In an incubator that simulates the temperature of the human body, Apple Watch bands are placed in jars of artificial sweat to undergo analytical testing.

In an incubator that simulates the temperature of the human body, Apple Watch bands are placed in jars of artificial sweat to undergo analytical testing. Apple

Apple has revealed in its yearly Environmental Responsibility Report how it goes to great lengths to ensure product safety. The company has built test centres at its manufacturing facilities despite already having one huge testing lab full of scientists. The tech giant also creates artificial sweat to test products like the Apple Watch, further bolstering its innovator status.

Apple runs its own environmental testing lab to make sure that its products are not only people-safe, but also Earth-friendly. The company doesn’t seem content on just choosing the right materials as it goes “far beyond what’s required by law.” Apple claims that it doesn’t count on third-party specialists to look for potentially harmful elements as it has its own team of chemists and toxicologists on the payroll to do that.

The company’s environmental testing lab in Cupertino, California has grown more than 20 times its original size when it was constructed over a decade ago. Apple also makes it a habit to update the place with state-of-the-art equipment. Aside from the Cupertino lab, Apple likewise has test centres put up at its manufacturing facilities to assess and validate products during the course of the manufacturing process.

Apple is also into biocompatibility. The company said that it carefully tests all Apple product components that come in direct contact with skin since many people are allergic to various materials. The Mac maker pushes boundaries when it comes to these things.

The company does nickel leach testing on the Apple Watch and its other wearables to see how fast nickel is able to transfer from metal parts into sweat. Not only that, Apple creates artificial sweat when it comes to such tests. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“By placing different components in jars of the artificial sweat, we can closely monitor samples to ensure that nickel and other allergens and irritants stay where they belong,” Apple said. “And we go far beyond sweat in our testing. We analyse materials that someone might put in their mouth — like an Apple Pencil you might chew on while considering the next line in your drawing — to make sure they’re safe.”

Apple hasn’t gone into specifics on how it produces artificial sweat for the Apple Watch bands, but the company deserves props for being bold enough to do such particular undertaking. Apple likewise does product evaluation even after these products have already gone through extensive reliability tests to make sure the devices remain safe to use several years after being exposed to various types of environmental settings.

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