Unsafe soccer fields – a disappointing update
So. Soccer popularity is at an all time high across Australia. Our women’s soccer team, the Matildas, have gone gangbusters in the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The semi final 'crushed all-time television ratings records'. This massive profile…
Call for ban on child car seat head strap
4 minute read
The forces involved when cars crash are beyond most peoples’ imagination. I remember once seeing a video that showed the impact of a 60kph car crash is comparable to a person falling from a four-storey building.
We…
Button batteries – the most important message
It's international Button Battery Awareness Day on 12 June. The day was set up in the USA by Reese's Purpose, after 17 month-old Reese Hamsmith died from a button battery lodged in her oesophagus. The day is also marked this year by similarly…
Product safety, ESG and associations
3 minute read
Do you think of product safety as part of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)? ISO 26000 Standard Guidance on Social responsibility includes consumer product safety as a core part of ESG.
ESG performance is increasingly…
Soccer goal safety across Australia
3 minute read
I recently took a walk on a warm autumn afternoon, ending up at a local park. Dogs, kids and teenagers were out enjoying the sunshine. But I was dismayed to find, dotted across the park, more than a dozen soccer goals not…
Don’t get rattled with your baby products – Selling safe rattles
Babies are very vulnerable, so any product intended for them must be designed for safety.
We all know that, like all toys for kids from birth to 3 years, rattles must not be able to break or have any loose parts that can cause choking.…
Wire in your Barbecued Sausage?
It’s summer in Australia and barbecues everywhere are being fired up. There’s always a joke about what’s inside a meat sausage – sometimes euphemistically called a ‘mystery bag’. But even though we’re prepared to take our…
Placing product orders for June 2022 – Button battery regulations!
If your business sells consumer goods, you will be placing orders now for June next year. If these products or their accessories include button batteries, they will need to comply with the Australian mandatory safety standards which take…
A tribute to Wen Huang – Product safety professional
2 minute read
Last month the Australian product safety community lost a valuable member. Wen Huang passed away after a long illness and will be very much missed by his many colleagues in the consumer product sector.
I knew Wen…
Women in consumer product safety
3-minute read
In the past week, while reading about International Women’s Day, I paused to consider the number of women involved in consumer product safety. I decided to write this article to reflect on the key role that women have…