Compliance with European Union WEEE and RoHS Directives
In January 2003, the European Union adopted two important environmental directives -- the Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and the Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS). In combination with additional Directives in the EU and other geographies, they represent an important milestone in providing a safer environment for future generations.
The WEEE Directive
The WEEE Directive obliges manufacturers, importers, and/or distributors of electronic equipment to label the equipment for recycling and to provide for recycling of the electronic equipment at the end of its useful life. The initial compliance date was August 13, 2005, although not all EU countries adopted the necessary implementation rules by that deadline. S-Products is committed to complying with the WEEE Directive (as implemented in each EU member state). In accordance with the requirements of the WEEE Directive, S-Products has labelled its electronic products that are shipped. The WEEE label and instructions for disposal are as follows:
Instructions for disposal of waste equipment by users in the European Union
This symbol on the product or its packaging indicates that this product must not be disposed of with other waste. Instead, it is your responsibility to dispose of your waste equipment by handing it over to a designated collection point for the recycling of electrical waste and electronic equipment. The separate collection and recycling of your waste equipment at the time of disposal will help conserve natural resources and ensure that it is recycled in a manner that protects human health and the environment. For more information about where you can drop off your consumer waste equipment for recycling, please contact your local city recycling office or the dealer from whom you originally purchased the product.
The RoHS Directive
The RoHS Directive (RoHS = Restriction of Hazardous Substances) complements the WEEE Directive by severely restricting the presence of specific toxic substances in electronic equipment at the design phase, thereby reducing the environmental impact of discarding such products at the end of their useful life. Starting on July 1, 2006, this Directive significantly limited the use of lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), hexavalent chromium (Cr6) and two bromine-containing flame retardants: PBB (polybrominated biphenyls) and PBDE (polybrominated diphenyl ethers). S-Products is committed to complying with this Directive and has worked in collaboration with its suppliers to evaluate the new restrictions, to identify relevant exemptions, and to substitute environmentally-benign, compliant alternative materials in its product components and manufacturing processes. Subject to the available exemptions, S-Products’ products were compliant with the RoHS Directive for its products by the July 1, 2006 implementation date.
REACH
S-Products does neither manufacture nor import chemical substances. S-Products is well aware of:
- the requirements of EG-EEC 206: 1907 REACH
- the list of candidates
- our obligations concerning safety data sheets as well as informing customers