Standardization News

The Safety Equipment Institute, an ASTM International affiliate, has announced that the first certifications for chest protectors have been issued that meet new criteria from National Operating Committee for Sports and Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE). According to NOCSAE, its new standard aims to reduce the likelihood of death from commotio cordis, a disruption of heart rhythm that happens when a player is struck.

The standard supports a test method that provides reliable and repeatable measurements for the evaluation of various types of chest protectors. It is called NOCSAE Standard Test Method and performance Specification Used in Evaluating the Performance Characteristics of Chest Protectors for Commotio Cordis, NOCSAE DOC (ND) 200.

Specifically, the new standard includes requirements for a conditioned, sample chest protector to be positioned on a piece of equipment (NOCSAE Thoracic Surrogate). Then, a projectile (baseball or lacrosse ball) at a defined velocity is propelled at various locations of the surrogate. A laboratory technician measures the peak force which must meet specified NOCSAE pass/fail criteria. Complete requirements for ND 200 may be found at www.NOCSAE.org.

In addition to initial compliance testing of all chest protector models, manufacturers who participate in the SEI certification program must pass a rigorous quality assurance audit of their facility and operate in accordance with SEI quality assurance requirements. Also, all products carrying the SEI and NOCSAE certification label are required to be re-certified annually. This means that all products must be re-tested annually, and the manufacturing facility must continue to successfully meet all SEI quality assurance requirements during follow-up audits.

Over 2,500 SEI-certified product models are made by more than 150 manufacturers from all over the world. SEI’s programs are built on the use of high-quality technical standards from organizations such as NOCSAE. Information about SEI’s certification program and the most current version of the SEI Certified Product List can be accessed at any time on SEI’s web site, www.SEInet.org. The SEI website includes the SEI Certified Product List which provides certified product model names and numbers, manufacturer’s names, addresses, and contact numbers.