 Okay, so good afternoon everybody. I hope everyone had an enjoyable lunch and got to go outside and explore some of the close by Places or even get into Bethesda and the Bethesda row area So this afternoon we have our panel on testing. We have some representatives from independent laboratories Discussing issues seen with testing We have three speakers this afternoon during this session. Our first speaker is Luann Spiritu Luann Spiritu is director of technical support soft lines at SGS consumer and retail where she leads a team to develop comprehensive testing programs performance specification and Provides regulatory testing guidance to global US clients She has a bachelor of science and textiles from University of Rhode Island and over 20 years experience in the textile and apparel industries She has previously worked for a US testing company as a textile lab supervisor She worked as a quality assurance manager for AMC and Calvin Klein and was VP of quality and production at Frederick Atkins a New York buying office Luann is an active member of AATCC and ASTM and sits on several technical committees in these associations She is also an active member of the product safety committee of AAFA and she chairs the SGS global Competency support center Luann is a frequent presenter at industry seminars and Conducts training workshops for apparel and footwear testing Our second speaker this afternoon is Prateek Itchaporia Prateek is a frequent speaker and author on quality safety and environmental issues affecting the textiles toys and hard lines industries in his capacity as director of technical services Prateek provides counsel to Intertech customers about compliance with and changes to regulations related to consumer product safety Chemical management and harmful substances. He is an active member of ASTM committee D13 on textiles and F15 on consumer products He holds a PhD in fiber and polymer science from North Carolina State University and a master's of science degree in fiber and polymer science from Clemson University Our third speaker this afternoon is Ellen Rewaldi Ellen is a senior technical Consulting specialist in the soft lines area and has been with Bureau Veritas consumer product services for 25 years in her current position Ellen is responsible for providing support globally for clients as well as internal operations This includes training clients and staff in testing theory and methodology Consulting auditing and advising on technical information Reviewing and authoring procedural client manuals and interpreting test results Ellen holds a Bachelor of Science in textiles from Philadelphia University. She is a member of AAFA ASTM international AATCC and the Canadian General Standards Board Canadian Apparel Federation and the International Bedding and Law Officials and the ISO US TAG Secretary Ellen also is the designated trainer for ASTM training courses for apparel flammability and children's sleepwear compliance Ellen also serves on the industry advisory board for the textile program at the State University College at Buffalo So we have three distinguished speakers during this session. I'm going to turn it over to Luanne. Thank you Thank you Okay, so We all know that this regulation for children's sleepwear has been regulated for many many years However, there are still lots and lots of challenges with this regulation You know part of it is due to interpretation of the regulation itself There are always new developments in styling So, you know one day we see all of a sudden a type of a garment that we haven't really seen before We see these, you know sleep sacks that they use for young children Then you see sleep sacks with no bottom just legs hanging out You know, it's always a different kind of a style coming up that sort of challenges How are we going to categorize this product? Is it going to be a general wearing apparel? Is it going to be a sleepwear style and then there's also, you know innovative uses of Fibers and materials so there's a constant change in the way that you know products are being made and sold and the Regulations at the time when these were written some of these things probably weren't even You know in play or considered so as a testing laboratory We get lots of questions about the regulation and sometimes it's about the testing that's done sometimes it's interpreting the styling of what needs to be tested So what I did was I thought maybe we should just talk about some of the frequently asked questions that we get Improvide some answers. So if I'm testing a finished garment So this is one of the issues that happens is our client says I have just want to test the finished garment I don't want to have to go through all these testing stages because in the end That's what's going to get tested is the the finished garment So the question is why do the fabric and prototype samples also have to be tested? So basically in order to ensure that the fabric and the garment construction are acceptable before the production begins Each fabric and different seam type and trim that's used in the production has to be tested So if you have a fabric that doesn't pass It really doesn't make any sense to go into production and test make make your whole production And then test it and find out that the fabric is failing because the whole the whole Production will have to be discarded So it's only practical that you would test it sort of in stages So if you if you're selecting a fabric that's not really suitable for children's sleepwear It is no point in in making up the garment So when you have something like a hundred percent cotton that's not treated if the designer doesn't really understand and that's the fabric they choose It's never going to pass the test So it's important that you select the fabrics that are going to work with the test method So in order to verify that the fabric that you select is correct It has to be tested pre-production and the same is true for the seams and the trims because There's sewing thread that you use the stitches per inch the type of seam that you use in the garment has a big impact on How the sample will burn so even though the fabric passes the test Depending on how it's stitched it may no longer pass So it gives you an opportunity before you go into production to make any changes that need to be changed so you mean may need to change the sewing thread or the Stitches per inch that you're using or even maybe the seam configuration itself and Then of course the production garments have to be tested because this is verifying the results that you had in the pre-production testing So you should have all passing results before you get to the production stage so once you're there you want to verify now that You know the actual samples that are being made are going to pass the the test Because you know that there's a lot of things that happen during a production So lots of changes occur not necessarily intentional, but things can happen things can change that can affect the ultimate outcome Okay, so another question is does every FPU have to be laundered 50 times So if you have multiple FPUs in the same production or style and you have no flame retardant Finish on the fabric or any chemicals added to the fibers or yarns to make it flame retardant Then you test the first FPU in the original and after 50 launderings And if that passes then the second and subsequent FPUs do not have to be laundered 50 times so it's only the first the first one Now if you have a flame retardant finish or chemicals that are applied Then all the FPUs must be tested in the original state and after 50 launderings Okay, another question. Can fabrics of different colors or different print patterns be tested in the same FPU and GPU and We had talked about this a little before already But in order to include different colors in or different print patterns You have to test three samples of each one to confirm that the performance is equivalent to To each other so they can be treated as one FPU with some testing involved But however, you cannot combine the solid colors in the print patterns in the same FPU Do the three samples that get tested of each different color or print pattern need to be laundered 50 times Or can they be considered as subsequent FPUs? We have the same base fabric, but now you've got the different prints on it or different colors But the fabric itself is actually the same So in order to show equivalence in the performance three samples of each color or print have to be tested in the original state To show that there's no difference So then the colors and the prints can be considered as subsequent FPUs Now on the GPU testing, it's actually the same so different solid colors or different print patterns of The same fabric can be included in the same GPU as long as three or more samples are tested and don't show any Significant differences and again, they cannot be combined. So the solids and the print patterns have to be treated separately Okay, this is a biggie Because as a laboratory, you know, we're always asking for samples to test because we need something to work with and the the Clients are very reluctant to send too many samples in so they're always asking well How many samples do I have to send one thing is they have to know how many they need to send because we don't they don't want to Slow down the process. So if we don't if they send in half as many as they need We're not going to do anything with it until we get enough to work with so It's not a simple answer So unfortunately, we would like to be able to say oh send us five samples and that's good But there's a lot of different factors that are involved in how many you need to test. So the amount of The units in your production is one factor the amount of fabric that you're using in the total production is another factor and Also the size of the garments Plays a part in how many samples you actually need to do the testing so to try to make it Simpler to understand how to figure it out because I can't give you a set number Which I know is what people would like to hear so you have to be able to figure out how many samples you need to test So we have this nightgown. So this is our sleepwear style B 5698 we're making 24,000 garments Two yards of fabric is required per garment So the total fabric amount is 48,000 yards So each FPU is 5,000 yards of fabric so based on that the number of FPU tests that have to be done are 10 So we're doing 10 FPU tests for this For this production So now you need four yards of fabric for the testing So you have to take a sample from the beginning of the FPU and Another sample from the end of the FPU and it has to be tested The first FPU has to be tested in the original and then after 50 launderings and One sample is five specimens Okay, so now we have the prototype seams and trims