SPARTANBURG, S.C. — April 19, 2016 — The manufacturing company that originated the mattress industry’s first filler cloth 40 years ago has announced and implemented a major breakthrough in fire retardant technology.
Tietex International has broken new ground by developing a new generation of patent pending FR filler cloth that is free of organohalogen and organophosphorous components, according to Wade Wallace, company president & COO. He said, “Eliminating these chemicals is doubtless a big deal in our business, but we’re excited to say these new products also deliver unprecedented FR performance. We’re gratified that independent burn tests now prove a dramatic increase in char strength and a substantial increase in time-to-failure.”
Tietex officially debuted its proprietary FR products at ISPA’s 2016 EXPO. Wallace said that prior to ISPA, “we already had alerted a few key customers; but EXPO gave us the venue to reach a much broader audience that increasingly has expressed concern over the use of chemicals in sleep products.”
In recent months, he explained, various studies have attempted to link certain flame-retardant chemicals to potentially serious health risks. “Currently, environmental chemists cannot prove the extent of any risk, but we felt eliminating the FR chemicals altogether would negate the issue once and for all, as it pertains to filler cloth,” Wallace said.
Rhett Lancaster, vice president of sales and marketing, touts the new filler as “an ideal FR solution” because it offers four performance grades that can satisfy virtually any mattress style and any price point. “We have designed these products to be lightweight, yet durable,” he said, adding that “overall performance characteristics are preferred by major brands that serve both domestic and hospitality markets.”
In addition, Lancaster said, the new FR filler continues to meet or exceed both U.S. and British fire testing regulations (FR Compliant/16CFR, Part 1633 and FR Compliant/BS 5852 Crib-5).
Posted April 22, 2016
Source: Tietex International
