- Main Navigation
- Products + Services
- Certificates + IDs
First Allergy Label for Car Buyers
First Allergy Label for Car Buyers
New TÜV seal offers allergic persons more safety / independent tests confirm extreme care exercised in materials selection for the Ford Focus C-MAX
Cologne/Berlin. Allergic persons and those especially sensitive to interior contaminants or textile dyes can breathe easier in the new Ford Focus C-MAX. This family van is the world's first vehicle to receive the TÜV Rhineland Group's "Allergy Tested Interior" certification. As criteria for the certification, TÜV experts evaluate move than 100 different materials and components, along with the vehicle interior compartment's air quality. "Ford has consistently implemented the basic principles of health protection in the Ford Focus C-MAX. This is a trendsetting activity because in Germany 20 percent of the population suffers from allergies and more and more people reactive negatively to certain materials and fabrics," said Prof. Dr. Bruno O. Braun, Chairman of the Board of TÜV Rhineland Group.
Interior air contaminant levels in the Ford Focus C-MAX fall far below many limits set for interiors by the Federal Department of the Environment and the Federal Institute for Risk Evaluation. The TÜV criteria for certification also allow for only half the relevant acceptable levels of benzene and phenol suggested by German and European institutions for interior air quality.
In addition to the air quality, TÜV Rhineland Group chemists take more than 1,000 readings to check all materials used in the interior for allergens and contaminants. The TÜV experts also advised Ford regarding materials selection for the Ford Focus C-MAX prior to the testing. The results: the risk of allergic reaction has been reduced to a minimum.
In order to make sure that the interior environment was safe for hypersensitive individuals, the TÜV Rhineland Group experts conducted dermatological tests on all materials which could come into direct contact with the driver and passengers. The tests not only included seating upholstery, but floor mats and leather steering wheels as well. Dermatologists also ran tests to determine whether 20 test subjects would experience any dermal changes following prolonged direct contact with the relevant materials.
The limits for allergenic dyes in vehicle interiors set by TÜV Rhineland Group are considerably more demanding than requirements outlined in the EU legislation covering clothing. Ford also abstains from the use of any allergenic dyes and there are no fragrances used in the Ford Focus C-MAX interior.
Allergist Prof. Dr. Hans Drexler, Director of the Institute for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg; evaluated the TÜV test results from a medical perspective. "Allergic people can feel secure in the Ford Focus C-MAX because in addition to the materials used, TÜV Rhineland Group also tested pollen filters," he said. "A reduction of the allergens in the air helps prevents hypersensitivity and protects against allergic reactions," he said in elaborating on the significance of the TÜV test results.
Evaluation of the pollen filter was conducted using an extremely small mulberry pollen not found in Germany. Nonetheless, the filter used in the Ford Focus C-MAX contained up to 97 percent of the substance. All pollens found in Germany which are relevant for people with allergies are about twice as large as the mulberry strain.
TÜV Rhineland Group has amassed decades of experience when it comes to evaluation of interior air quality and of the emission behaviour of flooring, adhesives and plastics. The company is an accredited evaluation point for interior contamination testing. In addition, the company's contaminant specialists do work for major clothing and furniture companies. TÜV Rhineland Group also awards some prefab and textile houses with proven low contaminant exposure with its TOXPROOF symbol.
Exact criteria for the "Allergy Tested Interior" certification is made available by TÜV Rhineland Group on the Internet website www.tuv.com under the entry ID Number 4111008300. Adherence to these standards by the Ford Focus C-MAX currently in series production is ensured by regular TÜV Rhineland Group tests.
