Product category:
Electronics Manufacturing Quality Assurance
News Release from: Blundell Production Equipment
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 31 January 2005
Last-minute RoHS compliance may spell
disaster
Time is much shorter than most people imagine for RoHS compliance, and electronics companies are being warned that they risk leaving it too late to make the change.
Time is much shorter than most people imagine for RoHS compliance, and electronics companies are being warned that they risk leaving it too late to make the change According to soldering equipment supplier Blundell Production Equipment, to allow for lead time, stock inventories and modifications to production equipment, equipment manufacturers should be aiming to be completely lead free at least 6 months before the official deadline of July 2006
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 13 Apr 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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This means that December 2005 is a more realistic deadline to have all Pb-free processes in place.
This gives the industry less than a year to gear up for the change.
According MD Paul Blundell, only a few manufacturers have so far responded to the RoHS Directive and started to make changes to their processes.
"The ones who act early will be the winners", he says.
"A huge amount of work will need to be done to bring soldering machinery, in particular, up to spec for lead free production".
"There are literally hundreds of wave soldering machines out there that will need major on-site modification or renewal".
"Also, hundreds of reflow ovens will have insufficient zones and inadequate tunnel lengths to be able to cope with lead free processing, and all of these will have to be replaced before the deadline".
"The very real risk is that all suppliers may soon become fully committed with forward orders, and lead times will go out to unimaginable lengths, causing many manufacturers to miss the deadline, leading to loss of orders, and in theory, possible criminal proceedings".
"Forward thinking companies are already booking slots for machine upgrades and new equipment purchases throughout 2005 and even into early 2006".
"Indications are that by the middle of this year there will be no more availability for companies who have not reserved slots by that time".
"There are many companies out there who haven't got a clue what's going to hit them if they don't take action soon", says Blundell.
"A lot of people could go out of business over this issue, and there may not be enough contract manufacturers with lead free capabilities to soak up the extra work".
"There are going to be lots of people out there with products they can't manufacture".
More information is available on the Blundell website.
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