that have to be tested So we'll assume that we tested the fabric and everything passed and it's good So now we're going on to the next stage of the prototype seams and trims So, you know, we still have our 24,000 garments. We did our 10 FPU tests So the seams in this garment are overlock seams and single needle seams So each different type of seam has to be tested But trim we have rickrack and we have a bow So we need to do four Prototype tasks because we have two types of seams and we have two types of trims So the total prototype test is going to equal four So for the seams, we need to have 15 specimens of each seam type And 15 specimens of each trim type And then of course, you know, I'm over simplifying it because when you do the testing, depending on how the how the specimens burn We may have to test additional specimens So the worst thing that happens is you send in a very limited number of samples And then the way the sample burns, it requires us doing additional burns And now we don't have any any specimens to work with So it stops the whole testing process because we can't continue with it And it's a big delay in you getting your test results So it's really important that when you submit the samples, it's not even just the amount that you try to calculate You have to also anticipate that if you have samples that burn the full length, more have to be tested So we need to have those actual samples readily available to do the testing And that's the same for the fabric stage also So now in the production garment testing, we have all our prototypes done Now the maximum number of units in a GPU is 6,000 So the fact that we're using, we're making 24,000 garments, we need four GPU tests For this particular style So we have to test three samples of the longest seam type So that's 15 specimens So whatever is the longest seam type in that style is what has to be tested And we cannot take more than five specimens per garment And we only test in the original state if the fabric was tested 50 times If the fabric was not washed 50 times, then the garments have to be washed 50 times Okay, so this is just a little example of how this works So in this style, we have the longest seam is the side seam on the top And we can only cut one specimen from the side seam because of the size of the garment It's only big enough for us to get one specimen from So we need a total of nine garments So we need the three samples and we need five from each one And you cannot mix specimens from samples So whatever your sample set is, all the specimens from that sample set have to be tested as one group So you could see that for the third one, there's an extra one But we can't use that one in that sample because I mean, we can't use it in the next group because it has to come They all have to come from the same set So a total of nine are needed and this is not counting if we have to burn extra, extra specimens So we actually need more than that because if any of them burn the full length, we have to do additional tests Now in this case, the longest seam is the side seam But the side seam is long enough for us to get two specimens from each side seam So in this case, we only need six garments So you could see that there's not a simple answer to how many garments do I need for testing Because it depends on the type of garment, the size of the garment Because if it's a very small size, you can't get a long seam, you may need to get more So that's how we ended up with nine garments in the other example Okay, trim. So we know that we have to do the trim that like the rickrack and the trim that you know is all over the garment But then we have some trims that are smaller like bows and appliques The trims definitely have to be tested If it's a small trim Then it is considered exempt. So if it's less than two inches in the longest dimension It's not tested unless it can it there's enough of it that there's over 20 square inches in the item So when you have on that nightgown in that example where we had the bow The bow looked like it was more than two inches. So that bow was counted in as having to have prototype testing done on it Things like zippers and buttons elastics, you know, functional structural parts of the sleepwear do not have to be tested So that's all I have Here and I don't know if these questions if you want to wait until we do the quest the question answer Okay, thank you Good afternoon everyone Thanks, Allison for the introduction and Mary for the invitation to discuss our, you know, one of the favorite topics of sleepwear flammability and Not only today, but I think your support from you and your staff throughout the answering a lot of questions that we field as as Luanne mentioned, you know, we we get a lot of questions from Brands and manufacturers We serve us a lot of times as the front lines Especially a lot of times not necessarily As they are hesitant to answer ask questions because a lot of times they are working with their product design and development stage And so they may not necessarily have all the pieces of the puzzle They might be thinking about certain designs and so, you know, as Luanne mentioned when they're innovating Not necessarily making the same type of garment because you see fast fashion where people want to have newer styles newer type of garments That raises questions in terms of Especially with the sleepwear Is it going to be tight fitting especially it comes into more tight fitting arena where people are always trying to You know Bend it but not break it type of thing So they're trying to, you know, just get to the edge of things So there are always questions in in terms of interpretation and we thank mary for you know always being available for us Thanks. Um, so we'll talk generally As some about the tight fitting sleepwares some overall comments about Both the types tight as well as loose fitting Some case examples of the designs that we've encountered where we had to You know, do we receive those questions specifically about classifications in terms of how would we classify What would be the applicable requirements so on so forth and then finally with some recommendations. So So here just a start off in terms of the LOAs and these were Broken down specifically just for the sleepwear For the last calendar year as well as for the first three quarters of this year And as you can see there are I think the total LOAs for this period were about 2800 So so sleepwear were about give or take 3% the major majority of it was for lead The key criteria to attention here is not You know that there were violations just for the flammability standard itself But there were also for the labeling as well as for policy and other aspects as well So the key is definitely meet all the safety requirements But you know in addition to that you also want to make sure that you meet this dimensional As well as all the other requirements that are applicable to the standard Of these LOAs I think 60% were led to recall 11% were a stop sale About 30% were for correct future production and most of the correct future production I think which I think mary alluded to earlier was you know Some of the minor things which might be labeling or things on those lines which could be fixed With tight fitting sleepwear Just generally commenting on these I think in terms of As you start off with any product first and foremost The most important question is the classification and this goes for I think any product That is going to be offered for sale as a consumer product because As soon as you put something into a children's product bucket You have a lot more Said an additional set of responsibility that you had to meet with a parallel It's a lot more easier because you go by the sizes. So it at least is relatively easier You're not going to the intended use and the age grade and those type of things But still that's it's very critical in terms of the classification Is it a children's product? Then you get into the apparel Then you say oh, is it really children's sleepwear and what type of children's sleepwear because If you misclassify something As type fitting Which would have been loose fitting by based on its design then This has been referred to earlier. You're using 100% cotton something without finishes Or rayon in certain instances those fabrics are not really going to meet the requirements So first and foremost understand the classification because that is going to drive these requirements And again, we are talking federal, but you also have state requirements as well So if you do have loose fitting or some of those things you also have to think about A lot of the chemical restrictions that might be coming through Petal agencies as EPA or state regulators Once you get to the design create specifications not only of the The dimensions of the garment but also in terms of the size What are the tolerances that you might have around those so whenever you are allowing those building those Make sure you have enough safety margin built in because Even if someone exceeds some those tolerances, you know that you will still be within the You know still be able to meet the applicable requirements for the dimensional specifications The other aspects are especially when you get into the loose fitting area and things like those were In terms of the fabric classification construction of the fabric. What type of fabric are they using? content of the fabric knit versus wovens versus threads per inch all those type of information and Loose fitting you also get a little bit more Involved because you're not only thinking about the fabric and the specification But also the sewing threads and things like that that you're using Not just the type of thread but also the thread count Sometimes it might be the you know the The type of twist or twist per inch could lead to differing results If someone is using lubricant so that the thread doesn't break during sewing operations That could influence a relative variability in the testing results So when you are creating specification create detail spec because If you are not governing what they have to use that means if you are giving them the freedom to choose Otherwise, so that's the easiest way to look at it Once you create this specification saying here is what we want to manufacture Here is what we will use to make make these products Evaluate the manufacturers in terms of what are their capabilities? And can they make these products? Have they been making this for a while? Is it something new that they have if you have tolerances around your spec? Do they have appropriate controls in place where they will be able to meet those specs? Because if you can create a spec, but if there is no way to quality correct or evaluate those specs Or if they don't have a way to control those specs You know that that is