Authored By:
Krista Botsford Crotty
Alberi EcoTech LLC, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Summary
Since the European Union (EU) first published the Restriction on the use of Certain Hazardous Substances in electrical and electronic equipment directive (RoHS) in 2003, the document required updating per the methodologies within the EU's legislative system. In December 2008, a draft of this review was publically available. Since then, several meetings have taken place and additional updates to the draft are available.
There are expected changes, as well as unexpected changes, which are under discussion. In late 2010, the parties involved agreed on the majority of text for the recast. In early 2011, Parliament is expected to take an official vote to adopt the text as law. This paper will discuss these points; the conference presentation will discuss the most recent updates and status.
Conclusions
The RoHS draft recast is a cause for attentiveness throughout the electronics industry. From a removed point of view, the two major changes - open scope and CE Marking - will assist companies in complying with the directive in the long term, whether this is evident now or not. Open Scope removes the ambiguity of whether or not a product is in scope. The CE Marking will assist with a quick visual indication of compliance; and additionally put forth a standardized method of reporting compliance.
Initially Published in the IPC Proceedings
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