September 18, 2026
Key Points
- The UL Solutions Retail Center of Excellence in Northwest Arkansas has expanded to integrate hardlines and softlines testing at a single site.
- The center can help brands, retailers and suppliers identify product risks earlier and accelerate speed to market.
- The center’s modernized equipment and increased testing capacity support product safety, quality, performance and sustainability needs.
Retailers, brands, manufacturers and suppliers all know that quality matters. PwC’s 2025 Customer Experience Survey revealed that more than half of consumers (52%) say they stopped using or buying from a brand because they had a bad experience with its products or services.
In a business environment where product quality is under scrutiny, UL Solutions’ Retail Center of Excellence in Northwest Arkansas opened in 2024 to support the retail ecosystem. The center recently expanded by integrating softlines testing for apparel and textiles with hardlines testing, which refers to products such as furniture, toys and electronics.
The center’s expanded laboratory space, increased testing capacity and modernized equipment support customers seeking earlier risk identification and faster speed to market.
What is changing at the Retail Center of Excellence in Northwest Arkansas?
UL Solutions has relocated its softlines laboratory operations to the Retail Center of Excellence in Lowell. The expansion brings softlines testing together with the center’s existing hardlines capabilities, creating a more unified laboratory for retail and consumer product testing. The physical move was completed in May 2026.
How does the expansion build on the center’s initial grand opening in 2024?
The initial phase established the Retail Center of Excellence as a purpose-built laboratory focused on hardlines and general merchandise testing. This second phase expands that vision by adding softlines capabilities and bringing a broader range of retail testing services together under one roof.
What are hardlines and softlines?
Hardlines generally include consumer products such as furniture, electronics, sporting goods, packaging and other general merchandise. Softlines include textile-based products such as apparel and related materials. By bringing these areas together, UL Solutions can provide customers with access to a broader range of testing capabilities at one location.
How will customers benefit?
Customers can now access hardlines and softlines testing through a more integrated laboratory experience. The expanded capacity, modernized equipment and shared resources are designed to support efficient testing and help UL Solutions respond as customer needs grow and evolve.
UL Solutions offers technical expertise, consumer insights and a connected global laboratory network to help customers identify potential concerns, verify performance and make better-informed product decisions.
Who can use the Retail Center of Excellence?
The center serves retailers, consumer product brands, suppliers and other organizations seeking support with product safety, quality, performance and sustainability needs. The center’s capabilities are designed to support both established customers and broader growth across the retail marketplace.
Why is Northwest Arkansas important to UL Solutions?
Northwest Arkansas is an important center for the retail industry. UL Solutions’ continued investment in Lowell strengthens its local testing capabilities while connecting customers with the company’s retail expertise and broader global safety science network.
How is this expansion related to UL Solutions’ role as a global leader in safety science?
The expansion positions the Retail Center of Excellence to support greater capacity, more integrated services and future growth. It is another chapter in expanding retail testing and quality assurance capabilities for customers.
UL Solutions also recently expanded capabilities at its site in Northern Italy to create the European Retail Center of Excellence, giving retailers, brands and manufacturers access to a broader portfolio of services.
Where can I learn more?
More details about the facility in Lowell are available in the Sept. 17 press release.
Additional information about UL Solutions’ services is available on the Physical Testing Services for Consumer Products service page at UL.com.