going to be variability and you might have to do a lot more interventions To make sure that you know your production is going to be able to meet the requirements And think about it from the larger perspective of children's products the 1107 Testing and certification rule when you are creating your reasonable testing program You are creating it for lead and phthalates and if it's for under four years of age three years and younger And then you're creating for flammability testing Do also something similar for the tight fitting sleep where in terms of the number of interventions that you might perform You know Mary alluded to like 10 is a number I mean so you that that's probably maybe a good number to go rather than just taking one snapshot saying Here is what it is because if you measure something a lot of times you might have measured something at the Pre-production or front of the production You probably didn't take something in the middle or the end and so If you manufactured it over a period of time of days or weeks Things could have shifted from center to up or low So how are you accounting for those? How are you accommodating for those changes? So take snapshots and if you are taking snapshots Take it along the production not just at one end of it Just to get a representative sampling of those things. So You know build those things in And then again doing statistical sampling and I think the other point was that just about the specifications. I think Where now the astmd 1355 has the standard for the sizes and I think because the department of commerce gave that up Because it was good. We're getting to the private sectors. I think that might be something by reference Or you know, that might be because as I think you know Alluding those panels earlier people are they might be buying larger sizes just to kind of get around You know the same size and that beats the purpose of building safety into the products But some specific examples for tight fitting styles So Can a garment if can you design something which might have a footy? So the answer would be yes in in this case, you know, you can have a footy And that could be a part of the design as long as the garment meets all the specifications For the sizes For the footies if it hasn't you could have with elastic or without elastic So if you have elastic you would perform the measurement at the elastic in the relax stage laying it flat If you don't have it then you're going to perform the measurement One inch above the seam So you're still performing the evaluations for the specifications Making sure you are meeting the requirements, but at least that is an allowed criteria for designing Right inside can you have a hoodie as a design element? I think carly mentioned earlier that you know, you can't the reason being you know The requirement is you can have something that is attachment That's greater than six millimeter from the point of attachment and hood would definitely exceed that A lot of times you might even see hoods with antlers and things like that And so, you know, again, that's again one of those design No, no that you if you are trying to go somewhere where it's a tight fitting sleepwear You won't be able to meet those requirements. So left inside hoodies allowed Hoodies it can't be a tight fitting sleepwear in that case. It's going to be classified as a loose fitting So again, if you misclassified that as a tight fitting and you use cotton or rayon It's not going to be able to meet the requirements Some more questions about the design aspect of it in terms of if you have Large pockets, you know, like something that stretches across in the front or back where you might provide like a kangaroo pocket cup house thing That's probably, you know, I mean you can perform the evaluation, but you know, if it's From the point of attachment if it exceeds that six millimeter, it's not going to meet that requirement aspect of it. So Again, do a consider Careful review of the design and see any time that you have an attachment that you are able to meet that six millimeter spec Sleep sack, that's I think a very common question that All of us All of us get in terms of how do you classify sleep sacks? Or, you know, you get in different versions the cocoon version the sleep sacks wraps different terminologies different names similar type of design I think in that instance You probably Don't need we need a lot more than just the product of the design And I think at that point you have to evaluate On a case by case basis, but you also have to kind of evaluate the whole product How is the product design? How is it marketed? Where is it sold? Those type of things? Um Generally rule of thumb I think is in terms of if you if you have a product like a sleep sack or a wrap If a baby is going to be with clothes inside of it Then that's probably going to lean more towards a day wear Or not a sleep wear, but if it is something where a child would be just with their underwear or a diaper It's probably going to more lean more towards a sleep wear category And also the other aspect of it is even if it's not a you know, uh for under nine months or nine months or under age You also have to meet that length The length restriction as well where you can't exceed that 25 and a three fourth of an inch As well So you have to be mindful of that as well in terms of how long is that as well if it's for you know Three months old six months old Or nine months old as well. So be mindful of not just you know, looking at one thing Always take a step back. Look at the look at the whole picture And then labeling is another common one where If you do have some garments that are going to be sold If it's in a package where you can't see hang tag or anything on those lines You'd have to put that information up there on the packaging itself You see a lot more online as well So you you know if you if the consumer is not going to have the information By physically looking at the product or a picture of it Then you need to provide that information convey that upfront to the consumers Of the other styles Boxer sets where you know, you don't have the full length For the bottoms In that case, I think as Carly mentioned you kind of see in terms of the design tapers or not So you evaluate for the time measurements and then you kind of Look down roll down and see is it tapering in design if it is then it's acceptable If it opens up a lot of times, especially when you get to Girls garments that would not be an acceptable design criteria Or some sets Like those that also would be allowed if you have like a short shirt or sleeves. That's that's okay As long as it meets appropriate design specification criteria And I think a lot of times people compare between the CPSC manual And the health canada guide and send there are Some there are some differences, you know the health canada manual a lot of times will say You know for example, but pockets you need to have the pockets You know, either you need to have a velcro or a button or something to close that The CPSC manual is not as prescriptive It just basically says if it's you know, attachment or something on those lines It can't have more than you know, six millimeters from the point of attachment. So There are distinctions between the two requirements and even though they are similar, they are not identical So, you know flame retardance is another one where Canada requires toxicity evaluation us doesn't necessarily explicitly require it So if you are selling in two jurisdictions, it's you know, it's normal to compare them But be mindful that compliance with one doesn't necessarily mean compliance with the other Moving on to loose fitting again, some of these overall comments in terms of the creating the spec Which has everything that you would want to control if you didn't say in it That means it's open for interpretation and some manufacturer can change that attribute Or that element So I think this one was covered earlier a little bit earlier, but if you sell accessories It's highly recommended that you meet the sleepwear requirements But the requirement would be for the general apparel flammability. So it still has to meet 1610 and then prints and patterns Of course, you can can't combine colors But you can color combine the prints and patterns as long as the burn characteristics Is not widely different. So kind of what's Significantly different that's significant is the keyword. It's there's no number around that significant term. So Finally with some recommendations in terms of if you are Creating these type of garments what to look for what to plan for I think the first point goes for both type fitting as well as loose fitting sleepwear create Creator specifications even when especially when you are creating specifications create You know your control levels your action levels That is going to be way lower than your You know your thresholds So that if something goes over that action level you can take precautionary steps intervene in between And make sure that you know, you're not exceeding the thresholds that are created for those garments always This goes for everything that is related to testing always if you are taking one snapshot Or how many ever snapshot you are evaluate for the evaluation always want to have a representative sample Labeling is the other one you know make sure that it's there Specify the sampling plan. I think you know as part of your reasonable testing program include that in your 1107 if it's component part testing for You know type fitting you can do that as well Loose fitting again specify everything it's going to be a lot more Dense then you're type fitting because here you are specifying different types of trims that you'd be using different types of threads You'd be using for stitching different types of stitches parameters for quality control Of what you can and can't use and all those other things as well and then finally Keep everything especially I mean for the loose fitting and those you do need to keep not only the reports but also the actual samples and some additional You know garments or fabrics that you can actually do testing for in case if there are any Issues so keep everything That you have As a record as well I'll turn it over to Ellen And thank you for coming everyone It's good being here and thank you mary ellison for hosting this This seminar. I think it's very valuable As a testing lab we get many many questions and This this regulation is very robust. It's it's very detailed So there's a lot of parties that contribute to it and making it a successful regulation and And limiting the burn injuries out there. So With that, um, I thought maybe I would discuss the role of the third party test laboratories So I wanted to add a little more comment to what it's already been said Very often we have many many