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Business Leaders Promote Safety Initiatives at CPSC's National Product Safety Circle Conference

Release Date: June 26, 2001

More than half a dozen companies are unveiling new product safety innovations at today's U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission ""Product Safety Circle Conference and Expo."" The conference, which highlights CPSC's Product Safety Circle initiative encouraging companies to adopt proven product safety practices, has attracted over 250 individuals and 100 companies. More than 20 companies will present exhibits relating to product safety.

The conference program will provide a range of perspectives on safety -- including business figures such as Alan Feldman, President of McDonald's, and Mark Schwab, President of Binney and Smith; a panel of renowned Washington experts chaired by Robert Barnett, a senior partner at Williams & Connelly; a panel of media personalities, including newspaper and television reporters who cover CPSC; one of the leading voices for consumers, former U.S. Senator Howard Metzenbaum, Chairman of Consumer Federation of America; and CPSC Chairman Ann Brown, who will give the keynote address.

"I commend the 44 companies and eight supporting members that have joined the Product Safety Circle and publicly committed to its principles," said CPSC Chairman Ann Brown. "Safety is good business. It can help improve a company's corporate image and their bottom line by cutting recall costs."

Here are the innovations to be announced at the conference: SawStop is a new system for woodworking that uses sensor technology to help prevent injuries. Saws with the SawStop system are designed to stop the blade if contact with a human hand or finger is detected. Each year there are about 30,000 hand and finger injuries from table and bench saws.

Returns Online will announce a new service called Comprehensive Recall Management intended to help simplify the recall process for both manufacturers and consumers. Web-based services have the potential to greatly increase the efficiency of recalls.

Marketing Innovation Enterprises has developed an alternative to latex balloons. These new balloons are designed to help prevent choking deaths to children. Balloons are involved in more choking deaths to children than any other toy.

XTel Communications is providing toll-free telephone capability to companies who need to conduct a recall. It plans to make 800 toll-free numbers available to companies immediately so recalls can be announced quickly and calls handled efficiently.

Savior One has developed a new swimming pool alarm to sense when a child approaches the pool and set off a warning alarm. The alarm is designed to sound and automatically dial for help to neighbors and to the fire department if a child actually falls into the pool.

Bell Sports is offering two bicycle helmet safety videos free to police departments, schools, and other organizations in the U.S. and Canada. More than 2,000 videos have been distributed already.

BrandStamp Inc. will provide online registration of consumer products intended to increase the effectiveness of product recall notifications. Consumers who register their purchases with BrandStamp will receive recall notifications immediately via email.

KaBoom will provide a free online guide (the "Getting Started Kit") intended to create safe and fun community playgrounds. Martin Door Manufacturing produces a garage door system to prevent finger entrapment at the section joints and other parts of the garage door.

Demonstrations and announcements will be made at 11:00 a.m. CT at Hamburger University, McDonald's Conference Center, 2815 Jorie Blvd, Oak Brook, Ill. Media representatives are encouraged to attend this session, as well as the entire Conference and Expo.

A list of attendees and exhibitors is posted on the CPSC web site.

Release Number
01-177

About the U.S. CPSC
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risk of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product-related incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products has contributed to a decline in the rate of injuries associated with consumer products over the past 50 years. 

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