Several European standards for furniture including seating articles, tables and bunk beds or high beds have been amended and published and shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an identical text or by endorsement, and any conflicting national standards shall be withdrawn. The major changes to the standards are shown below.
EN 1728:2012, FURNITURE – SEATING – TEST METHODS FOR THE DETERMINATION OF STRENGTH AND DURABILITY
This version of EN 1728 shall be endorsed as national standards at the latest by January 2013. In the UK, the 2001 version of BS EN 1728 has already been withdrawn and superseded by BS EN 1728:2012. The significant changes to the contents of the standard are:
- All test methods for seating used in European Standards for furniture have been collated into one document. The document now contains methods that were previously listed in EN 581-2 - Outdoor furniture, EN 1335-3 - Office work chair and EN 15373 - Non-domestic seating.
- A static load test for headrests has been included.
- Wherever possible test methods have been simplified and clarified for ease of use.
EN 1730:2012, FURNITURE – TABLES – TEST METHODS FOR THE DETERMINATION OF STABILITY, STRENGTH AND DURABILITY
The 2012 version of EN 1730 shall be endorsed as national standards at the latest by April 2013 and in the UK, the BS EN 1730:2000 has already been withdrawn and superseded by BS EN 1730:2012. The main changes to the contents of the standard are:
All test methods for tables used in European Standards for furniture have been collated into one document. The document now contains methods that were previously listed in EN 581-3 - Outdoor furniture, EN 527-3 - Office Work Tables and Desks and EN 15372 – Nondomestic tables.
- A durability test for tables with castors has been added.
- A durability test for height adjustment mechanisms has been added.
- Wherever possible test methods have been simplified and clarified for ease of use.
EN 747-1:2012, Furniture – Bunk beds and high beds, Part 1: Safety, strength and durability
EN 747-2:2012, Furniture – Bunk beds and high beds, Part 2: Test methods
EN 747-1:2012 and EN 747-2:2012 shall be endorsed as national standards at the latest by October 2012. In the UK, BS EN 13453-1:2004, BS EN 13453-2:2004, BS EN 747-1:2007 and BS EN 747-2:2007 have already been withdrawn and superseded by BS EN 747-1:2012 and BS EN 747-2:2012. The main changes to the contents of the standard are:
- The new standards are not limited to domestic use, but will also cover nondomestic use.
- A change to the requirements for protruding parts: this will allow for more design features as wide or tall protrusions will not be classified as a safety issue.
- Measuring of holes, gaps and openings: includes measuring of 7 mm holes.
- An inclusion of a durability test for ladders;
- An increase in some static loads on various items (bed base, ladder);
- Stability test changed by horizontal force instead of overturning moment.
Particular care must be taken when using this standard for UK testing programmes to the BS EN Standard, as the BSI technical committee responsible for the UK input into EN 747-1:2012 is of the opinion that entrapment or strangulation hazards might be caused by the provisions contained in the following clauses:
- Clause 4.1.1 (b) that allows for a 600 mm vertical protrusion on the safety barrier (The UK felt that this was a retrograde step in consumer safety);
- Clause 4.1.4 paragraph (7) that allows the outermost components of a bed to deviate from vertical by 230 mm.
- Attention is drawn to the provisions of the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 which place a general duty on all suppliers of consumer goods to supply products that are safe in normal or reasonably foreseeable use.