questions that come into the labs Some of which are very high level for example, can we Manage the record keeping requirements for a vendor or for a manufacturer Can you define the type of sleepwear based on the designs? So we very often are given designs at conceptual stages and Are asked is this sleepwear or is this day wear? Where does it fall? And we don't have all the answers because we don't have all the the facts at hand What are The record keeping requirements needed for compliance. This is a very big question that I receive all the time How can we maintain our product files for compliance and can you maintain them for us? Another one that comes up very often is can you train our staff and very often we do do trainings to Help facilitate the understanding of the regulation But as a manufacturer an importer of record, you know your process the best you have all the Details of the manufacturer of that product And you're the person that needs to decide what is best for that product in maintaining and limiting the risk associated with it So another question that we get is my competitor sells this product in the marketplace. How come I can't? I can't tell you. Maybe it's because It hasn't been reviewed by the cpsc at this point Uh, certainly I can give you an opinion of what I think Where it may fall But I'm not the last final say in this matter, you know We have to turn to the cpsc very often for our information and we ask for their support for interpretations though What is our lab role The lab role can audit the factories. We can look at factories determine if they could Possibly produce the garments the quantity the volume that is needed for the production We can also do a factory audits or social accountability on the factories Uh, and of course we do the testing so the testing that we do is basically an audit for you You know, we can do size spec verification at the laboratories We can test every 5,000 linear yards for fpu Prototype seams and trims we can test but it's all dependent on what you send us Uh, the gpu testing the same way we can do the gpu testing But we don't know if you have submitted adequate number of gpu Testings to satisfy the finished product going to the market Uh, we can audit sample seal product as you know with gpu sampling. It has to be a random random sampling Product as it's being produced and submitted to the lab. It cannot be a golden sample So these these are sometimes we are very often asked to go in and sample seal production so that we can verify That the product has been randomly selected We can um We also have to return Um the tested samples So if you look to the regulation you look at what is considered to be record keeping There's a lot of detail in the regulation And if you read through it it has a lot of Questions that you should be asking do I have documents to support all the details that are Found in the regulation. What is a record? A record is not only the test reports that show compliance But a record is your yield reports your p.o. Agreements Any agreements or manuals that you have submitted to your vendors? In your labs the contractual agreements that you have signed with your vendors When purchasing supplies To manufacture those goods Some of the other records that may be considered our production units We talk very often about yield But you need to know also the traceability of the components going into that garment And can you trace the components going into the finished garment? And um identify that xyz lot of zippers has gone into So many thousands of fpu garments or gpu garments, I mean so you need to have traceability records in in house And the questions you should be asking yourselves as manufacturers and importers Do I have the documentation to support that? Uh Do I have records are also? Uh including tested samples and remains Does your lab return the samples to you? Do you maintain them? Are they easily accessible? So in case you have a recall You have access to them in a relatively quick time to prove compliance to the cpsc so These are just some of the questions that I I um very often ask my clients and importers And I can't answer these questions the manufacturer the importer has to answer these questions um So the manufacturer role is to know your sourcing channel tie in the loose ends Either through contracts or through your p.o. Agreements and very often You know uh say a brand will issue a manual and will Outline the roles of each party within that contract So is that completely tied in? um The source or manufacturing of fabrics and trims and functional components Do you have certifications for these components? Do they comply with the thailates the lead requirements? Or if flammability is required are they compliant for flammability? If you of course have to submit samples for testing and label the product correctly um But do you review your reports? Is there traceability of the fp you fp use at the prototype scenes and trims on those test reports for gpu? Very often the labs will have a test request form that requests that information But we do not necessarily know if all the information is accurate or correct Only you can we're reliant on The manufacturer vendor to give us appropriate information um to document so that there is more or less a chain of of Reap test reports to support the gpu uh You own the cpc you're certifying that product is compliant And um Do you ensure that there are proper records that are maintained and accessible accessibility is a key? You know, where do you maintain these records? Are they easily acceptable if you're sourcing overseas? Who's maintaining and holding these records for you? So the lab does not know the details of these contractual agreements in summary Um And we could not tell you the details. We can only give you the test reports that our hands touch The lab is not always privy to the details in the vendor manuals. This is another thing Um, you know, there are vendor manuals that Test labs have test programs in place We don't know if you have vendor manuals that have been given to your vendors outlining the expectations with them We have a test procedure that we have in place that we have to abide by But we do not um We're not necessarily privy to all the discussions with the vendors in the manufacturing community The lab is dependent on information accuracy at the time of of submission So if there is misinformation or there's not the detail that's needed on a test request form Certainly, we cannot provide you with a test report to show the um The flow of of documentation that has supported that gpu The lab must consider traceability of test report information to be accurate Another thing is now we have many many laboratories in the network If the testing is done at another laboratory, we couldn't go back and check and see if there's a passing report So this is another obstacle to which we cannot really be responsible to To say okay, you are compliant as a gpu It's your decision as a manufacturer of vendor to know That you're proud you have all the test reports in place to support that that product that final product And the lab also doesn't know how many as I mentioned before how many test reports are needed Because we don't have the quantities that are needed for the fabrication From the from the start And this just summarizes some of what I've already said that some that the traceability of vendor certifications is not available to the lab If there's changes in production and reworking a product We would not know that unless you were to submit it and specifically state that on a test request form So if this is a rework item I you know We could not if it's something that is failing and has been resubmitted We don't always know if it's a rework item in which case if it is a rework item It has to go And the whole process has to be started again from the fpu stage So we don't have that knowledge up front when we're testing we we test what we receive And then the marketing of the product we very often ask you how is this going to be marketed so we can help you make a decision But we can't tell you how to market it Finally how it goes to the market and what the final outcome of the marketing is something that's out of our control And again the traceability of prototype seems in trim in gpu So what does the lab do The lab does have to be iLac accredited which is a major feat in itself We have to trace have traceability for all our Our equipment consumables Um certifications on all of our equipment verifications Um, we have to have traceable documents throughout in order to get iLac accredited We have to then apply to the cpsc for each location that is authorized to perform that test And which test that uh would apply in the case of children's sleepwear. There's multiple tests So we would have to test we would have to apply for thailet testing lead testing lead inscrapable surface coatings and sleepwear testing and 1610 testing depending on the styling The lab must be knowledgeable of the test We have to have our staff trained to understand so that we can be your eyes and ears if we see something suspect We got to be able to raise it up to you To flag any issue going forward The lab must globally coordinate testing practices So we have to test consistently across the board and that's very difficult when you're dealing with 40 labs with all different languages so Certainly We have to have documents and guidance pieces in place so that it's clear to everyone exactly how it should be done We may assist in in obtaining interpretations from the cpsc certainly we We we consider ourselves an extension. We we're not trying to Take the place of cpsc. We are we We value and we try to endorse The direction we receive So the lab participates in standards activities as well as you can as you can see There's some things out there with the um regulations right now with Laundering for example, we participated at ATCC where equipment was being impacted Which is used for the laundering procedure in the method So we were very active in those subcommittees to come to resolutions And the lab also offers services to facilitate sample selection factory selection and can perform audits In addition to just the testing as I mentioned before so those are the roles the role of the lab we are here as As someone that can help the industry but we certainly do not control it our Word is not final The cpsc and the law is the final Gospel if you will and We we are just trying to enforce The regulation as it stands Okay, so some of the records that you may consider for For documentation. So if you have a garment, certainly we have to look at some of the The purchase orders know how many units are being purchased the details of it the silhouettes the designs Uh of the sleepwear that's going to be sold Um, you need to know the