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A new edition of ASTM F1506-20 was published this month with new language around conformity assessment (Section 9) for protective clothing manufacturers and critical component manufacturers/suppliers, as defined by the new edition.

Garments declared to be compliant with the standard are now required to have additional language on the product labels for the declaration and the garment must meet the edition of the standard that is current at the time of manufacture. When a new revision of ASTM F1506 is published, manufacturers will have 12 months from the date of issue to meet the updated version.

Additional requirements were added around quality management systems (QMS) and auditing. Protective clothing manufacturers are required to establish, maintain, and follow a QMS with audits that occur at least annually, and to closely oversee their critical component suppliers to ensure compliance with ASTM F1506 is maintained. The clothing manufacturer must review the annual audits of critical component suppliers or provide documentation of other ways to satisfy the requirement, such as proof of ISO 9001 registration AND ISO 17025 accredited test results, certification to ASTM F1506 by an ISO 17065 body like UL or SEI, or NFPA 2112 component certification or component recognition.

A host of minimum requirements for the documented quality management systems are included in the new edition of ASTM F1506-20, and the new requirements state critical component manufacturers must supply component test reports as requested by the supplier.