The European Committee for Standardization (Comité Européen de Normalisation, CEN) has published a new standard covering experimental toy sets for chemistry and related activities.

Published in December 2020, EN 71-4:2020 ‘Experimental sets for chemistry and related activities’ includes several updates. It defines the requirements for the maximum quantity or concentration of certain substances and mixtures that are included in this popular toy product. Examples of these types of toy set include crystal growing sets and carbon dioxide generating experiments. 

Among the changes brought in by EN 71-4:2020 are:

• Clarification on scope
• Permissible inclusion of non-hazardous food additives, starches, etc.
• Maximum amounts and concentrations for defined substances
• Requirement for eye protection

For a comprehensive review of the changes being brought in by EN 71-4:2020, view SGS SafeGuard 010/21.

Stakeholders should be aware of the following dates:

• Standard will be given status of national standard by June 2021
• Conflicting national standards must be withdrawn by December 2021

EN 71-4:2020 is expected to be harmonized under Directive 2009/48/EC, the so-called Toy Safety Directive (TSD), once it has been accepted by the European Commission and published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU).

SGS EU Toy Directive Services

SGS offers a wide range of services to ensure that products comply with the EU Toy Safety Directive. They offer training, safety/risk assessment, technical documentation check, labelling review, testing according to harmonized standards, SVHC screening, inspections and audits. They have the world’s largest network of toy experts and testing facilities, including around 20 toy laboratories and three 3 EU Notified Bodies (France, Germany and Netherlands). Learn more about SGS’s EU Toy Directive Services. 

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full CEN Publishes EN 71-4:2020 ‘Experimental Sets For Chemistry And Related Activities’ SafeGuardS. 

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Hingwo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel: (+852) 2774 7420

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/hardlines

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.​

The cheap dedicated server provider Reprise Hosting LLC ( http://www.reprisehosting.com ) marked its ninth year in business with significant network upgrades and lowered prices on server bandwidth.

“In the latter half of 2020 we made significant investments in our regional peering and network quality in the Pacific Northwest,” said Brian Harrison of Reprise Hosting. “Additionally, we added network capacity -- a lot of network capacity.”

Over the past 6 months, Reprise Hosting has added 12x 10G peering sessions with new participants over the SIX, 10G transit with Hurricane Electric, 10G transit with CNSERVERS and 10G transit with Fiberhub. “We’re excited about the possibilities that our newly upgraded network offers,” added Brian. “Our regional latency in the Pacific Northwest is the best it has ever been and our latency to Europe and Asia has fallen by ~10% on average. If you need to serve an audience that spans east Asia, North America and Europe, then the Pacific Northwest is an excellent locale to source operations.”

With the network upgrades, Reprise Hosting has also rolled out substantial price cuts to server bandwidth. 100Mbps unmetered connections are now offered as standard on all dedicated servers with the option to upgrade free of charge to 1Gbps with 20TB.

About Reprise Hosting:
Reprise Hosting ( http://www.reprisehosting.com ) is a hosting provider based out of Seattle, Washington specializing in cheap dedicated servers and cPanel VPS hosting.

Media Contact:
Jeff Michaels
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
1-877-HOST-839

As Black History Month begins, Strat-O-Matic (www.strat-o-matic.com), the leader in sports simulation games now celebrating its Diamond Anniversary, is proud to announce the renewal and expansion of its partnership with the Negro League Baseball Museum (NLBM) and President Bob Kendrick. Strat-O-Matic continues to augment its selection of popular Negro League baseball roster sets, with 10% of all sales donated to the Kansas City, Mo., based museum.

Strat-O-Matic has the most robust and highly researched Negro League simulation products, now boasting more than 25 individual seasons rosters dating back to 1908, plus Stars and legendary Diamond Gems rosters. Three new rosters, 1918, 1928 and 1943, will be released on February 19 along with the rest of SOM’s current baseball card and digital sets.

“In our 60th Anniversary year, we couldn’t be more excited about extending our partnership with the Negro League Baseball Museum and we’re especially grateful to Bob Kendrick for his support and friendship,” said Adam Richman, Strat-O-Matic President. “We look forward to celebrating the 101st anniversary of the founding of the Negro Leagues throughout 2021,”

“Strat-O-Matic has been a great partner in helping further the Museum’s mission of preserving and celebrating the rich history of African-American baseball and its impact on the social advancement of America,” said Kendrick. “Members and fans often talk about what it would be like to see these players in action, and Strat-O-Matic continues to be a great way to realistically relive their performances.”

Strat-O-Matic released its first comprehensive Negro League products in 2001 with more than 100 players in the Negro League Stars set.

About Strat-O-Matic

Strat-O-Matic was invented by 11-year-old Hal Richman in his bedroom in Great Neck, N.Y. in 1948 as a result of his frustration with the statistical randomness of other baseball board games. He discovered that the statistical predictability of dice would give his game the realism he craved. Over the next decade, he perfected the game at summer camp and then as a student at Bucknell University. After producing All-Star sets in 1961 and ‘62, he parlayed a $5,000 loan from his father (and made a deal that if it didn’t work out he would work for his father’s insurance company) into the original 1962 Strat-O-Matic Baseball season game. Needless to say, Hal never had to take a job with his father.

Strat-O-Matic, based in Glen Head, NY and on the Internet at www.strat-o-matic.com, manufactures the top selling sports board games and realism/stats sports digital games. The Company publishes baseball, football, basketball and hockey games to play both on and off your computer and mobile screens. “Strat-O” games are known throughout the sports community for their statistical realism and accuracy. The Company has the world’s greatest sports game stat libraries with top-of-the-line seasons dating back to the early 1900’s. At the start of the 2016 MLB season, Strat-O-Matic introduced Baseball Daily, its first product featuring digital player cards that update every day to reflect real life current player performance as the season progresses.

The Company has a loyal celebrity following including a bevy of sports broadcasters such as Bob Costas, Jon Miller and Dan Shulman, former MLB’ers Keith Hernandez, Doug Glanville and Cal Ripken Jr., and sports super fans including Drew Carey, Ben Bernanke, Bryant Gumbel, Spike Lee and Tim Robbins. More information is available at: www.strat-o-matic.com.

SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, is helping manufacturers of absorbent hygiene products (AHPs) prove to wary customers that their products are safe and free from trace chemicals.

Studies have shown that baby diapers and intimate hygiene products can contain a wide variety of toxic substance residues. The nature of these products means this news is of great concern to both regulators and consumers.

Until recently, the only two testing methodologies available to manufacturers were inefficient. The situation has changed with the release of the Edana Method NWSP360 Series in November 2020. Linked to the Edana AHP Stewardship program, which focuses on the detection of trace chemicals in AHP, this series was developed by a panel of industry experts seeking to create a realistic, practical, robust, repeatable and reproducible test method.

SGS’s Consumer Compact article looks at the growth in concern over trace elements in AHPs and the development and advantages of utilizing the Edana Method NWSP360 Series. The article is aimed at industry insiders and members of the public who want to gain a better understanding of what is actually in our AHPs.

In addition, SGS has created a webinar for the industry – Safety of Absorbent Hygiene Products – Testing for Trace Chemicals.

SGS Solution

SGS works closely with stakeholders to ensure it has the latest testing solutions in place to help manufacturers supply safe, performant, and regulatorily compliant products to markets all over the world. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Learn more about SGS Tissue and Hygiene Services. 

View their webinar: Safety of Absorbent Hygiene Products – Testing for Trace Chemicals 

Subscribe here to receive SGS Consumer Compact direct to your inbox.

For more information, please contact: 

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cpch

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.​