NFPA Journal - September/October 2013 - (Page 47)

FRESH LOOK By FRED DURSO, JR. The role of furniture flammability in home fire losses has been discussed and studied for decades. At the center of a new round of activity is a key question: Where do we go from here? I f you’re settling into your favorite over-stuffed couch or easy chair to read this story, you should know that what you’re sitting on has been a hot topic for decades. Couches, chairs, and other pieces of furniture, many of them generously stuffed with combustible materials, play a significant role in residential fire spread, property damage, deaths, and injuries. According to NFPA statistics, upholstered furniture, as either the first item ignited or the principal item contributing to the fire spread, played a part in nearly a quarter of all deaths in home structure fires in recent years. Furniture flammability—the likelihood of a piece of furniture igniting when exposed to fire—also contributes to the growing concern that firefighters are battling fires that are bigger and faster than ever before. The polyurethane foam that fills much of today’s upholstered furniture burns rapidly and can lead to faster flashover for fires in homes. Home fire behavior has changed so dramatically in the past few decades that the New York City Fire Department recently began investigating new firefighting tactics addressing furniture threats, according to an article published last year in The New York Times. All of this is taking place in the absence of a national regulation requiring flammability testing for upholstered furniture. Since the 1970s, California has required flammability testing of all upholstered furniture sold in the state, and these requirements are seen as the nation’s de facto standard. But experts say it’s impossible to know how many manufacturers Photograph: Shutterstock nationwide are complying with the California requirements, and that a national regulation would ensure more widespread testing while standardizing testing procedures. California is also poised to drop a key open-flame testing provision from the new edition of its regulation, a move that has prompted other organizations to consider addressing the furniture flammability problem—including the need for a national standard. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which has effectively regulated the flammability of mattresses, recently sought input for the development of a furniture flammability standard. NFPA has also made the issue a priority. In response to the activity in California and at the CPSC, NFPA’s Board of Directors last year asked the association to define and describe the furniture flammability problem. The resulting white paper, “Upholstered Furniture Flammability,” was completed in February SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2013 NFPA JOURNAL 47

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - September/October 2013

NFPA Journal - September/October 2013
Contents
First Word
In a Flash
Perspectives
Firewatch
Heads Up
Research
Structural Ops
In Compliance
Buzzwords
Outreach
Electrical Safety
Wildfire Watch
Cover Story: Furniture Flamability
Special Report
NFPA Reports
NFPA Reports
Fire Analysis + Research
Section Spotlight
What’s Hot
Looking Back

NFPA Journal - September/October 2013