Are You Ready for the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act?

In August 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act was signed into law. The Act, which is centered on the manufacture of "children’s products," imposes new testing and documentation requirements and sets new acceptable levels of several substances in children’s products. While this new law immediately caught the attention of toy manufacturers, it should be of equal importance to manufacturers of other products designed for children that fall under its jurisdiction. If they don’t, it could result in stiff fines and potential jail time following its Aug. 14, 2009 inception.

What exactly is the law defining as children’s products? Simply put, they are any consumer product designed or intended primarily for use by children 12 years of age or younger. The new law also affects any product that is subject to anything the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regulates by requiring certificates of conformance which state that the product was tested to conform to the appropriate regulations. There are also new rules included governing all-terrain vehicles.

As can be seen, this law spans a vast array of product lines, including apparel, shoes, personal care products, accessories and jewelry, home furnishings, bedding, toys, electronics and video games, books, school supplies, educational materials and science kits. What exactly are the requirements of manufacturers of these types of products? Let’s take a closer look at the two sections of the law addressing these requirements: Sections 103 and 104.

Section 103: Tracking Labels for Children’s Products
This section of the new law states that to the most practical extent, manufacturers of children’s products must place permanent and distinguishing marks on the product and its packaging. These will enable the manufacturer to ascertain the location and date of production as well as cohort information, including batch, run number and other identifying characteristics.

In addition, the mark should contain any other information that is needed to allow the manufacturer to ascertain the source of the product, and to allow the consumer to ascertain the manufacturer or private labeler, the location and date of production, and cohort information. There is an exception for small toys/products manufactured and shipped without individual packaging.

This section also allows manufacturers to label products with their name, contact information, Web site and individual codes. More information can be found on this section by reviewing the FAQ on the CSPC’s Web site.

Section 104: Standards and Consumer Registration of Durable Nursery Products
As the title indicates, this section is focused on durable infant or toddler products. These are defined as "a durable product intended for use, or that may be reasonably expected to be used, by children under the age of five years." These products include:

One requirement of Section 104 that is similar to the previous section is the requirement of the manufacturer to permanently place its name, contact information, model name and number, and the date of manufacture on each product. In addition to these permanent markings, manufacturers of durable infant or toddler products must meet several consumer registration requirements.

First, the manufacturer must provide consumers with a postage-paid registration form with each product. This form must include space for the consumer to provide their name, address, telephone number and e-mail address, as well as sufficient space to permit easy, legible recording of the information. This form must be attached to the product so that, as a practical matter, the consumer must notice and handle the form after purchasing the product.

In addition to the consumer registration information, the form must include the manufacturer’s name, model name and number, and date of manufacture. A message explaining the purpose of the registration form which is designed to encourage consumers to register their product must be included as well. Finally, the form needs to provide the consumer with the option of registering over the Internet and include a statement that the information provided by the consumer will not be used for any other purpose than recalls and safety alerts.

Second, the manufacturer is required to maintain a record of consumers who register ownership of their products. These records must be maintained for six years after the date of manufacture, and the data may not be used for any other purposes.

Call to Action
If manufacturers of these types of children’s products have yet to get in compliance with the law, they need to assess which of their products will be affected and take immediate steps—the law goes into effect Aug. 14, 2009.

How do they get in compliance? The most effective route would be to attain the services of a professional resource that knows the requirements of the law and can provide quick solutions to compliance issues. Manufacturers must look to a labeling and marking partner that can provide a variety of answers to their compliance issues, both for actual product marking and consumer registration solutions.

With in-depth expertise and knowledge in product marking, compliance requirements and document printing, Industramark has a solution that will bring you in line with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. Be it our extensive line of pressure-sensitive labels, innovative and permanent in-mold labeling solutions or our patented double-postcard registration option, Industramark has your answer. Don’t wait another day—contact us for more information today.