shipment dates have you as a manufacturer an importer record built in enough timeline to allow for Testing of this product fpu if you have to do 50 laundering, so it's not going to happen in three days turn around time We get that question very often. Why can't you do this in three days? So, um It's not possible So it's not wash wash wash and one dry. It's wash dry wash dry so The uh You you need to know all your manufacturers and locations country of origin agreements deal. You you have to understand the customs Uh interpretation for country of origin Um gpu and number of units and the traceable fpu's and prototype Tests how many are needed the details of those are they documented with your vendors? The manufacturing identification and style numbers and and all the um traceability of Lots to finish product Uh for uh finish a garment of sleepwear And then of course you're Supporting documentation. Do you have all the test reports and results? Are they all passing? In order to sell that sleepwear For fabrics, it's very similar. You have to look at uh p.o. Agreements Styles and finishes if there's any styles and finishes who's providing it What is the detail of that finish has it impacted the flammability performance? I can honestly say the more testing the better Not because i'm looking to make more money It's because if you are making a substitution or changing you need to quantify it and make sure that it is compliant The um finishes to a to a fabric can have a drastic effect on the flammability performance as can color That's why color is such an issue The different types of seams seeming. I've seen seams that burns up like a wick Seams are very um because of the openings and because of The actual seam design You can pass with a very uh, you know a little bit wider seeming but If if it's a like a like almost like a wick on a candle Depending on the seam structure and the design it can burn right up the full specimen so you have to really test Multiple times in some cases to determine which seam design is the best suited for that product Um garment specifications and sizes random sampling selection plans. Have you documented your sampling? Because it's written into the regulation that you have to randomly select Do you have a document saying that you you sort you took out? garment number 55 75 149 and so on and so forth in order to qualify And verify that the production has not changed through the entire lot and then of course you have um your um details of additional sampling plans if you have other sampling plans that you're using If you've gone to a reduced sampling plan or a um Uh tighter sampling plan. Have you that documented properly and do you have the test samples to support those test results? And then of course labeling You know part of the record keeping process is also having samples on hand. You have to have original samples original fabric You have to have original prototype specimens Your test is specimens and remains and who's hosting it. I have some clients that have Decided that they want all the samples maintained in the u.s for easy access if there's ever a reason for a recall And then are you auditing? those records That's another question So these are all questions that you should be asking yourself in order to protect yourself And to show that you are compliant to the law so in summary The manufacturer importer of record is responsible for the compliance of the law including but not limited to the development of the approved designs traceability record keeping requirements and issuing the children's cpc your children's product certificate Thank you Hey, thank you to our panel. We heard three interesting and different views. We do have some time for questions So we will take questions to any of the panelists if you want to write in remember the email is jkent at cpse.gov Question in the back The garment testing for gpu. Did I hear you say that you have to choose your gpu garments? From the first fpu because if that was the only fpu where you did the wash test No, i don't think i heard that right. No, i think i think you i think you misunderstood I'm sure it is so when we're talking about the fpu testing and combining prints or combining colors We were saying that you have to test three separate samples in those different colors or prints To confirm that they're burning the same And then only one of those has to get washed the 50 times When you get to the gpu stage The the washing has already been done. So now you're just you're testing Each gpu that you need to do based on the quantity of garments that you're making So but the fpu number and the gpu number have to be linked. So in other words, it has to be traceability from When you when you assigned an fpu number When you're making Gpu's you have to know what fpu is associated with that particular gpu Right, you have this thing for gpu. You might be testing for gpu garments that didn't come from the first fpu So they are therefore not necessarily washed If only the first fpu is washed And you're you're randomly choosing garments for gpu Some of your gpu garments will be from an fpu That wasn't necessarily washed That's like that's my question. Yeah, okay. Well, I don't know the answer I guess we have to maybe direct it to to marry because that is true But but the way the regulation is interpreted is that not every one has to be tested In other words, not every fpu has to be washed 50 times So if you're selecting something that wasn't from the one that was washed then in the garment stage, it's not representative of the The one that was actually washed That makes that that's what I thought Are you seeing at any of the labs a lot of chemically treated fabric for traditional sleepwear speaking of the washing Are you seeing much of that come in that requires the wash test for every fpu? No, thank you I think I've seen none really And I'm not sure, you know, it might be out there sometimes we like ellen mentioned We don't get a lot of information either. So sometimes we just get a submission and they say test it We have we don't have a lot of information about about what it is But generally we don't see things that have a chemical flame retardant on them Can I add to that? We do ask if there is a flame retardant finish applied to it, but we Very rarely is it ever mentioned Other aspect of it is also in terms of I think just the There are if you look at it from the chemical restrictions perspective those have also gone up from The states as well as at the federal level as well. So that's also contributing to that as well moving away from Some of the use of the flame retardants as well I mean, I think just in general today people don't want chemicals anyway So in addition to the fact that there's regulations for a lot of these flame retardants In general consumers, you know, don't want chemicals manufacturers don't want to have extra cost Of adding chemicals So they I think in most cases they would just select a fabric that can pass the test rather than add a chemical flame retardant Question in the back You know the majority of the industry today Doesn't use fr yarn So if it's not fr yarn There are chemicals being put on the product. It doesn't mean that they're harmful and Very few fabrics with the exception of the high loft fabrics Those are the only fabrics that are really using a far yarn because the chemicals can Penetrate it because when you start using a far yarn for basic fabrics The cost is too expensive And the retailers won't pay for it Right and I think that's one of the reasons that we don't see a lot of it is because that it is an extra cost That's involved No, I'm saying that Basic fr fabrics are not being used with fr yarn There is a topical treatment that's being put on them But they're not harmful chemicals. Yeah, no not all chemicals that are used to harmful right and it's not flame retardant flame resistant big difference Well, the interpretation and the regulation is that if chemicals are used As a flame retardant whether it's flame resistant flame retardant that the additional washing has to be done So there's not a distinction in in my understanding In the regulation of the type of chemical that's used. So if there is a chemical applied to retard the burning rate Then the washing would have to be done because they want to ensure that it's not that it's going to last for the life of the garment Right, but all our garments that you're seeing are mark flame resistant not flame retardant There's a big difference between the two flame retardant, you know, that's that's That's when the first fabrics came out mark flame retardant But I don't believe it's flame retardant anymore. It's flame resistant big difference Be be treated as though they were chemically treated Okay Right, therefore it's not a topical so it doesn't have to be tested for 50 washes for every fpu For only the first fpu Thank you. Any other questions Any from the webinar Any questions? Okay, we're gonna move a question. Yes Okay, so when you have a style that is Like a sack so not the baby sleep sacks But you have a style where it's sort of a sack It's for older children that they get into it and it sort of goes to your waist And but there's no legs in it. So your feet are not exposed. So you really can't walk around in it It's basically something that you could sit in or you know laying so But it wouldn't be it's not really sleepwear in the sense that it only goes up to your waist It's not a full thing. So you probably have something on underneath it So is this would this be considered a sleepwear lounge wear kind of an item or would this be considered general The blanket has leaves Is that what you're? No, it just goes to the waist just to the waist like a sleeping bag. Basically think of like The half sleeping bag. Yeah, it's like a sleeping bag type thing But you know you you can't walk around in it because there's no you know movement for your legs or your feet It sounds like it's a blanket Like a blanket okay type of blanket So then you would expect it to meet the blanket flammability standard or We don't have a You can't walk around in it. So it's not general wearing apparel So that's what would be considered as a blanket. Okay. So, I mean, I know that you don't have a standard But the voluntary ASTM standard most people try to you know, meet that if it's a blanket item Okay, thank you Anything else before we move on to our last session We will have another last question and answer in case you think of anything during this last session And any that come in on the webinar So our last session of the day is what to expect when you Are inspected and what to expect when your shipment is detained at the port. These are topics that are Uh that companies often do not have the opportunity to consider until they are experiencing such an event Today we are going