CEMA Forms Television Furniture Safety Committee
Group to Launch Public Awareness
| Arlington, Virginia | 5/27/1999 |
Group to Launch Public Awareness Campaign
Arlington, Va., May 27, 1999 - The Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association (CEMA) recently announced the formation of the Home Entertainment Support Safety Committee. This committee, comprised of television and consumer electronics furniture manufacturers, will implement short- and long-term strategies to proactively address the issue of accidents involving falling televisions and home entertainment support units (TV stands and other furniture). One of the immediate objectives of the group is to conduct a public awareness campaign.
"A goal of this committee is to educate consumers about the safe use of television stands and other home entertainment support units. Educating consumers about the proper and safe use of our products is the right thing to do," explained Gary Shapiro, president of CEMA, "We are uniquely positioned to launch a public awareness campaign and other measures because of the enthusiastic support of our members, in both the video and consumer electronics furniture industries."
The committee, although recently formalized, has been meeting as an ad-hoc CEMA committee for over a year to consider ways the industry could proactively educate consumers regarding TV stand safety. Now a formal committee with broad industry participation, the group has succeeded in drawing attention to this issue within relevant industry engineering committees and standards-setting organizations.
CEMA FORMS SAFETY COMMITTEE/2
Shapiro continued, "This CEMA group has brought together two industries that have been working for several months on strategies to encourage safe and intended use of TV sets and their support units. We have been also coordinating closely with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and we are trying to garner the input and involvement of related industry and consumer organizations."
Shapiro indicated that the public awareness campaign, aimed primarily at consumers, will also target the educational and medical communities. The manufacturing and retail audiences will also be addressed.
CEMA is a sector of the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA), the 75-year-old Arlington, Virginia-based trade organization representing all facets of electronics manufacturing. CEMA represents more than 500 U.S. manufacturers of audio, video, accessories, mobile electronics, communication, information technology and multimedia products that are sold through consumer channels.
CEMA also sponsors and manages the International CES - Your Source for WorkstyleTM and Lifestyle Technology. All profits from CES are reinvested into industry services, including technical training and education, product promotion, engineering standards development, market research and governmental and legal affairs support.