Survive & Thrive
Can we survive and thrive under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act?
June 2009DABBLE A bit in the philosophical realm, the term “golden mean” is often applied in the discussion of ethics for the greater good of society. It is said to be the ideal middle ground between two extreme points of view and many of the world’s greatest thinkers—from Aristotle to Confucius—have touched upon it in their teachings.
Although the golden mean seems to be a fairly straightforward theory, in practice, it is often much more difficult to strike such a delicate balance. In our industry, no event proves this point more readily that the passing of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). According to consumers, it is a much-needed, long-awaited reform. However, to some of the suppliers and manufacturers who must adhere to these new rules, middle ground has not yet been found.
The Great Divide
“I think what’s happening is you’re seeing the pendulum swing right now,” said Steven Soep, quality control supervisor at Gordon Industries, New Hyde Park, N.Y. “And, as with all new initiatives, the pendulum tends to swing to the high side and then it comes back down and finds some sort of equilibrium,” he added.
This is an optimistic hope for the set of laws that many in the industry have found to be unreasonable, at best. One of the main concerns is competing standards still exist, particularly California’s Proposition 65 which has, to this point, been the most stringent state regulation of lead and other contaminants in consumer products. “If [California] wants to see 70 ppm of lead and the national standard is 90, then we have to set our standard to Prop 65,” Soep explained. Products that exist in the gray area between 70 and 90 ppm seem to be out of luck.
Other concerns include the fact that the new laws also detail how suppliers must deal with inventory that had been in-stock prior to the passing of CPSIA, the expense of third-party testing and how to plan for a future that includes constantly changing requirements.
“The confusion and ambiguity in certain sections of the CPSIA must be resolved so that [the] industry and the public know what is expected,” noted David Nicholson, president of New Kensington, Pennsylvania-based Leed’s.
Band Together
Early this year, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) passed a stay of enforcement for certain requirements of the CPSIA, and another bill just recently went to Congress that will attempt to refine and amend CPSIA (see sidebar). However, even with these measures in place, suppliers and distributors must prepare themselves for some turbulence ahead. “It is going to be a process for any company, but for some it will be particularly difficult,” said Jonathan Isaacson, president of Gemline, Lawrence, Mass. He added: “Beyond the problem of defining what exactly ‘compliance’ means in a very vaguely defined law, companies [need] to have a strong process in place to be able to respond to the requirements.”
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