The Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) Directive was passed into law by the European Union (E.U.). After July 1, 2006 the use of the following materials will be banned in new products sold in Europe:

        -  Lead

        -  Cadmium

        -  Mercury

        -  Hexavalent Chrome

        -  Polybrominated Biphenyl (PBBs)

        -  Polybrominated Diphenyl (PBDEs)

It affects manufacturers, sellers, distributors and recyclers of electrical and electronic equipment. The RoHS Directive complements the WEEE Directive.

WEEE Directive (2002/96/EC)

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE) applies to companies that manufacture, sell, distribute, recycle or treat electrical and electronic equipment and to consumers in the E.U. It covers all large and small household appliances, IT equipment, radio and audio equipment, electrical tools and telecommunications equipment.

The Directive aims to reduce the waste arising from electrical and electronic equipment and to improve the environmental performance of all those involved in the life cycle of these products.

The implementation of this Directive follows a specific timetable.

          - Producers (manufacturers, sellers, distributors) are to begin registration in the first quarter of 2005.

          - By August 13, 2005 private households will be able to return their WEEE to collection facilities free of charge and producers will be responsible for financing these facilities. For WEEE returned from others than private households producers will have to finance collection, treatment, recovery and disposal for products placed on the market after August, 13, 2005. For products placed on the market before this date, producers may be able to recover some of these costs.

          - By December 31, 2006 producers will be required to achieve a series of demanding recycling and recovery targets.

All of ROYALOHM's products and their packaging materials sold worldwide will be fully RoHS-compliant by July 1, 2006. An exception to this will be certain legacy products for which RoHS-compliant components are unavailable from the suppliers.

       

Proposed restrictions on the marketing and use of perfluorooctane sulfonates (PFOS) passed the European Parliament on October 25, 2006, paving the way for early adoption of amended Directive 76/769/EEC by the European Council (EC). The Directive will go into force when the EC formally adopts the regulation, and it is printed in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). Once published, Member States will have 18 months to enact the Directive into national law. It is anticipated that the Directive have effective already since June 27, 2008.

The purpose of the regulation is to limit human and environmental exposure to PFOS, a bio-accumulative toxic substance present in everyday consumer goods. PFOS would be added to the Regulation on Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) listing.

The major use of PFOS is in the manufacturing process to give grease, stain and water repellence properties to materials. Thus textiles for apparel and upholstery; carpets; paper and packaging; leather; adhesives; and general coatings are examples of goods that will be affected.

Limits Established for PFOS

- as a substance, or constituent of preparations, in a concentration equal to or higher than 0.005% by mass

- in semi-finished products at a level of 0.1% by mass; and

- in textiles or other coated materials the restricted level will be 1?g/m2.

Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and restriction of CHemicals (REACH) is a new European Union Regulation, EC/2006/1907 of 18 December 2006. REACH addresses the production and use of chemical substances, and their potential impacts on both human health and the environment. It is the strictest law to date regulating chemical substances and will impact industries throughout the world. REACH entered into force in June 2007, with a phased implementation over the next decade.

When REACH is fully in force, it will require all companies manufacturing or importing chemical substances into the European Union in quantities of one tonne or more per year to register these substances with a new European Chemicals Agency in Helsinki, Finland. Because REACH applies to some substances that are contained in objects ('articles' in REACH terminology), any company importing goods into Europe could be affected.

Potential registrants (i.e. manufacturers and importers of chemical substances) must 'pre-register' these substances by December 1, 2008, in order to benefit from postponed 'phase in' deadlines. Although 'pre-registering' is not mandatory, it is free and an important step in allowing potential registrants much more time before they have to fully register.

Supply of substances to the European market which have not been registered as required is illegal (known in REACH as 'no data, no market').

REACH also addresses the continued use of chemical 'Substances of Very High Concern' (SVHC) because of their potential negative impacts on human health or the environment. The European Chemicals Agency may need to be notified of the presence of SVHCs in articles, if they are present above certain tonnage and concentration thresholds. Depending on the substance in question and its use, producers and importers may then be obliged to investigate its effects on human health and the environment.

In normal function, ROYALOHM resistor not any released substance to environment so no need to register in REACH directive.

    

      The halogens are five non-metallic elements found in Group 7 of the periodic table. The term "halogen" means

"salt-former" and compounds containing halogens are called "salts".

The Halogens are fluorine (F), chlorine (Cl), bromine (Br), iodine (I) and astatine (At)

The danger of halogen contained in the products due to the electrical waste material contained with bromine and chlorine will occure acid gas when burning (HCl) and produce the toxic compound "Dioxin" easily and will transfer by biological chain then damage human health.

                The requirement about halogen free IPC 4101, IEC 61249-2-21 and JPCA-ES01 2003

               - Chlorine (Cl): 0.09%wt (900 ppm.)

               - Bromine (Br): 0.09%wt (900 ppm.)

               Total halogens contained: 0.15%wt (1,500 ppm.)

               We have done halogen free and guarantee that all of fixed resistors can meet the halogen requirement.