PFA Members:
Your Access To PFA Resources
Get Maximum Value From Your PFA Membership
Welcome
We’re very happy you’re a PFA member.
Here’s a quick overview of ways to maximize your membership benefits through services and tools useful to you.
Should you have any questions about PFA Membership or the flexible polyurethane foam industry, please don’t hesitate to contact PFA staff.
Member Categories
Manufacturing Member: Companies that produce slabstock FPF from chemical raw materials, that are domiciled in the U.S.
Molded Manufacturing Member: Companies that mold FPF products from chemical raw materials, that are domiciled in the U.S.
Federated Members: Manufacturing or Molded Manufacturing Members that are domiciled in countries other than the U.S.
Associate/Supplier Member. Companies (wherever domiciled) that supply raw materials, equipment, technology and services to U.S. FPF manufacturers.
PFA Member Portal
Exclusive Materials For PFA Members
PFA Members have access to resources not available to non-members, through our PFA Member Portal on the PFA website. This passcode-protected area is expanded regularly. Many items can be downloaded from the portal, while others are available by request (our staff responds to requests promptly).
Pounds Poured Reports and Other Statistical Information*
Confidential Legal Memoranda
Journal Articles and Other Publications
PFA Fast Read Newsletters
Roster And Contact Info Of PFA Members
*Production And Import Data: PFA compiles quarterly Member-only slabstock production data and analysis (our Pounds Poured Report). We have also provided quarterly data on mattress production and imports collected by the International Sleep Products Association (ISPA), when data was published (currently suspended).
In your PFA Membership Application, you should have designated someone from your company to receive this proprietary data. (Let us know who from your company should receive Pounds Poured and associated data.)
More Resources On The PFA Website
Video Training
PFA Associate / Supplier Members sponsored production of “An Introduction to The Flexible Polyurethane Foam Industry,” which covers Foam Chemistry, Foam Testing, Foam Manufacturing, and Foam Applications. Other videos in this section cover PFA history, safe handling of toluene diisocyanate (TDI) and methyl diisocyanate (MDI) and other foam issues.
InTouch Bulletins
Created 30 years ago, PFA’s InTouch Bulletin series covers key topics on polyurethane technology, performance properties, testing, commercial applications, EHS practices, standards and regulations, and sustainability. Documents are reviewed and updated regularly with the help of PFA Technical Committee and Executive Committee members to keep them current.
Technical Presentation Library
PFA has an archive of technical papers and presentations delivered at PFA meetings dating back to 1991. More than 300 documents are stored here, and past presentations can be ordered for $35 USD each. Depending on the presentation, this can include slides, papers, videos, speaker biographies, abstracts, and other available support items).
Hall Of Fame
The Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame was established to honor the leaders and innovators of the industry. It’s an information source for future industry members and researchers regarding the individuals and companies who have significantly contributed to the betterment of the flexible polyurethane foam industry in North America.
PFA Conferences
PFA General Business and Technical meetings are held two times each year.
A typical meeting begins with an afternoon Industry Issues session with updates on sales trends, regulatory and legal developments, supply chain challenges, tariffs, and trade disputes. You’ll get the latest news about key foam markets from executives of the furniture, mattress, auto, footwear and carpet cushion industries. Speakers will cover industry research projects and supplier initiatives.
The following morning, a General Business Meeting is held, featuring a speaker on topics such as management, finance, history and public policy. An association governance session follows, during which Members are asked to vote on the association’s leadership and other matters. A majority of PFA members must be present to conduct business, so it is important to have an official representative present to cast votes on behalf of your company.
That afternoon, Technical Papers are presented on a variety of topics, including new raw material formulations, machinery innovations, EHS best practices, research findings, recycling technologies and other sustainability initiatives. At meetings featuring a full slate of papers, presenters are eligible for the Herman Stone Award for Technical Excellence, which comes with a cash honoraria. The award was established by the family of Dr. Herman T. Stone, a longtime flexible polyurethane foam researcher and member of the Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame. The winner is determined by attendee vote, and the award is announced at that evening’s cocktail reception.
The reception is a chance to share food & drink, catch up with valued industry colleagues and make new acquaintances. Members are encouraged to introduce themselves to first-time attendees and learn more about their companies. Sponsorship of the reception provides companies a marketing opportunity featuring discrete signage and brief remarks or media.
Spring 2024 Meeting, May 22-24, St. Petersburg, FL
Vinoy Renaissance Hotel & Resort
501 5th Avenue, NE
St. Petersburg, FL
Fall 2024 Meeting, Nov. 12-14, New Orleans, LA
Omni Royal Orleans
621 St Louis St.
New Orleans, LA
Industry Advocacy
PFA’s executive, legal and communications staff speak for the flexible polyurethane foam industry before a range of decision makers. These include elected officials, regulatory agencies, standards bodies, and the media. Positions on public policy issues are developed in close collaboration with the association’s Executive and Technical Committees.
A number of member companies have indicated that the effectiveness of PFA’s industry advocacy is a key reason for their membership and support.
PFA staff and member company professionals participate in standard bodies such as ASTM to ensure that performance requirements and test methods do not unfairly disadvantage flexible polyurethane foam. PFA staff also monitors news reports, blogs, and advertising claims for misleading statements about FPF, its safety, and performance. Where necessary, legal counsel requests that inaccuracies be corrected or removed from the public record.
