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RoHS
The Electronics Industry has been challenged to be considerate of its environmental responsibilities. The inclusion of hazardous substances is no longer tolerated by the world-wide community, and various legislations are already in effect to regulate these concerns. Further, the Industry is being encouraged to consider the waste from their products, and to take responsibility for disposal and recycling.
The leading legislations for this change are known across Europe as the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) and WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directives. Member States of the EU have raised their own legislation to meet, if not exceed, these directives. Other countries and trading communities across the world are also passing laws which reflect the intent of the RoHS and WEEE Directives.
RoHS - Restriction of Hazardous Substances
As a component supplier, Harwin is not directly impacted by RoHS, as none of our products are electrical or electronic products themselves. However, the products made by our customers, in which these components are utilized, are affected by the legislation. Harwin must therefore take responsibility for the content of its products under the RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC where required by customers. The Directive was completed in 2003, and took effect from July 1st, 2006. Further amendments have itemized the maximum level of the restricted substances allowed (Amendment 2005/618/EC), and increased the number of exempt applications.
In simple terms, the following chemicals are reduced or eliminated. The maximum allowable concentration value by weight is given below:
- Lead (Pb) – 0.1%
- Mercury (Hg) – 0.1%
- Cadmium (Cd) – 0.01%
- Hexavalent Chromium (Cr6) – 0.1%
- Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB) – 0.1%
- Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDE) including DecaBDE – 0.1%
Of all the Hazardous substances that impact Harwin product, Lead (Pb) is the biggest single factor. Please see our Lead Free page for more detailed information on this topic.
Recent changes to the legislation have included the addition of a number of other exemptions, mostly specific to certain applications. A full list of additions to the RoHS legislation can be found on the Europa website. Previously, DecaBDE had been given an exemption (Amendment 2005/717/EC), but this has since been successfully challenged in the European Court of Justice. As from 30th June 2008, DecaBDE is once again included as a banned substance. We are completing our investigation into this substance, and have not found any use of this material in our RoHS compliant products.
A number of customers have also enquired about PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonates), which have been listed on Amendment 2006/122/ECOF. This is not actually an amendment to RoHS or WEEE, but to Directive 76/769/EEC, relating to Dangerous Substances. We have not yet fully completed our investigation into this substance, but we have not yet found any use of this material in our RoHS compliant products, nor are we expecting this to be of concern.
If you require a RoHS declaration for any of our products, please use the Part Number Search to navigate to the product's Family Page, where you can download the RoHS statement relevant to that product. If the statement is not available, or you require a statement for a custom product, please contact leadfree@harwin.co.uk.
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