Interpretation ID: aiam3175
General Manager
Industrial Textile Department
Toray Industries
Inc.
2-2
Nihonbashi-Muromachi
Chuo-ku
Tokyo
Japan;
Dear Mr. Mitsui: This responds to a letter we received from Mitsui & Company askin questions concerning the 'resistance to light' test in paragraph S5.1(e) of Safety Standard No. 209, *Seat Belt Assemblies*, as it applies to polyester seat belt webbing. You asked whether it is true that this paragraph will not be enforced for dacron and polyester webbing until an appropriate test method can be incorporated in the standard, and whether such a test method is being developed.; In a July 23, 1976, letter to the Celanese Fibers Marketing Company th agency stated that the Standard No. 209 test procedure for resistance to light was developed to test nylon webbing and that the procedure does not give meaningful results for the new polyester webbings. Therefore, Celanese was informed that the requirement would not be enforced for polyester webbing until a new procedure could be developed. This letter was placed in our public docket for the benefit of all interested parties (in our 'Redbook' interpretations file). The agency does not intend to place an announcement of this interpretation in the *Federal Register*, however, since the standard will soon be amended to incorporate an appropriate test procedure for dacron and polyester webbing.; The new test procedure was developed for the National Highway Traffi Safety Administration by the Narrow Fabrics Institute and the Society of Automotive Engineers Task Force on Webbing. The new procedure would require the use of a plain glass filter instead of the Corex B filter currently required. The agency anticipates rulemaking to incorporate this new procedure sometime early next year, depending on rulemaking priorities.; I am enclosing a copy of our 1976 letter to Celanese for you information.; Sincerely, Frank Berndt, Chief Counsel