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How will RoHS changes affect medical equipment? - New RoHS changes will impact medical devices. Many of the exemptions that kept RoHS from restricting medical devices will be lifted. Fred Loneker, a senior manager with Environ International Corp.

Engineers need to track RoHS changes - The European Commission is about to drop six exemptions from the RoHS directive. While a move of this order was expected, it still shows that design engineers need to be cognizant of changes in environmental regulations.  the components they chose yesterday may not be compliant today.

Six RoHS exemptions cut - In the latest round of RoHS changes, six exemptions will be retired from the directive’s list of 29 exemptions. In an article in EDN, a Design News sister site, Gary Nevison of Newark and Farnell explains which six exemptions will expire over the next two years.

The impact of environmental regulations on electronics manufacturers - Here’s an in-depth paper that covers the Impact of Environmental Regulations on Electronic Manufacturers. Michael Kirschner, president of Design Chain Associates, a firm the helps companies comply with regulations, authored the paper for the December 2008 Conference on Resource Recycling.

SaaS eco-software for REACH and RoHS - Green EcoSystems Group of Colorado Springs, Colo. has introduced Green -EcoSystems software-as-a-service designed to help manufacturing companies address requirements related to the REACH directive. The tool also supports RoHS compliance.

Selecting the right lead-free connector design - RoHS laws have affected manufacturing processes as well as changing the nature of electronic components. The article, “Designing for RoHS: Select the right lead-free-connector design for heat-sensitive applications,” explores the RoHS-compliant alternatives for design engineers.

New company offers XrF testing - i-Nalysis, a recently launched New England-based company, had introduced a handheld X-ray Fluorescence device designed to make it easier for companies to identify lead and other elements in their products.

Total Parts Plus announces disclosure services for REACH and RoHS - Total Parts Plus, a parts sourcing service for obsolete components, has launched its Ready to Receive service that sends full disclosure for REACH and RoHS material data to PLM, MRP or compliance management software.

IPC seeks participants for PCB conference - TheAssociation Connecting Electronics Industries (IPC) has issued a Call for Participation for the Midwest’s premier technical conference, IPC Midwest Conference & Exhibition. This exhibition will take place September 23-24, 2009.

EC unlikely to ban TBBPA - According to an article in Dataweek, the European Commission is unlikely to add Tetrabromobisphenol(TBBPA) to the list of substances monitored or banned under RoHS. The announcement was preceded by heavy lobbying by IPC.

Denmark busts electronic toys in RoHS sweep - During a recent crackdown on hazardous chemicals and substances, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found lead above RoHS defined levels in three electronic toys.

Robots dip lead to end tin whiskers - Manufacturers in the defense, aerospace and medical equipment industries need to get the lead back into their components. The move to lead-free parts has left the industries that are exempt from RoHS with trouble finding leaded parts.

RoHS targets medical and control equipment - As part of the proposed changes and additions to RoHS, the European Commission (EU) is considering including medical and control equipment into the scope of RoHS.

Leaded components are still in demand - According to a recent article in EDN, a Design News sister publication, there is still a real need for electronic components containing lead.

Greenpeace - electronics still not clean enough - A new survey from Greenpeace International, "Green Electronic - the search continues," concludes that the electronics industry has cleaned up its products somewhat, but not enough. The report notes that "There are a number of findings that underline the progress toward green, but there are also significant shortcomings in certain practices."

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Eight steps to China RoHS compliance

Eight steps to China RoHS compliance

China RoHS is significantly different from the European Union's RoHS directive; however, there are significant benefits that can be gained by leveraging your company's compliance strategies for meeting the EU RoHS requirements. [Read more...]

 

All You Wanted to Know About Computer Recycling

11.04.2007 09:04 - Source:

The trouble with computers is that once they become old and obsolete, they turn from being useful electronic products to hazardous waste objects given the fact that they are made from components that can cause the environment some harm because of the toxic content in them. It is believed that as many as three fourths of old and obsolete computers need to be disposed off and this will surely lead to a big issue for not only the advanced nations of the Western world, but for the world as a whole.

The more new innovative electronic products that are entering the market in a steady stream, the more the need arises to recycle obsolete items such as computers, which makes it a cause of worry even for the local landfills that may not be able to handle high volumes. Since there are many millions of computers in need of being recycled, the environment is coming under threat from such high quantity of waste as well as from the toxins released.

Because of emerging new computer models that are fast making your existing computer become obsolete, the need for finding a solution to e-waste has become paramount for us. Computer recycling means saving some the parts from the obsolete computers while getting rid of those parts that are toxic in nature. You would be surprised to know that there are millions of computers becoming obsolete each year and these are known to contain dangerous material like cadmium, barium, lead as well as mercury.

Computer Landfill

Landfills are not the ideal place to dump your obsolete computer as the dangerous materials such lead, cadmium and barium could get stuck into the ground and even enter the food as well as water thus exacerbating the problem to not only the environment, but also to the health of us humans. The matter is serious enough given the fact that most families may be having more than one obsolete computer stashed away in their garage waiting to be recycled.

This means that there must be a proper way to recycle the old and obsolete computers, so that we can get rid of them without putting ourselves as well as the environment to harm. Computer recycling is not made any easier because there is really not enough incentive to make the effort and you may have to pay a pretty sum of money to have the material collected, handled as well as processed. You may end up paying between ten and fewer than a hundred dollars for each recycled computer.

The most common means of computer recycling is to donate your computer to outfits that may be there as non-profit organizations, or to those who refurbish computers. In any case, the need for manufacturers to come up with computers that do not contain such high levels of hazardous material in the computer is also something that needs to be actively pursued in the not too distant future.

Donations means that the computers will be used further which will prolong their life and not add to the already voluminous e-waste currently plaguing the world today. Reuse of materials will reduce the burden of disposal of computers that have hazardous properties is not only beneficial to the environment but also results in cheaper means of producing new products.

Original text is here