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Safety Testing Pencils & Graphic Instruments

Pencils and graphic instruments must be safe. It is possible that unsafe products may cause injury or even death.

Regulations

The Pencils and Graphic Instruments (Safety) Regulations and the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 will control the safety of this type of product. These Regulations provide a legal framework to ensure that a producer or distributor supplies a safe product.

Relevant Standards

There are several British Standards relevant to this type of product:

  • BS EN 71-3: Migration of certain elements. This standard deals controls the amount of antimony, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury and selenium that is permitted to leach from paints, plastics, etc that are used in the construction of pencils and graphic instruments. This standard is referred to in the Pencils and Graphic Instruments (Safety) Regulations
  • BS 7272-1: Writing and marking instruments – Part 1: Specification for safety caps
  • BS 7272-2: Writing and marking instruments – Part 2: Specification for end closures

The BS 7272 standards are designed to assess if safety caps or end closures are likely to present choking hazards.

Available Tests

Listed below is a selection of tests that can be carried out by Staffordshire Scientific Services:

  • BS EN 71-3: Migration of certain elements
  • BS 7272-1: Cap size, ventilated caps vent area and ventilated caps air flow
  • BS 7272-2: Size, security, inaccessibility, minimal protrusion, air flow

Our Credentials

Staffordshire Scientific Services is an efficient and reliable scientific service offering testing and analysis, advice and support to customers in the public and private sector.

We have two Public Analysts, twenty well-qualified, experienced staff, based in our Stafford laboratory which is accredited to UKAS Quality Standard ISO/IEC 17025 and is an Official UK Food Enforcement Laboratory.

View UKAS accreditation schedule for Staffordshire.

Getting In Touch

Staffordshire Scientific Services
14 Martin Street
Stafford ST16 2LG

T: 01785 277 825 F: 01785 277 812Email: county.analysts@staffordshire.gov.uk

Staffordshire County Council website