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Newsletter 2005 issue 1 |
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Peddling Electronics in the EU
Get the lead, and other toxics, out
Manufacturers whose electronic or electrical products are sold in Europe or whose components are in products sold in Europe need to comply with RoHS and WEEE.
RoHS
Directive 2002/95/EC effective July 1, 2006 (5-pg PDF)
Restriction of certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) is a European Union (EU) directive intended to phase out the use of several particularly toxic substances, namely cadmium, hexavalent chromium, lead, mercury, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in electrical and electronic equipment products.
It applies to eight product categories:
- Large household appliances
- Small household appliances
- IT and telecommunications equipment
- Consumer equipment
- Lighting equipment
- Electrical and electronic tools
- Toys, leisure and sports equipment
- Automatic dispensers
- Plus: electric light bulbs and luminaries in households.
Exemptions to RoHS are listed in the annex on page five of the directive. At this time, medical devices and monitoring and control instruments are excluded from RoHS but not from the WEEE directive.
Companies face financial risks if their products are non-compliant after the July 1, 2006, effective date and, worst case, are banned from multiple countries.
According to Jeff Phillips, international trade representative with the Minnesota Trade Office, manufacturers must verify that the components used in their end products are RoHS compliant. Documented compliance must be available for each component. Suppliers may design their own materials declarations or certificates; no standard format is available. No special marking or testing by independent third parties is required.
WEEE
Directive 2002/96/EC effective August 13, 2005 (15-pg PDF)
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is an EU directive that requires manufacturers to finance the collection, recycling and recovery of waste electronics and electrical equipment. Package labeling requirements are also included in the directive. It is scheduled to take effect August 13, 2005, with additional requirements taking effect December 31, 2005.
For WEEE compliance, manufacturers will need to register to the National Clearing House which is being developed.
Benchmark Electronics
Benchmark Electronics, in Winona, received a grant from the Minnesota Office of Environmental Assistance to pilot the use of lead-free soldering in its circuit board assembly process. Benchmark expects to eliminate up to 8,300 pounds of lead at its facility and expand into new markets with a lead-free product. This emerging pollution prevention technology is one way that companies are getting the lead out to meet the RoHS directive. Case study.
Assistance
On June 21, 2005, the Surface Mount Technology Association is sponsoring the one-day workshop Complying with RoHS in St. Paul. It will focus on experiences that companies are having to solve the many difficult compliance challenges.
For additional information on these directives, contact Jeff Phillips, Minnesota Trade Office, at 651/297-8841.
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