to give you the opportunity to learn the inspection process and the import cargo examination process at the port When your ship shipment is stopped I'll just give a minute for the new panelists to come to the table Thank you again to the lab representatives for our panel on testing Appreciate all the information Okay, what to expect when you're inspected It is my pleasure to introduce to you two cpsc employees that are very experienced in their specialty areas First speaking this afternoon is ms. Jackie martinez senior product safety investigator from new york city Jackie began her career with the cpsc in 1990 She is currently covering assignments in the new york city and new jersey areas Conducting inspections is one of jackie's strengths as a senior product safety investigator As well as educating industry leaders regarding the commission's requirements and federal regulations After jackie, we will hear from mike jiella. He is a compliance investigator with the office of import surveillance at the port of new york new york He began new york new york and new york He began his career with cpsc in 2002 as a product safety investigator And has been co-located with cbp at the port since 2008 His experience and investigations and knowledge of our regulations and statutes Is an asset in his examinations Take it away jackie. Thank you Good afternoon, everyone Cpsc investigators have authority upon presenting appropriate Codentals and a written notice from the commission to the owner operator or agent in charge To enter and inspect at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner Any factory warehouse or establishment in which consumer products are made manufactured Or held in connection with distribution in commerce Any firewalled conformity assessment bodies accredited under section 14 F2d or Any conveyance being used to transport consumer products in connection with distribution in commerce Inspections are not usually scheduled in advance The investigator will ask to meet with an officer of the corporation or the most responsible person on the premises The investigator will present his or her credentials A notice of inspection will be issued and the reason for the visit will be discussed I brought along with me an example of a notice of inspection for those of you have who have never been visited by cpnc Investigator or compliance investigator just to show an example of um what what you should receive So if you want to just pass it around This was mentioned several times today during the presentations It is unlawful for any person to fail or refuse to permit entry or inspection under section A3 of the consumer product safety act A violation of section 19 a3 could result in civil penalties on the cpsa section So on and so forth the failure to permit entry or inspections as authorized by section 11 b 15 USC is also prohibited under section of the federal hazardous substances act and could result in civil penalty under section 5 So on and so forth What prompts the cpsc visit Follow-up to an in-depth investigation Potentially hazardous product was identified but responsible firm is not clear manufacturer importer or retailer of possibly defective product was identified and Additional information is needed to determine whether substantial product hazard exists ongoing voluntary and regulated product standards compliance monitoring These are just some sources. Um where we receive um reports or incidents that prompts an inspection Outline reports public database And so on and so forth the whole bunch of we monitor the newspapers we get we receive incidents through there Uh, we coordinate. Um, we have contact with our fire and police They submit reports to us involving a consumer product Um, this is how do you prepare for an inspection? If you are a manufacturer retailer or reseller of a consumer product know what rules apply to your business Being informed is being empowered Cpsc wants you your business to succeed and your customers to be safe We are a resource to educate you on the steps your business should take to comply with our safety rules Review our business and manufacturing guidance on cpsc.gov Watch our special presentations for industry from cpsc technical and compliance staff Maintain good records document the history of products from initial design to current qc reviews Implement a first-class quality control system to ensure you meet u.s. Consumer product safety requirements Section 16b of the cpsa requires that a firm must provide All records reports books documents papers or labeling would show or relate to the production Inventory testing distribution Sale transportation importation or receipt of any product or component thereof You also must provide the investigator with samples of the product upon request We'll also like to see or ask to see any factory area warehouse area office area in which consumer products Are manufactured or held in connection with distribution into commerce Or any area where documentation is held which is needed to complete the inspection The following information may be reviewed during an inspection trade and brand names of products Complaint history for products in question Details of quality control and testing programs Information regarding sources suppliers of components product coding system description business structure product design history sales records review of applicable regulations This was also discussed earlier today penalties for non-compliance with an inspection section 1983 of the cpsa Once again, it is unlawful for any person to fail or refuse to permit access to or copying of records Or fail or refuse to establish or maintain records or fail or refuse to make reports or provide information Or fail or refuse to permit entry or inspection 18 usc section 1001 criminal statute Falsifies conceals are covers up by any trick scheme or device a material fact Makes any materially false fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation Or make or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain Any materially false fictitious or fraudulent statement or entry Will the investigator do any testing the investigator may test random samples if the testing equipment is portable and available Such testing may include xrf screening for lead Small parts testing and or other product specific examination deemed appropriate We have thailate testers as well to do thailate testing on site Collection of samples Cpsc inspection authority allows for collection of samples component parts materials Instances products containers packaging and labeling Samples will be collected by the investigator personally At random from the firm's inventory within any of the firm's facilities Multiple units are usually collected to ensure enough units are available for adequate testing affidavits investigators will obtain A signed affidavits summarizing the inspection, which will include the following information records obtained samples collected and statements made Like I left my contact information should anyone have any questions or I see a question Sure After you do an investigation Who ultimately makes the determination? Um us investigators We are there to collect all the facts and the information and the samples Then we go ahead and send that off to our compliance division And they work closely with the lab and our legal team and they ultimately make the the determination or decision on the inspection Anybody else have any questions? Has anyone been inspected before here by one? I'm trying to see if I recognize any from the New York City or New Jersey area Yeah Many years ago we got a a surprise visit There was the CPSC and they were specifically looking for records for at the time. There was a lot of flammability recalls for Um, I think they were rayon skirts You remember them you was probably you you probably came to my office New York office at the time so there was several of us there Yeah, and and you know, so of course, you know, we were like and we of course had all our ducks in a row We had no it wasn't a specific issue with our product. I think it was a general inspection of the Companies who are making these kinds of products. I don't think we had an actual issue with it But I think that they were just checking to see that we had testing documents that we were testing Um, so I don't remember any negative outcome from it. So usually yeah, those are the ones we tend to remember Anybody else have any questions? Uh, yeah, disturb the firms have to stop their operations During an inspection. Um, we are there just to educate them and collect the materials and give them the information. We are not there to Offer our opinion suggestion or recommendation Um, we are not there to put them out of business or tell them to stop making any product at that point. They'll hear from um, our headquarters Whether to stop or not or continue understood um Where do firms have to keep their records in the u.s. Um, we prefer that they keep their records at their corporate headquarters wherever they um maintain all their sales and voices and um operational information Because many firms of course have uh distribution centers and or other warehouses and stuff But we prefer out there corporate headquarters Okay And then one other thing I should bring up um, you know, not that we're we're in the electronic stage a lot of times We ask for these records and um The electronic of course and they're not easily accessible So we ask them is there someone at the firm that can You know either access the system because us as investigators, you know, they're totally different systems and what we're used to using and we Wish a hope that someone in their office can access those records for us Thank you very much afternoon everyone try to make this Try to make this nice and short because I know it's the end of the day But also keep it informative and certainly answer any questions you may have about the import process um First thing is kind of a disclaimer. We try to tell everyone that really doesn't know of the world We live in in terms of cbp and the cpsc relationship. Um, all parts all ports are unique across the country um They certain ports believe or not have specific requirements of how they try to do business on a daily basis So if you do have any really specific questions about your port or where you're located You really should reach out to the local cpsc personnel that will be able to answer A detailed question on on how their port does business Little information about um an intensive exam When we say exam and you're going to hear that word a lot in the next couple minutes That means when a shipment is brought upon import to a warehouse and uh, physically unloaded from a 40 foot container that you would normally see on the back of An 18-wheeler and those goods are are stripped out