ASTM test measures ignition potential of textiles by cigarettes
An American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) task group has drafted a test method for measuring the tendency of cigarettes to ignite textiles. The task force consists of representatives from the furniture, tobacco, textile, and fire safety industries. The National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM), a task force member, has been actively involved in the project.
The draft test method has been distributed for comment within the ASTM E.5.15 Subcommittee on Contents and Furnishings. It will then be reviewed and voted on by the ASTM E.5 Committee on Fire Standards. Trials of the test method will follow. Ultimately, a regulatory body will be able to use the test as the basis for a fire-safe cigarette standard.
In the meantime, Congressman Joe Moakley of Massachusetts has introduced a bill calling for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to develop national mandatory cigarette fire-safety standards.
(Source: “Washington Report, STATE FIRE MARSHAL Magazine(TM), March/April 1999, 6.)
