IPC outcry over proposed RoHS expansion
11 June 2008
News
IPC is urging all technical experts from member companies and other stakeholders in the electronics industry to participate in a special meeting on 18 June in Brussels to discuss their concerns over RoHS expansion.
Plans also call for representatives of the European Commission to attend the meeting.
In a letter sent to its members recently, IPC detailed its concerns about the draft report issued by the Öko Institute, the organisation retained by the EU Commission to study the inclusion of additional substance restrictions in the RoHS directive, and what IPC says are the institute's biased and flawed methodologies.
According to IPC, the institute went beyond the framework initially set by the EU Commission and created new criteria and categories for inclusion within the RoHS directive, proposing now that substances observed in the environment and with concerns about combustion should be prohibited under RoHS. This includes Tetra-bromobisphenol A (TBBPA), the flame retardant used to protect more than 80% of printed circuit boards and found to be safe by a European Union risk assessment. In addition to TBBPA, the institute suggests banning Hexabromocylcododecanes (HBCDD), several phthalate plasticisers, and all organic compounds containing chlorine and bromine.
IPC's letter to its membership also reveals that institute staff denied IPC permission to attend a workshop it held for discussion of the report due to the fact that only 'scientific experts were invited'. The institute's disregard of the technical expertise within IPC and its membership, coupled with its ambition to expand the scope of criteria beyond the EU Commission's original intent, is causing concern throughout the industry that scientific evidence is not driving the basis of the report.
While the institute chose to exclude some stakeholders from its meeting, IPC believes it is critical for all scientific evidence to be presented and is hopeful that its special meeting in Brussels will provide industry experts with an avenue to present their technical findings before a final decision is made by the EU Commission.
Further reading:
From the editor's desk: Are we really being ripped off?
Technews Publishing
News
To the surprise of many customers, installing solar panels does not always eliminate their utility bill – and in some cases, the power utility may impose additional charges on solar-powered homes.
Read more...
Winner of the Advanced Electronics Challenge
Avnet Silica
News
Avnet Silica has named Hydronauten winner of the Advanced Electronics Challenge for breakthrough AI-driven vibration damping technology.
Read more...
Mouser now shipping SiLabs wireless modules
TRX Electronics
News
Mouser Electronics is now shipping the new SiWx917Y wireless modules from Silicon Labs which provide ultra-low-power Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth Low Energy 5.4, and Matter connectivity.
Read more...
Innovative NOS software
News
NEC Corporation has made history as the first company to earn the Telecom Infra Project Phoenix Gold Badge for its innovative Network Operating System software, designed to run on whitebox optical transponders.
Read more...
Big welcome to new team member
Seven Labs Technology
News
Seven Labs, a specialist electronics distributor and systems integrator for the South African and sub-Saharan markets, has extended a huge welcome to its newest member of the team.
Read more...
Hisense SA showcases local manufacturing power
News
The proudly SA summit provided an opportunity for Hisense SA to showcase its next generation products manufactured at their state-of-the-art factory in Atlantis, Western Cape.
Read more...
Winner of the Global Energy Efficiency award
News
Pulsiv Limited, the Cambridge (UK) manufacturer of power electronics technology, have won the PSMA’s (Power Sources Manufacturers Association) first Global Energy Efficiency Award.
Read more...
Direct-to-satellite phone call in SA
News
MTN SA and low-earth orbit satellite company Lynk Global have completed a successful technical trial of one of the first mobile-to-satellite phone calls in South Africa.
Read more...
Memory solutions for AI Edge applications
News
Mouser Electronics has announced a new eBook in collaboration with Micron exploring the importance of memory in AI edge applications.
Read more...
Jemstech to produce PCB assemblies for Kamstrup
Jemstech
News
Jemstech is pleased to announce that they have successfully concluded a supplier agreement with Kamstrup A/S in Denmark, a leading supplier of intelligent metering solutions in the global market.
Read more...
printer friendly version