onto a warehouse floor and investigators such as myself is literally Opening up boxes looking at cargo looking at the product and doing field screening. So when you see that word exam That's what we that's what we refer to Cargo may have been targeted for examination by one or more federal agencies Just because it's a cpsc related product cbp may involved may be involved or another agency But that being said once a shipment has been flagged for exam the responsible agency Via customs will get notified that that exam Is coming their way Here are some reasons why your cargo may be examined We do have national cpsc targeting. That's via our c-tac commercial targeting and analysis center That's an office located in dc That many agencies including cpsc have personnel at so it could be could be looked at at a national level And of course c-tac being a national entity will cover all ports Um, secondly, there could be local cpsc targeting where investigators such as myself Who knows the landscape of the environment they're in the the the area that they're in Will put a target up in from our internal system Um, and of course lastly you we do often get referrals from other agencies Let's say a shipment was targeted by cbp for a purpose of their own But upon opening up the freight they see a cpsc regulated product And they would come find an investigator such as myself to come take take a look at it What you should do when your shipment requires a cpsc physical exam If you do have access or your broker has access to ace You should certainly look to upload the documents that would include the entry package invoices packing lists all the certain certificates or test records That that may apply that's always helpful. Um, if you do not have that ability Or you simply were never notified that your your your freight is being flagged for exam You could reach out to your local cpsc person and say hey Do you need this documentation this entry is on hold it should be coming away soon? And more often or not we'll accept that documentation ahead of time because all it does is speed up our process And of course your broker any importer at times will determine which ces that the physical Uh, uh, exam is going to take place at so typically you might need to Address with your broker where you want to send the freight depending on where you're located CES you also see in a few minutes over the next few slides a central examination site That's the actual warehouse. Um, that holds the freight when we do the examination Here's part of our exam process in newark Um, we are physically investigators such as myself are physically what we call co-located with cbp or customs and border protection um, I My office space is literally right next to customs and border protection officers. Um, they're uniformed. They're armed Um, we are available. There's four of us up at newark, and I can only speak for our port There are four of us up there. We are available every single day to do an examination So cpsc exams, um, do not State get stale. They move more than any other agency. I'd like to Think that we are the smallest agency that cbp deals with but we're the most efficient because we are co-located there Um, once cargo is off loaded from one of those huge ocean liners Um, that container does go through an x-ray screen by cbp 100 in newark looking for Wmd weapons, etc that kind of thing more more national security items But then once that examination or excuse me that x-ray is complete Uh, if the shipment is flagged for a physical exam It's going to go to a ces a central examination site Which is a warehouse that we work out of if there's no exam required. It's going to go the other way down the road Um and be released fully to the importer's possession Um, again, we are notified that a shipment is is ready for full exam Once the shipment is physically brought to the warehouse and the warehouse crew unloads the freight onto the warehouse floor Um, there are a variety of reasons why we don't go into containers either either half stripped or quarter stripped So as a requirement cbp, um Requires 100 strip of those goods. That's the significant difference between some other ports where they don't necessarily require 100 strip Once it's on the warehouse floor We will go physically out there and examine the cargo again by literally Opening up boxes and and conducting whatever field screening that's necessary depending on the type of product um If it's a children's product, we're going to have a handheld xrf on site at the warehouse screening for lead as an example Possible outcomes of this exam. Of course a full release is certainly possible. Everything's compliant. Everything looks good Our releases is is conveyed to cbp the same day Um, there's also a possibility of a sampling conditional release That's a less likely outcome than the third one simply because um There's not a lot of situations that require that An example that I heard before, which is entirely accurate is if there's a simply a labeling issue or something of that nature Um, we would we would consider a sample and conditional release The third option of sample and detention is the most likely option if there are problems or potential problems And there are some other possibilities, but those are usually unique in nature and most of the time. It's one of the first three When our cargo passes a cpsc field screen We will notify cbp again that day so it doesn't get stale of a release But you have to remember and this is an important part. We are living in cbp's world Cpsc is our guests in their house so to speak as is any other agency So we can verbally issue the release to cbp, but if cbp or another agency has a hold on it And they haven't done their exam. It's going to sit there So although you might think that it's oh, it's a cpsc regulated product. I just spoke with mike. He said it's good to go For cpsc cbp may have an eye on it for something else. Um, and We have been instructed by cbp very very uh directly to not speak for them and to just speak on cpsc's behalf So although it might be okay for cpsc. You may have to wait it out for another type of release from cbp or another agency All right, this is the slide that you do not want to be on but um, it's certainly relevant When cargo fails cpsc field screening and again depending on what product type it is Uh depends on what type of field screening we're going to be doing Um a sample a physical unit and the number of units depend on the type of violation Will be collected by the investigator from the warehouse and be shipped down to headquarters in the lab and some different offices for further Evaluation The product will typically remain at the ces again Rare cases will do a conditional release for the most part. It's a sample and detention for a variety of logistical issues You'll get a notice of sampling detention Which is a generic cpsc form But it will have the specific information the item numbers the model numbers the location of the warehouse, which you should already know But uh, most specifically and most importantly, uh, the potential violation the regulation that it has an issue with Um, if we do not see the documents in ace or we haven't reached out to you already A local cpsc investigator or technician who are kind of are behind the scenes Um Aides at the port will reach out to you for the documents specifically the entry package The cpsc if that's if that's relevant, etc What happens to those units that were sampled doing the evaluation process? Um They're processed at the port. They're physically gathered from the shipment Um, they're photographed. They're electronically recorded in an internal system and they're physically packaged to go to headquarters in the lab Um Different units go to different offices within cpsc depending on the type of violation And each office evaluates The product depending on what type of product, but ultimately it's going to come to a compliance officer's desk and they're going to Have the final determination and discuss the results with the importer about that sample Final steps, um, if cpsc headquarters, uh, notify will notify the local cpsc investigator of the determination We will then notify cbp of the determination and what action should be taken Most of the time if we get to this point, it's going to be the third option Now I say most of the time not all of the time Because I find that if we're going to take the action of sampling and detaining a shipment And our detention authority lists lasts up to 60 days Which is different than cbps, which is 30 days And a lot of people don't realize that in the import world If we're going to go through the trouble and the time and the money in the effort to collect that sample an investigator Such as myself is pretty confident that there's a violation there and it's probably going to result in seizure We do make mistakes, of course, um, some products have been incorrectly field screened, of course But most of the time it's going to result in that third option, which is seizure um One cpsc request cbp to take that action cbp and the ces and the broker and you guys the importer Will coordinate as needed what what steps happen next And that was it Any questions? Yes, mary Sure Sure mary asked about a type of inspection that we do called an informed compliance inspection The acronym is ici it's different than what jackie spoke about which is more of a full establishment inspection We do also do full establishment inspections But an ici was created and designed to Reach out to a first time violator so to speak Someone who we really have no history with that may have had one bump in the road so to speak at import And an investigator will reach out to that importer and offer a completely voluntary Uh Educational Visit or even phone call quite frankly just to say hey, do you know who the cpsc is? Um, do you know why we see is this stuff? Here i'm the contact locally for you if you have any more questions moving forward Here are some resources of how you can avoid future mistakes that kind of thing and again that is uh Early in the process Primarily after a first violation If you're detaining some goods from a firm, but not their whole shipment. Yes Is it possible for them to get the other part of the shipment that has not been detained? Yes, absolutely Through your broker, um, you can file what we call a manipulation order With cbp your broker will know that form. They should know that form Rather well and you can file that with cbp and the warehouse And they will coordinate That manipulation request with with me as the detaining agency Or another investigator and that will get approved usually the same day And then the warehouse will segregate the detained items from the non-detained on your behalf And the non-detained will can get released under under