture industry
Carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic substances
|
Ban on the marketing to the general public of substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic to reproduction, and of preparations containing these substances. |
Brominated flame retardants |
Restrictions of brominated flame retardants: pentabromdiphenyl ether (pentaBDE), octabromodiphenyl ether (octaBDE)
Applicable: for “articles” as furniture
Requirement: Prohibition of the marketing of product, if they, or flame retardant parts thereof, contain pentaBDe or octaBDE in concentrations higher than 0.1 % by mass
In force from August 15 2004
Use: PentaBDE à flexible polyeruthane foam for furniture and upholstery
Flame retardants in textile
Prohibited the use of three flame-retardants:
- Tri-(2,3,-dibromopropyl)-phosphate (TRIS)
- Tris-(aziridinyl)-phosphineoxide (TEPA)
Polybromobiphenyles (PBB) |
Wood preservatives |
Restrictions for use of copper, chrome, arsenic (CCA) containing preservatives
Wood treated with arsenic compounds may not be placed on the market.
Exceptions:
CCA compounds may only be used for the preservation of wood in industrial installations using vacuum or pressure to impregnate wood if they are solutions of inorganic compounds of the copper, chromium, arsenic type C (specific type of CCA treatment with specific percentages of CCA), see http://www.ccaresearch.org/about_cca.htm
Wood treated in this way may not be placed on the market before fixation of the wood is completed.
Exceptions:
If wood is treated with the above mentioned CCA type C, it may only be placed on the market for professional and industrial use. It should be clear that the structural integrity of the wood is required for human or livestock safety. Skin contact by the general public with wood treated with CCA type C must be unlikely. These can be the following applications:
- As structural timber in public and agricultural buildings, office buildings and industrial premises
- In bridges and and bridgework
- As constructional timber in freshwater areas and brackish waters e.g. jetties and bridges
- As noise barriers
- In avalanche control
- In highway safety fencing and barriers
- As debarked round conifer livestock fence posts
- In earth retaining structures
- As electric power transmission and telecommunications poles
- As underground railway sleepers
Treated wood may NOT be used for:
- Residential or domestic constructions, regardless the purpose
- In any application where there is a risk of repeated skin contact
- In marine waters
- For agricultural purposes other than for livestock fence posts and structural uses mentioned above
- In any application where the treated wood may come into contact with intermediate or finished products intended for human and/or animal consumption
- As substances or constituents of preparations for use in the treatment of industrial waters, irrespective of their use
Labelling
All wood treated with arsenic compounds must be labelled:
- “for professional and industrial installation and use only, contains arsenic”
- “Wear gloves when handling this wood. Wear a dust mask and eye protection when cutting or otherwise crafting this wood.
Waste from this wood shall be treated as hazardous by an authorised undertaking”.
Prohibition of the marketing of wood treated with the substances listed below
- Creosote (EINECS No. 232-287-5, CAS No. 8001-58-9)
- Creosote oil (EINECS No. 263-047-8, CAS No. 61789-28-4)
- Distillates (coal tar) naphthalene oils (EINECS No. 283-484-8, CAS No. 84650-04-4)
- Creosote oil, acenaphthene fraction (EINECS No. 292-605-3, CAS No. 90640-84-9)
- Distillates (coal tar), upper (EINECS No. 266-026-1, CAS No. 65996-91-0)
- Anthracene oil (EINECS No. 292-602-7, CAS No. 90640-80-5)
- Tar acids, coal crude (EINECS No. 266-019-3, CAS No. 65996-85-2)
- Creosote wood (EINECS No. 232-419-1, CAS No. 8021-39-4)
- Low temperature tar oil, alkaline (EINECS No. 310-191-5, CAS No. 122384-78-5)
Exceptions:
- The listed substances are used for wood treatment in industrial installations or by professionals on the protection of workers for retreatment only if they contain:
- benzo(a)pyrene in concentration not exceeding 0,005% by mass, and
- water extractable phenols at a concentration of less than 3% by mass.
- They are used for wood treatment in industrial installations or by professionals and if:
- The substances are placed on the market in packaging of a capacity equal to or greater than 20 litres.
- The substances are not sold to consumers.
- The packaging is legibly and indelibly marked ‘For use in industrial installations or professional treatment only’.
Wood treated with creosote is never allowed to be used, not even when the applications fall within the scope of the exemptions:
- Inside buildings, whatever their purpose
- In toys
- In playgrounds
- In parks, gardens, and outdoor recreational and leisure facilities where there is a risk of frequent skin contact
- In the manufacture of garden furniture such as picnic tables
- For the manufacture and use and any re-treatment of:
- Containers intended for growing purposes
- Packaging that may come into contact with raw materials, intermediate or finished products destined for human and/or animal consumption.
- Other materials that may contaminate the products mentioned above.
|
Pentachlorophenol |
Restriction the use of pentachlorophenol (PCP)
Ban on the use of pentachlorophenol and its compounds in a concentration equal to or greater than 0.1% by mass, including for the impregnation of fibres and heavy-duty textiles not intended in any case for clothing or for decorative furnishings.
Note: usual use of PCP:
- in textile and leather industry, PCP is mostly used for preservation finishing;
- in ligneous products (wood-based products) in conservation paints;
in wooden toys and handicrafts, for the purpose of conservation |
Heavy metals |
Cadmium in components for furniture
Restricts the use of Cd
- as pigment (textile, leather)
- as stabilizer in plastics
- for metal surface treatment used in furniture production equipment
Lead compounds
Resticts the use of Pb as pigment in paints
Mercury compounds
Restricts the use of mercury compounds for the protection of any totally or partially submerged appliances or equipment |
Textile/leather finishing chemicals |
Azoic colouring agents
Bans the market of some textiles and leather articles coloured with dangerous azocolourants and coming into contact with the skin.
Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs)
Bans the marketing of substances or preparations containing more than 1% SCCPs in leather finishing. |
List of restricted and banned chemicals in printing industry
Carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic substances |
Ban on the marketing to the general public of substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic to reproduction, and of preparations containing these substances. |
Benzene |
Substances and preparations for use in industrial processes not allowing for the emission of benzene in quantities in excess of those laid down in existing legislation. |
Cadmium and its compounds |
May not be used to give colour to finished products manufactured from the substances and preparations: polyvinyl chloride (PVC); polyurethane (PUR); low-density polyethylene (ld PE), with the exception of low-density polyethylene used for the production of coloured masterbatch; cellulose acetate; cellulose acetate butyrate; epoxy resins.
In any case, whatever their use or intended final purpose, finished products or components of products manufactured from the substances and preparations listed above coloured with cadmium may not be placed on the market if their cadmium content (expressed as Cd metal) exceeds 0,01 % by mass of the plastic material.
May not be used to give colour to finished products manufactured from the substances and preparations: melamine — formaldehyde (MF), urea — formaldehyde (UF), unsaturated polyesters (UP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), transparent/general-purpose polystyrene, acrylonitrile methylmethacrylate (AMMA), cross-linked polyethylene (VPE), high-impact polystyrene, polypropylene (PP), paints.
However, if the paints have a high zinc content, their residual concentration of cadmium must be as low as possible and at all events not exceed 0,1 % by mass.
May not be used for cadmium plating metallic products or components of the products used in equipment and machinery for printing and book-binding. |
Pentachlorophenol and its salts and esters
|
Shall not be used in a concentration equal to or greater than 0,1 % by mass in substances or preparations placed on the market. |
Nonylphenol
Nonylphenol ethoxylate |
May not be placed on the market or used as a substance or constituent of preparations in concentrations equal or higher than 0,1 % by mass for the industrial and institutional cleaning except:
- controlled closed dry cleaning systems where the washing liquid is recycled or incinerated,
- cleaning systems with special treatment where the washing liquid is recycled or incinerated.
|
List of restricted and banned chemicals in metal industry
Carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic substances
|
Ban on the marketing to the general public of substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic to reproduction, and of preparations containing these substances. |
Mercury, arsenic compounds |
May not be used as substances and constituents of preparationsintended for use:
(a) to prevent the fouling by micro-organisms, plants or
animals of
— the hullsof boats,
— cages, floats, nets and any other appliances or equipment used for fish or shellfish farming,
— any totally or partly submerged appliances or equipment. |
Cadmium
and its compounds |
May not be used to give colour to finished products manufactured from the substances and preparations: polyvinyl chloride (PVC); polyurethane (PUR); low-density polyethylene (ld PE), with the exception of low-density polyethylene used for the production of coloured masterbatch; cellulose acetate; cellulose acetate butyrate; epoxy resins.
May not be used to stabilize the finished products manufactured from polymersor copolymers of vinyl chloride: swing doors; vehicles for road transport (interior, exterior,
underbody); coating of steel sheet used in construction or in industry; insulation for electrical wiring.
May not be used for cadmium plating metallic products or components of the products used in the sectors/ applications:
(a) equipment and machinery for food production; agriculture; cooling and freezing; paper and board, textiles and clothing.
(b) equipment and machinery for the production of household goods; furniture; sanitary ware; central heating and air conditioning plant; industrial handling equipment and machinery; road and agricultural vehicles; vessels.
|
Chloroform
Carbon tetrachloride
1,1,2 Trichloroethane
1,1,2,2 Tetrachloroethane
1,1,1,2 Tetrachloroethane
Pentachloroethane
1,1 Dichloroethylene
1,1,1 Trichloroethane |
May not be used in concentrations equal to or greater than 0,1 % by weight in substances and preparations placed on the market for sale to the general public and/or in diffusive applications such as in surface cleaning and cleaning of fabrics.
Without prejudice to the application of other Community provisions on the classification, packaging and labelling of dangerous substances and preparations, the packaging of
such substances and preparations containing them in concentrations equal to or greater than 0,1 % shall be legible and indelibly marked as follows: ‘For use in
industrial installations only’. |
Hexachloroethane |
May not be used in the manufacturing or processing of nonferrous metals |
Alkanes, C10-C13, chloro (shortchain
chlorinated paraffins) |
May not be placed on the market for use as substances or as constituents of other substances or preparations in concentrations higher than 1 % in metalworking. |
Nonylphenol
Nonylphenol ethoxylate |
May not be placed on the market or used as a substance or constituent of preparations in concentrations equal or higher than 0,1 % by mass for metal working except uses in controlled closed systems where the washing liquid is recycled or incinerated |
How you can identify hazardous chemicals used in your products?
|
TOP
|
In order to identify hazardous substances relevant for your products, you can act following:
- Start with screening what substances might be relevant to your industry branch (which substances are restricted or prohibited to use in products)!
- Continue with screening for hazardous substances in USED chemicals at your company!
Step 1 – Screen available information on chemicals used in your company
Step 2 – Screen Safety data sheets of chemical products
Contact supplier:
- ask supplier for updated version of SDS
- ask for occurrence of specific substances in the preparation
- provide concrete argument why you need such information – refer to legislation
- ask for written answer.
If supplier is not able to provide requested information - find new supplier!
If this is not possible, you have to search for this information yourself. It is very time consuming and not always reliable – nobody knows the products better as the supplier or producer! |
Step 3 – If you use ready materials/details for your final product from other suppliers (textile, metal/plastic parts) – request detailed information on how they have been produced, i.e. which raw materials (e.g. chemicals) are used.
TOP
|
