Bolton Consultancy Ltd

Projects

Bolton Consultancy Ltd has undertaken a wide range of projects for clients across Retail, Industry, Government and Law.
A selection of our projects is listed below by client sector.   Individual clients are not identified.


Retailers

Operating Manual - Product Safety: Global Retailer

Development and documantation of Product Safety Manual including policy, procedures, technical requirements and test methods, for globally sourced product.

Childrenswear Safety Training: Clothing Retailer

Training of Designers, Buyers, and Technologists on Children's wear safety and the conformance requirements of applicable standards and legislation. Provision of technical telephone "Help line" on children's wear safety.

Risk Assessment: Clothing Retailer

RAPEX Guidelines compliant Risk Assessment to assess safety risk of a garment following a challenge from trading standards officers. Demonstrated that the product presented an acceptable level of residual risk and hence conformed with the GPSD.

Product Procurement & Quality Management:Leading Supermarket

Quality Assurance, testing and compliance management supporting the introduction of a range of new home ware products.

Product Procurement & Quality Management:Leading Global Brand

Quality Assurance, testing and compliance management supporting the specification and buying process for Clothing and Accessories.

Product Procurement & Safety Management:Leading European Retailer

Routine "3rd party" safety compliance assessments of children's clothing items.


Manufacturers

Risk Assessment: Specialist Baby Product Manufacturer

RAPEX Guidelines compliant Risk Assessment of a novel baby product to assure its compliance with GPSD. Advice and recommendations for labelling and user instructions to mitigate residual risk.

Product Performance:Specialist Clothing Manufacturer

Investigation into the causes of failure of an applied waterproof coating which was causing customer complaints.

Training and Audit:Specialist Fabrics Producer & Dyer-Finisher

Review of facilities and processes for colour performance testing. Recommendations for process improvements and training of Quality Assurance Testing Laboratory staff in the performance of standard (BS EN ISO 105) colour fastness tests.


Designers

New Product Development: Child Use & Care Product Start-up

Advice on requirements for a novel children's bedding product. Review of the product at the prototype stage allowed safety and performance features to be incorporated during the design process and taken through to production.

New Product Development: Child Use & Care Product Start-up

Advice on requirements for children's products applied to a novel product intended to keep an infant warm and dry while in and being transferred between a buggy, carseat, bikeseat etc. Review of the product at the prototype stage allowed safety and performance features to be incorporated during the design process and assisted in the creation and adoption of a radical award winning design solution.


Legal and Enforcement

Interpretation of Standards: Legal Team for Children's Clothing Retailer

Advice on the application of legislation and standards relating to the prosecution of a retailer under the UK Children's Hood Cords Legislation.

Interpretation of Standards:Enforcement Authority

Advice on the application of legislation and standards relating to the prosecution of a retailer under the General Product Safety Regulations, for non compliance with EN14682 .

Expert Witness: Legal Team for Children's Clothing Retailer

Assessment of the safety of a baby's garment, relating to litigation following an incident involving choking. Examination of failure mechanisms and expert opinion on the application of legislation and standards.


Professional Institutions

Standards Training: Trading Standards Institute

Delivery of Training Courses on the application of European Standards under the GPSR.


Industry Associations

Standards Training: National Childrenswear Association

Delivery of Seminars for NCWA Members on the development, interpretation and application of EN 14878 Textiles - Burning behaviour of children's nightwear - Specification; BS EN 14682:2007 Cords and Drawstrings; and BS 7907 Mechanical Safety of Children's Clothing.


Brand Managers

Promotional Claims Research:Environmentally Friendly Brand

Research report on sourcing and production of a natural fibre to substantiate promotional claims relating to its properties and performance.

Local Market Requirements:Specialist Baby Product Manufacturer

Review of local legislation, standards and requirements for products placed on the market within certain specific territories to ensure product development and specification is acceptable for global distribution.


Central and Local Government

Consultancy:Government Department

Preparation of an industry stakeholder consultation exercise, presentation to stakeholders, analysis of stakeholder concerns and development and drafting of an advisory note on the European Standard on the Burning Behaviour of Children's Nightwear.