Product Safety Standards with a Focus on Children

We have a fundamental commitment to ensure the integrity and safety of our products, with a special focus on children’s apparel. We have developed several systems of checks and balances that allow us to meet or exceed all laws and regulations governing apparel, both in the United States and around the world.

For children’s products, we use a two-stage process to insure we meet these high standards:

  • Design hazard analysis (DHA) – DHA helps to identify potential hazards based on both the products intended and foreseeable use. Every garment we make that is intended for use by a child is examined and assessed for any potential safety hazard.
  • Test-to-Failure – Garments identified as having critical parts during the DHA process (e.g. buttons, snaps, zippers, or bows) that may present a safety concern are subjected to test-to-failure analysis. This entails testing sample garments to accurately determine, for example, how much force it will take to tear off a button that could pose a choking hazard. If it does not pass the testing requirements, we will not manufacture it.

The cornerstone of our product safety management system is the Hanesbrands Childrenswear Product Safety Manual. The Manual was first published in October 2003. It provides our designers clear guidance on proper safety procedures and the tests that our products must pass before being shipped. This 80-page Manual extensively details the Hanesbrands policies and procedures related to childrenswear product safety. It is based on state and federal laws and customer requirements, as well as experience gained in the many years we have manufactured children’s garments.

We also manage a world-class chemical management program as part of our environmental responsibility efforts for all products (not just children’s) to ensure that unlawful or dangerous chemicals are not used in our production processes. This program cross-references all chemicals used in our facilities against a global chemical regulatory database.

Finally, we have worked extensively through 2008 and 2009 to ensure that Hanesbrands is fully compliant with the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). We have enhanced many processes – especially related to lead testing – to ensure that all children’s products we sell are in conformance with the CPSIA.