ASTM International Committee F15 on Consumer Products invites manufacturers of infant bath tubs to attend and participate in meetings to continue the development of proposed new standard, WK12969, Consumer Safety Specification for Infant Bath Tubs. The proposed standard is under the jurisdiction of Subcommittee F15.20 on Bath Seats.
 
WK12969 will establish performance requirements, test methods and labeling requirements to promote the safe use of infant bath tubs. The intent of the proposed standard is to reduce the risk of death and minimize injury to infants resulting from the use and reasonably foreseeable abuse of infant bath tubs.
 
Paul Ware, President, PW Resources, Inc., and a past Vice President of Quality at both The First Years and Safety 1st, notes that the impetus to develop WK12969 was a letter that the Consumer Products Safety Commission sent to ASTM International and to the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association requesting that a standard be developed for infant bath tubs. The letter detailed incidents in which infants died or were injured in incidents involving infant tubs.
 
“By creating safety, performance and labeling requirements for the development and manufacture of infant bath tubs, the intent is to reduce the number and severity of incidents involving infants when using these products,” says Ware. “By including this product category in the JPMA Certification Program utilizing the proposed ASTM standard, we hope to increase the number of manufacturers that use the standard to guide their product development and manufacturing activities to produce a high quality, safe product.”
 
“Input from bath tub manufacturers is vital in helping to develop this standard further,” says Ware. “Governmental and/or consumer representatives are also encouraged to participate and share their views with respect to it.”

For further technical information, contact Paul Ware, PW Resources, Inc., Stoughton, Mass. (phone: 781/341-2488; pwrpaul@comcast.net). Subcommittee F15.20 meets March 19-22, 2007 at ASTM International Headquarters in West Conshohocken, Pa. For membership or meeting information, contact Katharine Morgan, manager, Technical Committee Operations, ASTM International (phone: 610/832-9721; kmorgan@astm.org).

Release #7533