Hape Announces an Exclusive contest for ASTRA Retailers to Win a Trip to China

Hape North America, a leading worldwide toy manufacturer, has announced a contest for ASTRA retailers to win a trip of a lifetime to China. Hape will select one ASTRA retailer to join them on an all-expenses paid trip for two to the cosmopolitan city of Shanghai and their production facility and bamboo conservancy in Ningbo. Winners will visit Hape's state-of-the-art manufacturing campus, which produced over 8.6 million toys in 2011.

For a chance to win the trip, ASTRA retailers must submit a photo of their best four-foot section of Hape merchandised product to marketing@hapetoys.com by May 15, 2012. One lucky retailer will win and be announced at Hape's booth (216) during the Cocktail Reception on Monday, June 11th at ASTRA Marketplace in Baltimore.

Winners of the contest will not only get the chance to see how Hape produces their award- winning product and experience a bamboo forest; they will also experience the trip of a lifetime. The prize includes transportation, lodging at five-star hotels and meals for the duration of the visit to China.

CPSC Changes Lead Limitations in Ride-On Vehicle Parts

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) granted the first-ever exception to the standard 100 parts per million (ppm) lead content limit that was currently under the CPSC's Improvement ACT (CPSIA) for certain die-cast, ride-on pedal tractors and similar toys made of aluminum alloy.

As of April 5, 2012, aluminum alloy components, used in toys for children 3 years and older, must meet a 300 ppm lead standard. The decision by the CPSC comes in response to a petition submitted last September by toy die-cast vehicle makers, Ertl, regarding the alloy castings used in their ride-on tractors.

The CPSC outlined its decision to grant the exception. The new standard takes into account the functionality of toys produced under the previous limitations, whether it's technologically feasible to manufacture products that meet the 100 ppm standard and the fact that children will likely never put these items in their mouth leaving little adverse effect on public health or safety if there is a higher ppm, including the blood lead levels in a child.

Adding New Technological Eyes & Ears To Help Reduce SIDS Deaths

In recent years the incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) has been reducing, but it is still the leading cause of death for babies in their first year of life. But now a unique new technology from Snuza is adding a set of eyes and ears to an infant's bedroom and crib to help reduce the risk of SIDS related tragedies.

The original Snuza Halo has always monitored the baby's movement by clipping, not to the crib mattress, but gently to the baby's diaper near the stomach. Now with the new Snuza Trio, parents get technologically advanced movement monitoring, audio and video all in one unit. The Snuza Trio includes the original Halo device, an effective night vision camera that can be aimed into the crib and a built-in two-way microphone to record sounds of the baby and the Halo alarm should it go off. The Snuza Trio audio-video monitor sports a 2.3-inch LCD screen that is functional to a range of 450 feet from the camera and the crib. It even includes three lullaby tunes that can be used to help soothe the baby to sleep as it is monitoring.

Hop Introduces Removable Wall Decals

Skip Hop, Inc., a New York City company devoted to designing innovative products for today's families, today announced the introduction of Wall Decals. Skip Hop's new removable and reusable wall decals are easy to apply, without damaging paint or leaving behind a sticky residue. They feature Skip Hop's popular Alphabet Zoo and Treetop Friends designs and coordinate with the Alphabet Zoo and Treetop Friends bedding and toy collections.

TREETOP FRIENDS: Baby's wall décor branches out! Create a nature scene with a full tree design, or use the branches, leaves and woodland friends to accent different parts of baby's room. Easy to apply, these decals provide an ever-changing forest scene for the littlest nature lover.

ALPHABET ZOO: These fun and educational decals have heaps of animal charm! Create a colorful ABC border for baby's room, or use them to spell her name. The decals, including extra sheets of letters and additional vowels, can be rearranged as often as you like.