Common myths about RoHS

What do you believe?

By Jeff Shafer
Senior Vice President, Product
Newark InOne

There are a number of myths and misunderstandings surrounding the European Union environmental directive, Restriction of certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) that will take effect July 1, 2006. While the reality is that RoHS will affect virtually all companies that use electronic components, many companies still presume that they are not impacted because of industry, application or trading geography exemptions.

"If I'm exempt, I'm not affected."

For example, the defense industry and portions of the telecommunications industry may be technically exempt from RoHS, but those industries have long purchased high-volume commercial parts. Commercial components are going green, and it's not likely that leaded versions of those parts will be produced for long. If they don't go end-of-life immediately, they will certainly be produced in smaller volumes and probably at higher prices. Consequently, even those in exempt industries will need to shift to green parts or start buying the more expensive military-spec components that will still be produced with tin-lead solder and plating.

Similarly, spare parts used for maintenance and repairs are presently exempt. However, maintenance professionals need to understand that there are soldering ramifications to consider. As many components with tin/lead-plated leads convert to pure tin plating, the soldering practices used in the repair of non-compliant equipment may change. When both the equipment and the component are RoHS-compliant, higher temperature lead-free solder is required, and the engineer needs to learn a new process. See our 3 part webinar series on lead-free soldering, available on demand.

"It only affects Europe."

Yet another myth is that if you don't sell into Europe, you won't be impacted. RoHS may be a Euro-centric law, but it's leading a worldwide shift to environmental regulation. Environmental legislation is now being written in the majority of Canadian provinces and U.S. states. In all, 15 of the world's largest economies, including China, are expected to have laws in place near the time of the 2006 RoHS deadline. Consequently, the geographic market for non-compliant parts will continue to shrink over the coming years. See our US state and Canadian province guide to check what's happening in your area.

It's no myth that you will be affected by RoHS in some way, whether you're a design engineer, maintenance engineer or electronics buyer. And Newark InOne is committed to making your transition to compliance as easy as possible. If you'd like to understand more about how your company is affected by this legislation, phone our RoHS-trained sales team at 1.800.463.9275.