Standards Advance the Industry.

BIFMA takes a lead role in enhancing the performance and safety of furniture through its involvement in standards development.

Since 1983, BIFMA has been accredited by the American National Standards Institute as a developer of voluntary standards.

In the years since, the association has actively developed ANSI/BIFMA standards. These voluntary standards establish performance and testing criteria for office and institutional furniture manufacturers to meet or exceed. Among some of the areas already covered are lateral and vertical files, office chairs, lounge seating, desks, systems furniture and upholstered furniture flammability.

BIFMA has established separate subcommittees to develop standards for SOHO (small office/home office) furniture and Furniture Emissions. The status of these two committees' work, as well as that of a third committee convened to develop an Ergonomics Guideline, follows.

SOHO Standard Development

For more than two years, the BIFMA Subcommittee on SOHO (small office/home office) Furniture has been developing a safety and performance standard to address furniture in this rapidly expanding market segment.

Testing for performance needs to take into account the kind of uses and loading the residential user would be likely to apply to this type of furniture. There are also safety features such as stability requirements that apply to all types of furniture and are not dependent upon the market or end-use environment.

In early September 2000, the BIFMA Engineering Committee voted to "launch" this standard into the public comment phase of development. In this phase, also known as the "ANSI Canvass," BIFMA will seek feedback from various user groups, manufacturers, testing laboratories and other interested parties. If those individuals find the standard favorable and give it an affirmative ballot (a "yes" vote), then BIFMA will have achieved the condition of public review necessary to be granted approval by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Review by the public is an essential part of all BIFMA standards development. In the canvass activities of other BIFMA standards, the association has received many valuable suggestions and comments that have been incorporated into the rest of the standard being developed. Anyone interested in participating in the public comment phase of the SOHO Standard should contact Dick Driscoll at BIFMA by phone [phone] or email: [e-mail].

Furniture Emissions Standard

Increased awareness of the odors and aromas of the surrounding environment have resulted in purchasers of office furniture inquiring about the emissions of odors and/or chemicals from their products. People are familiar with the new smell" of a newly acquired piece of furniture. Concerns about the nature and duration of the noticeable aromas would be a natural extension for the concerns about the quality of the surrounding air in an office.

The BIFMA Furniture Emissions Subcommittee (FES) has been working in the area of furniture emissions for several years. Emissions of volatile organic compounds from furniture are a natural result of the manufacturing process. Paint dries and hardens, "cure" and are released into the air around them.

The BIFMA FES Subcommittee has determined that there is an effective way to test office products and measure the emissions of VOCs. Also, the pattern of emissions indicates that within about 30 days, or roughly the time it takes for the furniture to get from the manufacturer for the end user, emissions have decreased greatly to the condition of "steady state."

This standard will be reviewed by the public through the ANSI Canvass process. Anyone interested in participating in the public comment phase should contact Dick Driscoll at BIFMA International by phone [phone] or email: [e-mail].

Ergonomics Guideline

By the end of 2000, the BIFMA Ergonomics Guideline Task Group expects to complete the draft of an Ergonomics Guideline for Office Furniture.

1) The purpose of the Guideline is twofold: Provide guidance in applying ISO 9241-5 measurable ergonomics principles and design requirements to the dimensions and adjustment ranges of components used in the design of workstations in North America, using the anthroprometric data provided in Natick/TR-89/044. Proper application of these principles will enhance the performance and comfort of the users when they adopt various work postures such as reclines, upright or declined sitting, standing or a combination of them.

2) Provide recommended dimensions/ranges for the design of workstation components such as chairs and work surfaces to ensure that they reflect the ergonomics principles and design requirements of ISO 924 1-5.

Task group members have stressed that is will only be a "guideline," as opposed to an official standard. The association is committed to assisting the canvass of Human Factors and Ergonomic Society's revised standard, HFES 100, and is prepared to comment on that document as soon as it is released.

Based on industry experience, it could take some time after the HFES document is released for canvass before it completes ANSI's procedures. BIFMA hopes that its Guideline will serve as a helpful interim tool. Contact the association for further information at [e-mail].