PFA funds research on key industry topics. Recent projects quantified the levels of antimony (a regulated chemical) in mattress components; assessed occupation exposure levels of isocyanates, and confirmed that cured foam contains no unreacted isocyanates. Past projects dealt with the flammability of foam and other furniture and mattress materials, and on the air quality in communities near manufacturing plants. PFA endeavors to involve member company professionals, other industry organizations, outside labs and academic researchers in such projects. This helps manage costs and elevates the credibility of study findings.
PFA testifying before Congressional Committee
Regulatory Compliance Guidance
FPF manufacturers and their suppliers face obligations under layers of national, state, and provincial laws governing occupational safety, environmental emissions, product content, safety and labeling, and rules on cross-border trade. The marketplace for foam products is also shaped by the activity of standards bodies, certification programs, classifications of chemicals by health authorities, and by court decisions.
PFA works hard to make sense of these requirements and provide you with guidance to avoid missteps, penalties, and reputational harm. We bring to bear the expertise of the company managers and EHS professionals who serve on our committees. Also contributing is our Washington, DC counsel, a former White House Cabinet official with years of experience navigating the regulatory landscape.
Member compliance tools include software toolkits for modeling emissions of isocyanates and other chemicals, and for meeting responsibilities under U.S. EPA’s Risk Management Plan (RMP). You’ll get tips for complying with the complex labeling regulations of California’s Prop 65 program, and with laws in a number of states requiring reporting of “Chemicals of Concern” in products sold for use by young people. You’ll also receive guidance on what “green” claims are permissible when marketing your products. Federal and state programs such as these are continually monitored, and when your obligations under them change, these changes will be explained.
Your PFA Team
Russ Batson, Executive Director
Attorney, former Congressional aide, legislative and regulatory advocate, and experienced association executive. Ran the Washington Office for the American Home Furnishing Alliance (AHFA) and served as Senior Counsel for SABIC, the Saudi petrochemicals giant that acquired GE Plastics in 2007.
Jim McIntyre, Legal Counsel
Attorney, and former Director of The White House Office of Management and Budget, a Cabinet-level post responsible for coordinating Federal regulatory programs. Advises PFA members on compliance on federal, state, and provincial regulations and advocates against poorly informed and overly burdensome laws. Coordinates legal action against parties making misleading claims about flexible polyurethane foam.
Wayne Bowman, Communications Counsel
Veteran PR agency professional, expert in branding and crisis communications. Designed PFA’s website to provide superior user experience, e-commerce capability, and password-protected portal for PFA Members-only resources. Coordinates programming of PFA meetings, develops PFA literature and video, and manages IT resources.
Kay Wright, Administrative Assistant
Longtime medical HR professional. Works with PFA members on meeting registrations, membership details, and any membership contact updates. Manages PFA accounting and office operations, as well as meeting logistics.
Member Driven.
You are the most important part of PFA—your needs, your ideas, your insights, your opinion. There is never a time that we’re not eager to hear from you. Let us know if you are interested in serving on a PFA committee or presenting a technical paper at the next PFA meeting. Is there an industry issue that you feel PFA should be addressing? We’d appreciate your thoughts.
PFA Executive Committee 2023-2024
PFA is governed by a volunteer Executive Committee which meets four times each year. Two of the annual Executive Committee meetings are held in conjunction with PFA general membership meetings, and two are held independently, typically in February and in August. PFA officers are elected annually by the PFA general membership at the November meeting. Up to three Associate/Supplier representatives to the Executive Committee are appointed by the PFA president for varying lengths of service.
Philippe Knaub, PFA President
Knaub is Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of FXI, a position he has held since 2016. He supervises all research and development projects, reporting to the company’s chief executive officer. Knaub earned a Ph.D. in Polymer Science from the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon. He holds multiple patents in polyol composition.
Rob Heller, Future Foam, First Vice President
Cam McLaughlin, Elite Comfort Solutions, Second Vide President
Hamdy Khalil, Woodbridge Group, Treasurer
Bill Gollnitz, Immediate Past President
Frank Donato, VPC
Karl Gust, BASF
Paul Coleman, Huntsman
Scott Skolnekovich, Covestro
Susan Kilpatrick, Evonik
Rob Einterz, Monument Chemical
Robert Smith, Wanhua
Barry Gabelman, Chemfoam.
Bobby Bush, Jr. Technical Committee Chair
Andrew Kee, Wanhua, Sustainability Committee Chair
Other Items of Interest
It’s the Law: Antitrust Compliance
All PFA members must comply with US antitrust laws. All PFA meetings follow a published agenda and adhere to PFA antitrust policies. Counsel will remind participants in meetings and call what topics should be avoided. If you become aware of any potentially anti-competitive comments, please leave the discus- sion and immediately notify Jim McIntyre or Russ Batson. Whenever in doubt about an antitrust issue, consult PFA’s legal counsel or executive director.
Dues Notices
Dues notices for the coming year are sent out in the fourth quarter. Since dues are PFA’s major source of revenue, our effecctiveness depends on your timely payment. It benefits the association for members to pay dues as promptly as possible. Dues amounts per each member are kept confidential from other members or outside sources.
Confidentiality
US Based PFA members report statistics about pounds poured on a regular basis, in confidence to a third party certified public accountant.
Individual manufacturer volume reports are combined and summarized. These reports provide the only tracking information available in the industry and are available only to PFA members in good standing. Reports follow foam manufactured at less than 1.8 lbs/ft3 density, at 1.8 density and above, and for all densities, combined.