New Toy Safety Standard ASTM F963-11 to be compulsorily executed

According to CPSC’s announcement, CPSC has accepted the revised ASTM F963-11 standard titled Standard Consumer Safety Specifications for Toy Safety. Pursuant to section 106 of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, ASTM F963-11 will become a mandatory consumer product safety standard effective June 12, 2012.

However, because ASTM F963-11 does not reincorporate section 4.27 (toy chests) of ASTM F963-07, that provision from ASTM F963-07 regarding toy chests remains in effect.

Comparing to the old version, amendments of the ASTM F963-11 are summarized as the following:

1. Heavy metal requirements

Add requirements on total lead and 8 heavy metals for accessible substrate;

Add requirements on 8 heavy metals for modeling clays toys and modeling clays part;

Add cadmium requirement for metallic toys or metallic toy components identified as small parts. Otherwise, these small parts still need to meet requirements on total lead and 8 heavy metals.

2. Mechanical and physical requirements

Add new safety requirements and technical guidance to protect children from potential hazard of bath toy projections, acoustics, etc., while playing.

For example, “Packaging film” is changed into “plastic film”; adds new sub-section to specify requirements against bath toys projections; expound test method on Yo-Yo elastic tether toy while it is swung, etc.

Beginning on June 12, 2012, all toys imported into USA market shall meet relevant requirements under F963-11. To be well prepared to tackle this situation and avoid unnecessary lost, CTT, a professional third party testing body, suggests relevant stakeholders shall keep close eyes on the details of changing, and figure out sufficient method for smooth trading.