Product category:
Compliance Engineering
News Release from: Dionics
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 30 August 2005
Classification clouds compliance picture
Problems with classification of equipment are clouding the issues of compliance with the WEEE and RoHS Directives, reports Dionics.
To comply, or not to comply? That is the question a number of electronics manufacturers still cannot answer as RoHS and WEEE Directives draw ever closer Although its difficult to find an organisation that isn't aware of the existence of the legislation, surprisingly few have instigated compliant manufacturing, according to specialist solution provider Dionics
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 6 Nov 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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"RoHS and WEEE have become an integral part of our every day language - we all know the directives are coming, yet few organisations are familiar with the legislative nitty gritty", commented Paul Chinery, Managing Director.
"This is hardly surprising when you consider there are a lot of electronics manufacturers who are finding it extremely difficult to even classify the equipment they produce".
"If you can't categorise your products, you don't really know whether you need to comply or not".
"Moreover, many legislative exemptions apply to specific product categories, which could be overlooked in the ensuing confusion".
"This probably explains the reason behind the most common question we are currently asked - 'How do I buy more time?'", said Chinery.
Legislative detail, though complex, should not be ignored as a recent case in point illustrates.
"We were asked to perform an impact assessment for a manufacturer of professional CCTV equipment", Chinery explains.
"The company was acutely aware that ultimately they would need to comply with the directives, but wanted to explore precisely how RoHS and WEEE would impact their business, and how much time they had".
"A natural assumption would be to categorise CCTV equipment as 'monitoring and control instruments', as that's essentially what the equipment does".
"This would place them outside the scope of RoHS (category 9) but producer responsibility would still remain under the WEEE Directive".
However, a detailed assessment of the application of their products concluded that all but one of their products could be considered a fixed installation, which eliminates responsibility under both directives.
"This is a good example of the intimate legislative detail that not only needs to be employed, but also substantiated", commented Chinery.
This company is now focusing compliance efforts on their next generation of products.
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