In 2006, the EU brought in a new directive aimed at reducing the hazardous substances that are often found within electrical and electronic equipment. This was intended to reduce the escape of harmful substances such as lead, mercury and cadmium when the product is sent to waste or recycling, as well as to make the products safer to use.

This EU RoHS Directive is now imperative for anyone working within this field before they can distribute or retail their equipment, as you must ensure that your goods meet its specific requirements. Read on to find out more about what is covered by the RoHS Directive and how you can comply.

If you would like assistance with the ROHS Directive, please get in touch

What is the RoHS Directive?

The Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive is a European Union directive applying to electrical or electronic equipment. It impacts any business or organization that supplies such equipment to the EU market. The legislation not only applies to the equipment itself, but all of the materials found in its components and sub-assemblies as well.

The directive specifies maximum levels of Cadmium (Cd), Lead (Pb), Mercury (Hg), Hexavalent Chromium (Cr VI), Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB), Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDE), Bis(2-Ethylhexyl) Phthalate (DEHP), Benzyl Butyl Phthalate (BBP), Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), and Diisobutyl Phthalate (DIBP).

Corresponding regulations apply in the UK, where the enforcement agency is the Office for Product Safety and Standards.

How can I become RoHS certified?

To become RoHS certified, you should demonstrate RoHS compliance by providing items such as:

  • Lab test reports
  • Declaration of Conformity
  • Technical documentation

What does the RoHS directive apply to?

The RoHS directive applies to the following categories of electrical equipment:

  • Household appliances
  • Electric sports equipment
  • Electric toys
  • Lighting
  • It & telecoms equipment
  • Medical devices
  • Monitoring instruments
  • Automatic dispensers

The following products are exempt from the RoHS directive:

  • Military equipment/electrical goods for military purposes
  • Space equipment
  • Large scale stationary industrial tools
  • Active implantable medical devices

What substances are covered by the RoHS Directive?

The RoHS Directive currently restricts the use of the following ten substances:

  • Lead (Pb) <0.1%
  • Mercury (Hg) <0.1%
  • Cadmium (Cd) <0.1%
  • Hexavalent chromium (Cr VI) <0.1%
  • Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) <0.1%
  • Polybrominated diphenyls ethers (PBDE) <0.1%
  • Bis(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) <0.1%
  • Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP) <0.1%
  • Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) <0.1%
  • Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) <0.1%

What products are covered?

Most electrical / electronic products are regulated in order to support their recovery, reuse and recycling. The directive applies to most electrical and electronic equipment that falls into the category of large or small household appliances, IT and telecommunications equipment, consumer equipment, lighting equipment, electrical and electronic tools, toys, leisure and sports equipment, medical devices, monitoring and control instruments, automatic dispensers and other EEE not covered by any of the other categories.

There are exceptions for products for military use or those designed to be sent into space, products integral to equipment that is out of the scope of the directive, large scale industrial tools and fixed installation, solar panels produced for permanent use at specific locations, transport, non-road mobile machinery for professional use, products for research and development available on a business-to-business basis and active implantable medical devices.

How to comply with the RoHS Directive

There are defined maximum concentration values for each hazardous substance, and so a technical file will need to be created to demonstrate the compliance of the item with the directive. In addition to this, all products must have their own Declaration of Conformity, be appropriately marked, and display the CE label. Responsibility for compliance is that of both the manufacturer or the importer placing the goods on the market and the distributor.

RoHS Declaration of Conformity

Before placing your products on the EU market, you must have a declaration of conformity. This document must contain the following information:

  • A) Unique electrical and electronic equipment identifier
  • B) The manufacturer’s name and full address
  • C) A statement that declares the manufacturer’s responsibility when issuing the DoC
  • D) Product traceability information of the electrical equipment
  • E) A statement declaring the electrical equipment’s compliance with the RoH’s requirements on substances
  • F) A full list of relevant harmonised or technical standards
  • G) Place and date of issue
  • H) Full name and signature of the issuer

Once this document has been created, presented and approved your products will be RoHS certified and ready to be issued on the relevant markets.

Get in touch

Interested in learning more? Contact us today to schedule a consultation and explore how we can help. Call us on 01298873837 or via email info@ARenquiries.com, alternatively you can fill out our form over on our contact page.

Our Scope of Service

Along with the RoHS directive, we also serve the following directives:

How AR Service will support you?

Authorised Representative Service will act as your responsible economic operator and carry out the following obligations for you:

  • We will verify that your EU Declaration of Conformity (or Incorporation, Performance, etc.) and technical documentation has been drawn up correctly.
  • We will keep these documents at the disposal of market surveillance authorities for the period required by that legislation and ensure that the technical documentation can be made available to those authorities upon request.
  • Upon request from a market surveillance authority, we will ensure that the technical documentation can be made available to them in order to demonstrate the conformity of the product.
  • If we have reason to believe that a product presents a risk, we will highlight this information to the necessary parties.
  • If a risk is identified, we will liaise with you and support you in taking immediate, necessary, corrective action to remedy any noncompliance causing the risk.
  • As your Authorised Representative, we will provide you with our name and contact details, for you to place on the product, it’s packaging or accompanying documentation.
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