Leveraging Your NSF Certification: Now that you've received NSF Certification ... why not leverage the Mark to your advantage.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 5, 2010
CONTACTS: Greta Houlahan
NSF International
(734) 913-5723
houlahan@nsf.org
Monica Teague
Whirlpool Corporation
(269) 923-7405
Monica.Teague@Whirlpool.com
Whirlpool Corporation Becomes First Manufacturer to Meet Allergen Reduction and Sanitization Performance Testing Requirements
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| Whirlpool® Duet Washers WED9750WR (Red) and WED9250WL (Lunar Silver). Click images to enlarge. |
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ANN ARBOR, Mich. and BENTON HARBOR, Mich. – Continuing its mission to protect and improve public health, NSF International today announced the development of a new protocol that certifies allergen reduction performance of residential and commercial, family-sized clothes washers. Whirlpool Corporation is the first company to receive certification with this new protocol for clothes washers.
An estimated 300 million people worldwide suffer from asthma, according to a 2007 American Lung Study. A similar study of U.S. homes also found that approximately one-quarter had dust mite allergen levels present in a bed at a level high enough to trigger asthma symptoms.* The NSF International allergen reduction protocol (P351) directly addresses these concerns.
To receive certification to NSF Protocol P351: Allergen Reduction Performance of Residential and Commercial, Family-Sized Clothes Washers, the following requirements must be met:
“We are proud that Maytag Performance Series (MHWE400W, MHWE450W, MHWE550W and MHWE950W) and Whirlpool® Duet washers (WFW9750W and WFW9250W) have received NSF Certification, becoming the first clothes washers to achieve this major milestone for the residential and commercial clothes washer industry,” said Dick Conrad, Director of Product Management, Whirlpool Corporation. “Whirlpool Corporation partners with leading experts, such as NSF International, to develop innovations that can help consumers in their everyday lives. Certifying to this new protocol is consistent with our dedication to our customers.”
In 2007, Whirlpool Corporation became the first manufacturer to meet NSF Protocol P172 – Sanitization Performance of Residential and Commercial, Family Sized Clothes Washers, the first protocol to test clothes washers with sanitizing cycles. Clothes washers certified to this protocol effectively sanitize laundry by demonstrating the removal of at least 99.9 percent of test organisms when the washer’s sanitization cycle is selected and preventing the carryover of test organisms between loads of laundry.
“It has been two years since Whirlpool Corporation became the first company certified to NSF International’s Clothes Washer Sanitization Protocol, and now we are excited to announce that once again Whirlpool Corporation is the first company certified to the new protocol for allergen reduction,” said Bob Ferguson, Vice President, NSF Engineering and Research Services group, which provides research and development, protocol development, environmental verification and other certifications services.
To ensure a clothes washer meets all requirements, NSF International tests the washing machine cycle by washing clothes contaminated with allergens with a typical batch of laundry. After the wash cycle is complete, the test cloths are analyzed to detect the remaining allergen concentration. Testing is performed at NSF’s microbiology laboratories in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
NSF Protocol P351: Allergen Reduction Performance of Residential and Commercial, Family-Sized Clothes Washers was developed by a technical panel that included the world’s preeminent experts in airborne allergy testing and evaluation, public health and academia. These experts included representatives from Wright State University, Ohio State University, and Michigan Technological University; Indoor Biotechnologies, Inc. the Ecology Works; and Whirlpool Corporation.
For more information about the new protocol, please click here.
*2003 Arbes SJ, et al. study, “House dust mite allergen in U.S. beds”
About Whirlpool Corporation:
Whirlpool Corporation is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, with annual sales of approximately $19 billion in 2008, 70,000 employees, and 67 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. Additional information about the company can be found at http://www.whirlpoolcorp.com.
About NSF International:
NSF International, an independent, not-for-profit organization, helps protect consumers by certifying products and writing standards for food, water, dietary supplements and consumer goods (www.nsf.org). Founded in 1944, NSF is committed to protecting human health and safety worldwide and operates in more than 120 countries. NSF is a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Food and Water Safety and Indoor Environment.
NSF Engineering and Research Services (ERS) utilizes all of NSF's capabilities to accommodate the vast array of customers' testing needs. Clients can attain technical information by employing ERS to complete research and development testing, validate manufacturers' claims, or to obtain additional certifications against NSF protocols and non-NSF protocols. Additional services include safety audits for the food and water industries, management systems registrations delivered through NSF International Strategic Registrations, organic certification provided by Quality Assurance International and education through the NSF Center for Public Health Education.
