[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 132 (Tuesday, July 12, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Page 40101]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13655]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA 2005-21081; Notice 2]


Graco Children's Products Inc., Grant of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

    Graco Children's Products Inc. (Graco) has determined that certain 
child restraints that it produced in 2004 do not comply with S4.3(a) of 
49 CFR 571.302, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 302, 
``Flammability of interior materials.'' Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) 
and 30120(h), Graco has petitioned for a determination that this 
noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety and has filed 
an appropriate report pursuant to 49 CFR Part 573, ``Defect and 
Noncompliance Reports.'' Notice of receipt of a petition was published, 
with a 30-day comment period, on May 4, 2005, in the Federal Register 
(70 FR 23293). NHTSA received no comments.
    Affected are a total of approximately 450 Graco Comfort Sport 
convertible child restraints manufactured on December 27, 2004. S4.3(a) 
of FMVSS No. 302 requires that material ``shall not burn * * * at a 
rate of more than 102 mm per minute.'' Two nylon warning labels which 
are a component of these child restraints do not comply with this 
requirement.
    Graco explains that the seat pad used on the Comfort Sport model 
contains two warning labels sewn onto the backside of the seat pad. 
Graco states:

    The pad is an Easy Wash pad with flaps that allow for easy 
removal of the seat pad without disconnecting the harness. The 
labels are sewn to the backside of the two flaps. The label is 
manufactured of nylon material and when tested as a single material 
does not meet the requirements of * * * S4.3(a) * * *.

    Graco believes that the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor 
vehicle safety and that no corrective action is warranted. Graco states 
that the risk of injury from the noncompliance is inconsequential for 
several reasons:

    Location of labels on backside of pad. The labels are located on 
the backside of the pad and directly behind a child seated in the 
child restraint. This location is not directly accessible to any 
flame source. * * * The contribution of the labels to any flame 
spread is negligible.
    Small size of labels. The labels are relatively small compared 
to the overall size of the seat pad. * * * The size of each label is 
1\3/16\'' x 5\1/2\'' x 0.003'' thick.
    Seat pad and child restraint materials comply with FMVSS No. 
302. The labels are the only material * * * that do not comply with 
FMVSS No. 302. * * * This overwhelming amount of material that 
complies * * * affords the occupant(s) the necessary protection from 
any flammability hazard * * *.
    Composite flammability testing complies. Although the label is 
not adhered to the pad at every point as specified by FMVSS No. 302 
for composite testing, Graco has tested the labels in a composite * 
* * [and] it burns well within the accepted rate established by 
FMVSS No. 302.

    Graco states that it is unaware of any complaints of a fire in this 
seat and consequently there has been no injury.
    NHTSA agrees with Graco that the noncompliance is inconsequential 
to safety. As Graco states, the labels are small in size, on an 
absolute basis and relative to the amount of material that complies. 
The location of the labels on the backside of the pad is not directly 
accessible to any flame source. Although the label is not adhered to 
the pad at every point, it complies when tested for composite 
flammability. There have been no complaints of fire or fire-related 
injury in this seat. Graco has corrected the problem.
    In consideration of the foregoing, NHTSA has decided that the 
petitioner has met its burden of persuasion that the noncompliance 
described is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Accordingly, 
Graco's petition is granted and the petitioner is exempted from the 
obligation of providing notification of, and a remedy for, the 
noncompliance.

    (Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; delegations of authority at 
CFR 1.50 and 501.8)


    Issued on: July 5, 2005.
Ronald L. Medford,
Senior Associate Administrator for Vehicle Safety.
[FR Doc. 05-13655 Filed 7-11-05; 8:45 am]
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