European Fire Safety Database For Upholstered Furniture Now Available From AKTRIN

Furniture World Magazine

The concern for Fire Safety is of great importance to the Upholstered Furniture Manufacturing Industry in Europe. Every year in the European Union several hundred people are killed in fires associated with upholstered furniture. European countries have faced this problem with general and local legislative regulations. Upholstered furniture manufacturers have to pass several, complex tests on their products before entering the market in accordance with international standards or local requirements. Information about standards, laws and regulations is crucial in order to produce furniture in a fire resistant way. The Union Europeenne de l'Ameiblement; U.E.A. (European Furniture Union) was instrumental in publishing a comprehensive European Fire Safety Database, made available to subscribers on the internet or on a CD-ROM. It was made in response to a strong demand from all those involved in the upholstered furniture Industry: manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, fire safety specialists, textile, foam, leather transformers, interiors decorators, architects, governments, specifiers, insurance companies, research institutes and universities. The Fire Safety Database is the result of a partnership between the UEA, e-COM (a Belgian interactive company), MEDIFA (a service association of French furniture manufacturers) and LAPI (a leading Italian laboratory experienced in fire safety tests). It is supported by the European Commission Program, INFO 2000, which furthers the dissemination of information with the objective of advocating small businesses. The "U.E.A. Fire Safety Database" has been selected from among 500 proposals from different European countries to promote multimedia information for the industry. Specifically, the Fire Safety Database contains the following information: Fire safety legislation and requirements in the major EU member states; Detailed local Fire Safety regulations of France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Lists of fire safety laboratories and tests they can execute; Copies of the certificates from fire safety laboratories; List of tests methods, including videos on how to execute common tests. Over one-thousand test results carried out on different materials and on upholstered furniture, in accordance with international standards; All Information is available in five different languages: English, French, Italian, German and Spanish. The database is available as a yearly subscription at a cost of 500 Euro (US$ 600.00 approx.). Subscribers will receive either online access via the internet with a password or a CD-ROM. The Internet web-site is updated regularly with new tests results, new testing methods, and fire safety legislation. The CD-ROM is updated twice a year. The Union Europeenne de l'Ameiblement, U.E.A. (European Furniture Union) is based in Brussels, Belgium. It is an umbrella association who officially speaks on behalf of the European furniture industry to European Authorities, International Organizations and other industry federations. By partnering with this industry leader, AKTRIN moved yet another step closer to becoming the most complete information provider for the furniture industry worldwide. It is now possible to obtain from AKTRIN – conveniently under one roof – most North American and European furniture standards. Also, AKTRIN is listing on its web-site international tender opportunities for furniture manufacturers. For further information contact Carlene Damba at our High Point office (336) 8418535, or Stefan Wille, at our Canadian office (905) 845 3474. You can also visit our web-site at: http://aktrin.com/401.htm. e-mail addressis: aktrin@aktrin.com