Important changes to standards
FIRA is pleased to announce that the following standards have been approved for publication, and will be published by BSI later this year:
EN 1728: 2012 Furniture. Seating. Test Methods for the determination of strength and durability. This standard is test methods only, and unlike the previous version it replaces, which was solely for domestic furniture, it covers all uses (except office). The impact on the publication of this standard is minimal, but it will force the revision of a number of other European requirements standards, which will have a significant effect.
EN 16122: 2012 Domestic and non-domestic storage furniture. Test methods for the determination of strength, durability and stability. Again this is a test methods only standard and currently has little impact. However it is forming the basis of a new standard for non-domestic and education standard (EN 16121) which is currently being reviewed and if published will force the withdrawal of BS 5873-4 (educational storage) 7 and BS 4875-8 (stability of non-domestic storage) and a partial revision of BS 4875-7 (requirements for storage furniture), which will have a big impact on manufacturers. The standard is also being used as a reference document in the revision of EN 14749 (safety requirements for domestic and kitchen storage) which is currently being revised.
