U.S./Canada – “Guidance on the Application of Human Factors – A Unified Approach” Finalized

Vol. 1142 | 23 Mar 2020

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Health Canada finalized and co-published the “Guidance on the Application of Human Factors Consumer Products” in February 2020. Over the last year, the draft version of the document was available for public comment.

This document was co-developed by the CPSC and Health Canada staff to provide guidance to manufacturers, brands, designers, and other stakeholders on the consideration of human factors during various stages of product design, development, and production of toys and other articles, children’s toys, childcare articles, and children’s products.

By implementing basic human factors and human-centered product design principles, stakeholders can reduce product related injuries, complaints, and other negative outcomes. The pathway to creating “better products” is laid out in six steps:

1. Product Planning
2. Idea and Concept Generation
3. Design and Development
4. Testing and Validation
5. Production
6. Post- Production

The guidance provided in each step is broken into easy-to-recognize subsections with activities, tasks, and concepts to ensure the guidance is executable and practical.

For additional information please contact:

Keith Rhoades
keith.rhoades@intertek.com
630.209.6835