FabricLink's Technical Center

The Panelists:

• Textile Supplier - AEGIS Environments, W. Curtis White, CEO and Director of R&D
• Major Apparel Brand - Under Armour, Bill Mickle, Director of Material Innovation
• Testing Lab - SGS U.S. Testing Co., Karen Kyllo, Ph.D., Deputy VP Global Softlines
• Retailer - Patagonia, Randy Harward, Director of Quality Assurance
• Agency - American Apparel & Footwear Assoc., Nate Herman,Sr. Director of Int. Trade
• Moderator - TEXbase, Joe Walkuski, President

The Consumer Product Improvement Act of 2008 became effective February 10, 2009, limiting the use of lead and certain types of phthalates on products for children up to the age of 12. FabricLink and TEXbase presented this Panel to address the concerns among various levels of the supply chain on how compliance to the new requirements would impact their businesses. Since the Industry Panel event on January 23, 2009, several updates to legislation have been made. substances.

Update as of 2/6/09: According to David Evan, partner, Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt LLP, "Barring any new developments (e.g., Congressional action), the phthalate and lead substrate standards will both take effect on February 10, 2009 and will apply to goods in inventory and in retail stores as of that date. As a resultof the recent CPSC stay of certain testing and certification requirements, importers are not required to test or issue compliancecertifications with regard to the phthalate and lead substrate ban until 2/10/10. However, merchandise must still comply with the standards."

For further updates in the legislation, please contact the CPSC, or an attorney involved in export/customs issues or international trade matters.

Jan 09 OR Panel The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) was the focus of FabricLink's Industry Panel event, held at ORWM'09. Sponsored by FabricLink and TEXbase, along with several other textile industry companies, the panelists looked at the legislation as it pertained to the entire supply chain. Specifically, the Panel addressed what the legislation means to the brands, suppliers, and retailers, and explored the supply chain's responsibility in providing transparent production, and to ensure that the various textile product components are in compliance with the new safety requirements.

1-09 mixer Approximately 40 industry executives gathered for the first Industry Panel Textile Mixer Networking Party. This was the Part II to FabricLink's Industry Panel event at ORWM '09, sponsored by FabricLink/TheTechnicalCenter, Nüwa Textiles, TEXbase, Dri-release®, and X-STATIC®. While drinking some beer and having some fun, the crowd took the opportunity to continue their "Restricted Substance Legislation" discussions from the morning's Industry Panel event, create new business relationships, and conferred on product development possibilities!

Disclaimer: This Panel is intended to facilitate open dialogue amongst the panelists, who are sharing their own personal experiences on a broad range of topics regarding the CPSIA. Nothing stated herein shall be relied upon or construed as providing legal advice concerning the interpretation of or application of the CPSIA. If you have specific questions relating to your business and the applicability of the CPSIA, you must seek advice from a professional attorney and you may not rely on anything stated by this Panel as a substitute for obtaining professional legal advice.

Podcast of January 23, 2009 Panel Discussion: (mp3 audio clips)

Intoduction		Part Two
Part One		Q & A

Podcast of March 28, 2011 Panel Discussion: L.A. Textile Show Industry Panel Podcast, "FabricLink Network Presents - Technology Driven Fashions"
Podcast of March 3, 2010 Panel Discussion: ORWM '09 Industry Panel Podcast, "FabricLink's Trend Watch - New Developments for Today's Fashions"
Podcast of October 13, 2009 Panel Discussion: GlobalTex '09 Industry Panel Podcast, "Fashion Under Stress "
Podcast of January 23, 2009 Panel Discussion: ORWM '09 Industry Panel Podcast, "CAUTION: Restricted Substance Legislation, Ripple Effects Throughout the Supply Chain "
Podcast of August 8, 2008 Panel Discussion: ORSM '08 Industry Panel Podcast, "Eco-Logical, Making Sense of Supply Chain Certification"
Podcast of January 24, 2008 Panel Discussion: ORSM '08 Industry Panel Podcast, "EcoThink! What it means to be green for consumers today"
Podcast of August 10, 2007 Panel Discussion: ORSM '07 Industry Panel Podcast, "Keeping Your Product Development $$$ on Track"

The transcripts of previous panels.

For more information about sponsorship, click here.

We welcome your comments.