REACH Compliance
Background
The aim of REACH is to improve the protection of human health and the environment through the better and earlier identification of the intrinsic properties of chemical substances. At the same time, innovative capability and competitiveness of the EU chemicals industry should be enhanced. The benefits of the REACH system will come gradually, as more and more substances are phased into REACH. REACH entered into force on June 1st 2007.
What does REACH Stand for?
REACH stands for the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and restriction of Chemicals
- Registration – the necessity to submit a (technical) dossier on the properties of a substance
- Evaluation – of the dossier by the authorities
- Authorization and restriction on the use of a substance or preparation of Chemicals
Business Risks
One of the greatest challenges of REACH, is the risk that one or more of your suppliers either is unaware of REACH, and could be caught up in an enforcement action that shuts down your product line, or they are planning to discontinue a substance or preparation that could require you to find another supplier or redesign your product. Awareness of REACH throughout the electronics supply chain is quite low right now (only a few industry segments are taking action), and if you remember what happened with RoHS you will want to make sure that your supply base knows about this regulation, its impacts, and is preparing for it.
How can you achieve REACH Compliance?
Our REACH service helps companies identify data gaps and deficiencies, provides services to collect detailed chemical information for each component, and compliant alternatives to meet the REACH directive through our partnership with SiliconExpert. These services overlap with RoHS Compliance and include:
- BOM (Bill of Materials) Analysis
- Full validation of part number and supplier data
- Industry standard part descriptions
- Part life cycle information (new, active, obsolete, etc.)
- Soft copy data sheets
- Full REACH chemical breakdown
- Collection of data for custom parts (such as PCB’s, sheet metal, hardware, etc.)
Services are offered on a project or ongoing basis, depending on your requirements, to ensure that your data is up to date as new chemicals are activated under the REACH umbrella.
