New Jersey/Pennsylvania Personal Injury Blog

New Jersey Dangerous Products Law - Manufacturing Defects

In our fast-paced and technical world, the products we use at home, work and play are often made overseas by the lowest bidder. Many overseas countries simply don't adhere to U.S. standards for quality control.  These factors can lead to increased incidents of manufacturing defects. Under New Jersey law, a manufacturing defect occurs when there's a malfunction of a product during manufacture. 

The recent Tylenol recalls illustrate manufacturing defects well.  Late last year, Tylenol manufacturer, McNeil Healthcare began recalling various Tylenol brands of over the counter drugs.  The presence of a chemical, 2,4,6-tribromoanisole (TBA) was detected.  TBA results from the breakdown of a chemical in wood pallets used during transport and store packaging materials for the drugs.

Then, in April, 2010, many children's and infant's Tylenol products were recalled.  According to a McNeil news release: "Some of the products included in the recall may contain a higher concentration of active ingredient than is specified; others may contain inactive ingredients that may not meet internal testing requirements; and others may contain tiny particles." 

Just last week, McNeil expanded its recall to include additional products, including certain types of Benadryl.

These recalls are classic examples of manufacturing defects.  The presence of foreign materials and chemicals in these situations point to malfunctions in the manufacturing process. 

My recent article on New Jersey dangerous products law discusses manufacturing defects at length.