Fire retardancy

Beds or mattresses need to pass ignition resistance tests before furniture makers and suppliers can sell them in the UK. As part of the process of bringing a product to market, we perform the R&D to ensure our products are suitable for the environment they’ll be used in, whether domestic or contract.
As a responsible bed manufacturer, we ensure our products are fully compliant with UK fire retardancy requirements. In line with legal requirements, these producst are tested either annually or once a particular number of products have been sold, ensuring safety is ensured on a reguar basis. Read on for additional info.

Requirements

In the UK there are two pieces of legislation specifying flammability requirements that are demanded by UK law.

Both of these requirements must be satisfied:

Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 (as amended in 1989, 1993 and 2010)
General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (implemented in the UK following the introduction of an EU Directive).

Overview

There are a number of flammability tests for mattresses and bed bases which are specified in BS 7177:2008+A1:2011 – ‘Specification for resistance to ignition of mattresses, mattress pads, divans and bed bases’. These test a product’s ignition resistance to smokers’ materials including cigarettes and matches. Products that require testing include mattresses, divans and bed bases. All of these tests are carried out on a section of mattress/bed base that replicates the make-up of the unit and the surface properties such as tufting, quilt lines and tape edges. Testing involves placing the sources of ignition on all of these surface features.

For Domestic Use

The Cigarette & Match Tests are fire retardancy tests for residential upholstery. The test(s) involve the fabric being exposed to different ‘ignition sources’ essentially simulating possible real life causes of domestic fires. The ‘ignition sources’ are ways that the fabric could plausibly be burnt.

For Contract Use

Source 5, or Crib 5 as it is frequently know as, is usually a contract standard for upholstery. In contract upholstery you might also come across BS 7177 which determines specific risk or hazard areas that your fabric is being installed into. In simple terms, BS 7176 covers all 3 of the above tests. Furthermore, whilst Crib 5 is the highest standard of the 3 tests it does not follow that a fabric which passes Crib 5 will also pass the cigarette and match test – even though it is likely to.

Third-Party Tested

As a responsible manufacturer, our products are tested before they’re even brought to market – and these tests are carried out at independent testing laboratories to ensure impartiality and to guarantee your safety.

Transparency

We’re proud to be a responsible, compliant manufacturer and have ensured our products are tested to the correct standards. Fire certificates are available upon request. Contact us for these to be provided to you.