Counterfeit crackdown

The ruling in a trademark infringement case involving DuPont’s fire resistant
fibre Nomex sends a clear message to all counterfeiters

The Arbitration Court of
Moscow, Russia, has recently
ruled in favour of DuPont in
a trademark infringement case
involving the fire resistant fibre,
Nomex.

The case, brought swiftly to the
attention of the courts by DuPont, sends
a stark warning to all counterfeiters
but also demonstrates to wearers of
the product the vigilant approach from
DuPont to ensure products containing
Nomex fibre conform to the regulations
and are of the highest quality. The
defendant’s arguments were dismissed
by the court and it was instructed to
pay RUB 1,000,000 (US$ 32,000) plus
fees to DuPont in compensation.

The story unfolded as one of the
garment manufacturers, who is part of
the DuPont value chain, became
suspicious of a fabric labelled as Nomex.

The fabric was sent to the DuPont
testing facilities in Meyrin, Geneva,
where it underwent tests that
included microscopical and chemical
analysis. These revealed that the
fabric was, in fact, a sophisticated
modification of simple fire retardant
cotton. The modification had been
carried out to make the FR cotton
appear lighter, attempting to emulate
the light weight properties of Nomex.

These results were also confirmed
visually by the test on DuPont
Thermo-Man. Encased in a cabinet
with glass windows, Thermo-Man is
a life-size manikin that is engulfed in
flames creating temperatures soaring
to 1000°C for up to eight seconds,
while 122 heat sensors relay a reading
that predicts how well that garment
can protect the wearer against heat
and flame injuries. In this specific
case, the garment presented extensive
damages after an exposure of only
four seconds, showing that the
garment is far from meeting the
performance of genuine garments.

“This level of sophisticated
counterfeiting is an alarming sign,” says
Oriol Rofes, Nomex industrial market
segment manager at DuPont. “However,
this case demonstrates the exceptionally
close working relationship we have with
our partner weavers and manufacturers
and how DuPont is constantly
monitoring where our products are
used. Our Nomex Partner Programme
is designed to help end users choose
the best products and we urge anyone
needing to buy Nomex fire resistant
clothing to work with recognised and
trusted manufacturers who participate
in this programme.”
The British Safety Industry
Federation’s (BSIF) Registered Safety
Supplier Scheme (RSSS) helps direct
purchasers to experienced and ethical
companies who work tirelessly to
provide safety equipment that
conforms and complies. The scheme’s
shield acts as a signpost for people to
ensure that they can buy from a
reputable company whom they can
trust to supply genuine legal products
and provide good advice.

David Lummis, CEO of the BSIF,
says: “DuPont is a member of this
scheme and it is the work these
stringent companies do that will help
eliminate counterfeit products. We
remind all purchasers to ensure they
buy products from reliable sources
and look for the RSSS shield as a
guarantee of conformity and quality.”
DuPont Personal Protection will be
exhibiting at Health & Safety North
on Stand 70