Compliance

This page is provided to keep you informed of WEEE & RoHS developments, both within Dynamic Controls and around the world. If you have any specific queries relating to WEEE and RoHS compliance then please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it us.

Regulations and directives
Two European Directives aimed at protecting the environment have been enacted to reduce waste electrical and electronic equipment from entering landfills or being incinerated at end of life, through enhanced product life cycle management and improvements in environmental controls at end of life.

Waste Electronic & Electrical Equipment (WEEE) Directive 2002/96/EC
Aimed at reduction of electrical and electronic waste through increased reuse and refurbishment and improvements in materials recovery and recycling at end of product life. All electronic equipment placed on the EU market after 13 August 2005 must bear the crossed-out "wheelie" bin symbol of EN 50419:2005, indicating need for separate collection, if the product contains substances suitable for recycling. Components, sub-assemblies and consumables forming part of the equipment at the time of discarding are covered under WEEE. Design and production of electrical and electronic equipment must facilitate dismantling and recovery, in particular reuse and recycling.

Weee
Restrictions on use of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive 2002/95/EC
Effective 1 July 2006, all electronic and electrical equipment placed on the EU market cannot contain lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) or polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) in concentrations exceeding established limits or intentionally added. Maximum concentration in each "homogenous" material (which cannot be mechanically disjointed) are 0.01 % (100 ppm) for Cadmium and 0.1 % (1,000 ppm) for the remaining hazardous substances. The intent of this Directive is to ensure that all new electronic items are designed and manufactured using safer alternate materials, so that these hazardous substances are no longer in use.

 

RoHS

 

Medical devices are covered under Category 8 of the WEEE Directive 2002/96/EC but currently exempt under RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC. The medical device RoHS exemption - on the grounds of lack of technically equivalent alternatives to certain restricted hazardous substances, that do not compromise device reliability or safety - is expected to be in place for the EU at least till 2012.

Similar regulation is being enacted by numerous national authorities - notably China, Korea, Japan, California (USA) and Norway - with minor amendments.