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Why Air Box use TPU
Understanding air mattress materials and our committment to safety.
What is Substances of Very High Concern?
Most modern consumer goods are made with man-made materials. In general, these man-made materials are developed to improve certain properties and to decrease the production cost. Sometimes the cost-saving aspect is emphasized too much, that they may include substances that are harmful to the consumer and the environment.
With increasing concern towards safety, the Council of European Union has been selecting candidates under the name Substances of Very High Concern since 2013. The candidate list includes substances that are known to be carcinogenic; mutagenic; toxic for reproduction; persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic(PBT); and very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB substances).
Why we must stop the use of PVC.
In general, air mattresses (including the ones for camping) are not regulated in most regions and does not abide to be tested on substance safety. That has led to the industry to use Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) as the main material. PVC is excellent in making shapes, is lightweight, is low-cost, but contains many well-known harmful substances, such as dioxin, vinyl chloride, lead, and BPA. PVC is known to be especially harmful to children, and many industry leading companies, including Air Box, have chosen to limit or stop the use of PVC.
TPU is for the safety of the family.
Instead of PVC we have chosen to use Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) which is more expensive and difficult to manufacture, but much more robust and safe to the user. We have sent the actual TPU sample used to manufacture the Eco Airmat series to independent testing institutues (SGS and FITI) on 182 Substances of Very High Concern, 4 major heavy metal toxicants, and 7 phthalates. None of the substances were detected. Because our air mattresses are made for happy family moments, and we hope those moments safely last forever.
Learn more about Eco Airmat >>
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