A Fire-Fighting Fabric

Each year thousands of people worldwide are killed or seriously injured by fires started in mattresses. Often, the fires occur in hotels, and are caused by people smoking in bed. To help prevent fires in crowded public spaces, E. I. du Pont de Nemours &. Co.，the Wilmington, Delaware-based chemical giant, recently developed a fire-resistant fabric that, the company claims, significantly reduces the combustibility of mattresses and upholstered furniture. It is a blend of two Du Pont aramid fibers, Kevlar and Nomex. "Nomex provides fire resistance while Kevlar provides added strength, " says Mike Hawkins, du Pont's marketing manager for thermal-resistant systems.

The product will be sold as both, a so-called "barrier fabric" --- which is fitted between the upholstery and the polyurethane foam that is the most combustible part of furniture ---\tand as a fire-resistant mattress cover. Hawkins says that in tests conducted by the Boston-based Hawthorn Suites hotel chain and the California Bureau of Home Furnishings, a state agency, the material has proved effective at preventing or delaying the combustion of mattresses and furniture after flames have been applied.

The development of the fiber is timely: California and several other states are considering new regulations that would require the use of nonflammable furniture in public places (defined as areas where 10 or more people gather). And last year England passed a law mandating that all furniture contain fire—retardant foam or a barrier fabric. There are no American laws requiring hotels to buy fire-resistant mattress covers, though covers made of fiber glass and cotton do exist and are used by some companies. Hawkins says that while the other materials are fairly effective, the cotton shield washes out over time and the fiber glass is not very comfortable.

Hawkins says the Du Pont fabric will sell for less than $5 a yard, and he believes the market "will develop over the next two years". He emphasizes, however, that demand "will be driven by legislation and concern about liability in public buildings. And right now, our product is just one option."