a release and of course the detention still remains though Yes You mean the examination process? Yeah um Sure, uh, she asked what the time frame is between when um, A kind of a hold is placed on a shipment versus when I can physically look at it Unfortunately, there is a somewhat of a lag on the logistical aspect of it. Um, it is physically getting unloaded from a boat Going through the initial cbp screening like I mentioned before which is which is you know standard And then by the time it actually gets trucked to a warehouse And gets in line to be what we call stripped out onto the warehouse. There is several days So we get this question all the time And I actually I want to say probably more than several days probably 10 to two weeks 10 days to two weeks And it is simply a physical moving Afraid and then once it gets to the warehouse it stands behind in line for p4 shipments that have arrived earlier It's no more complicated than that We get this question all the time you see an arrival date On your entry that might say the first of a month and then the 15th of your month You're like why haven't I've been examined yet? Meanwhile, we haven't even been uh notified of the exam yet It's not in our queue yet. Um because of the logistics of moving it from point a to point b And and I I want to be clear that once that exam is presented to us because of our staffing in Newark and because of our um I guess probably our dedication to also facilitating trade. It's happening. Our exams are happening every day There's by no chance um in Newark that you have to wait three or four days with your freight on the floor of a warehouse for us to examine it It might be a day. It's literally hours. Um the delay is moving from point a to b You're welcome Yes, how many ports do you have on cpsc staff? I believe it's a great question Cpsc import. I'll give you a little history started in 2008. This is when I came on board from I was previously a Uh a domestic investigator. Um, we I think started with six ports and now we're up to 18 Is that correct? 20 excuse me. I should um A lot of the ports they're single investigators So they're a little more stressed in terms of their workload and but they're also slower ports So large reports have four people like Newark and we I think we have six in la and you know So we're staffed up at the large reports, but it's 20 currently of the largest ports around the country um Assuming you have your goods conditionally released. What's the process look like after that? You know assuming that you Your firm goes through the process and has their goods for reconditioning. Yeah, yeah Typically under that scenario, you're going to be in contact With at very least a compliance officer here at headquarters kind of coordinating that who's going to approve that Potential for reconditioning most of the time it's going to be an investigator That's going to go out to verify that reconditioning in person most of the time So at that point you're going to be able to schedule that Around your reconditioning in the in the time that you can do it whatever has to be done whatever is necessary And we're going to arrive in person Again at a pre-determined time to kind of verify that and then once that's verified It usually happens, you know very very quickly within a within a day or two You can get a even a verbal or a phone call from compliance saying that it's it's good to go Anyone else? I've got one more If If you have your shibbans seized to affirm as their shibbans seized due to a violation cpsc violation Why do they get built from ces from the cds? Okay? The ces is a private entity. They're a private business CBP contracts out that warehouse space At every port so you're not bringing your goods to a cbp warehouse. You're bringing it to a private warehouse So the cost of the warehouse pulling those goods out At the time for exam and then if you are detained and potentially seized a daily fee To have your goods stored During the detention process is why you're getting charged. It has nothing to do with cbp or cpsc We actually have no control over it. Um, it's a private warehouse that that the government contracts out That they can utilize to do their examinations So is it just the luck of the draw if your products go to the ces instead of being unloaded at a cbp warehouse There is no cbp warehouse, right the the um The ces is a standard thing that happens at all ports So any examination is going to go to a centralized examination site That cbp cbp contracts out where they have staff at and that's actually where I and investigators such as myself Have our offices at so that's why we're there constantly at the warehouse and available um If you're talking about targeting that's a whole other avenue of why a shipment would be targeted But there are no cbp offices, uh warehouses. It would only be a ces Thank you Thank you mike and jackie So that was our last scheduled session. We are going to have a few more questions and answers So i'm going to call the cpsc technical staff back to the panel So mary carry page linda Okay any more questions from the audience or on the web Before we conclude our seminar um Veronica fey am me um, you had said something about the beach robe and the the cervical length Uh, what it has to be to classify as a beach robe. Can you give us that? Or what can we get it? It's through the national burrow bureau. I have it. You can email me. I do have the chart I don't know where you can find it. It's on our website. It's through a different company Scott cone from erin fox I have I just want to revisit the question that I believe h&m had about Labeling underwear that that is clearly underwear as not being intended for sleepwear and I think the response from from Carrie if i'm not mistaken was that That really wouldn't be approved by the cpsc. We advise against it. Yes. You advise against it. Okay So my question is are there I mean are you familiar with any consumer perception panels or anything? That have been uh conducted to come to that conclusion or is that just sort of an internal You know thought process I've had consumers complain to me and make trade complaints about It's usually moms like the mom Facebook groups a lot of them will message me Complaining about it because they see that those garments are sleepwear. They don't understand why a company would have to put a warning tag Stating to them that it's not sleepwear. It just confuses a consumer. I agree I mean to me it seems like that it would be actually helpful to the consumer It would be in line with the marketing It would be consistent with the marketing of the product as not sleepwear rather than sort of a reverse You know if we said that we advise for those tags to be on it it would be on every single lounge wear garment Every robe would have that tag Right And that would be a problem But but it's not uh, I mean if a company does decide to pursue that and and label it's not it's not held against them necessarily Right, I mean Okay, I just wanted to clarify that any other questions I got a couple questions from email so um Angie lucas was asking uh, is it correct that a flame retardant is a chemical that makes a garment fire resistant? I think she's looking for clarification as to what exactly a flame retardant is Right flame retardant is chemical that is added to change the flammability characteristic of a fabric So are fr is permitted for use in children's sleepwear? There's nothing that restricts the use of them in children's sleepwear The manufacturer has a responsibility to make sure that there's no toxicity associated with the use of a topical treatment Or any other type of treatment that's used in in a garment a children's garment The standards of performance standard and it doesn't specify metrics are the way to meet the flammability requirements, so It's not prohibited. It's not recommended There's no the the regulations silent on the use Other than saying that if you use it, you have to make sure that it's durable for the 50 launderings Thank you What are the requirements for family pajamas? Family pajamas, that's an interesting uh, it's an interesting category The adult pajamas have to meet 16 10 16 cfr 16 10, which is the clothing textile standard and the children's sleepwear has to meet the sleepwear standard Understood With that we will conclude the seminar That we have a slide where there are available resources Our website is always an excellent resource for additional information. We have laboratory manuals Of course the federal register notices the cfr List of recalls all other kinds of manufacturing information. We also have guidance documents And here is the contact information for the cpsc staff that participated in today's seminar So we welcome any additional questions that you might think of on your Journey after the seminar. I do want to thank everybody for coming today to the seminar to support Uh today's event, especially all the speakers and the panel events. Um, it was A very informative day with lots of information. So we send you a sincere. Thank you for participating So another question Sorry Angie's clarifying that um, she wants to know the difference between flame retardant and flame resistant in reference to previous discussion Okay, so flame retardant usually refers to a chemical and the flame resistant is the performance term Okay, um There's also a question on here asking whether or not the presentations will be uploaded on the website Yes, I will get to that. We will have those. Yes. So the short answer is yes So in addition to the all the other additional information that is available on our website We will be posting the presentation. So they will be made available and we will also be issuing some type of follow-up document Depending on some of the feedback we might get and as we review all of the Information that was presented today and all the questions We will be compiling some type of information some type of proceeding for today's event So I'm expecting either a question and answer or a pamphlet or some type of summary report So you can look forward to that in the near future Our goal today was to provide an interactive session to assist the industry with compliance We hope that we achieved our goal. We hope that you learned something that made the trip here worthwhile Again, we thank you for coming and participating. There's a few more weeks left in 2016 We're already in december. So I want everybody to enjoy the last month of 2016 Have safe travels Again, our contact information is on the screen We would like to hear any feedback that you would like to send us about today's seminar about what you would like to see in the future And any questions you might have So I encourage anybody to write in Or contact us with that information Thank you again, and have a great rest of the day