Legislation

CPC Statements Of RoHS Compliance

CPC's policy is only to designate a product as RoHS compliant when we are confident that the product is fully compliant. We use a simple "Yes" , "No" and "Y-Ex" designation on our web site and the meaning of these designations is as follows:

• RoHS Compliant YES RoHS Icon
  Based on information provided by our suppliers, this product does NOT contain the substances restricted by the RoHS legislation at levels over the maximum concentration values.

• RoHS Compliant by Exemption Y-Ex
  Products where our supplier has confirmed that the product qualifies for one of the specific exemptions set out in the Annex to the Directive.

• RoHS Compliant NO
  Based on information provided by our suppliers, this product contains the substances restricted by the RoHS legislation at levels over the maximum concentration values.

• No RoHS Designation
  Products that are outside the scope of the RoHS legislation and products for which we do not have enough information from our suppliers to confidently confirm their RoHS compliance status have no designation on our website. Customers that wish to purchase a RoHS compliant version of any product that is not designated as RoHS compliant YES should contact our Contact Centre or check available alternatives on our website as we may be able to provide a suitable product from our extensive range.

We Can Help You With REACH

The Registration Evaluation Authorisation (and restriction) of Chemicals regulations came into force across European Union Member States on 1/6/07.

The focus of REACH is to ensure that around 30,000 of the most frequently used substances, and all new ones, are registered along with the appropriate level of safety data. Substances of very high concern (SVHC) may also need their use to be authorised and, potentially, this can be at significant cost to industry.

Today, the challenges facing industry include:

• Potential obsolescence due to the prohibitive costs of registration and, in particular, authorisation of SVHCs

• Potential price increases due to costs

• Pre-registration (until December '08) and registration thereafter

• SVHCs may have to be authorised

• Considering alternatives to SVHCs in future designs

• All Material Safety Data Sheets need to be updated

• Further substance restrictions likely

• Most complex regulations of all (849 pages)

Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment ("WEEE")

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive was due to come into force across all Member States on 13/5/05. However, unlike RoHS and others, WEEE is not a single market directive and does not have to be implemented in the same way across Member States. For example, it took almost 2 years for the UK to implement the required procedures. The focus of WEEE is to ensure the efficient collection and recycling of equipment at end-of-life. Moving forward, there will be greater emphasis on the design stage of a product with the aim of easier, safer recycling at end-of-life. The challenges that industry has faced include:

• What "Producer" responsibilities are

• What "re-brander" responsibilities are

• What "importer" responsibilities are

• Using the "wheelie bin" symbol

• Joining a compliance scheme

• Take-back schemes

• Household and non-household WEEE

• "New" and "historic" WEEE

• We can help with all your WEEE concerns

Did you know that:

• The UK general public dispose of over 1.2 million tonnes of electrical and electronic waste every year;

• The amount of electrical waste created by members of the public in the UK would fill the new Wembley stadium 6 times over every year!

• Two million TV sets are discarded every year;

• The average UK citizen will discard 3.3 tonnes of WEEE in a life time – equal to one double decker bus for each and every family;

• It is estimated that landfill space in the UK will run out within the next ten years;

• Where WEEE is not recycled, this waste can have negative impacts on soil, air and water quality which can lead to environmental damage, and which can also lead to negative impacts on human health and animal health?

Household WEEE

Members of the public who use Electrical and Electronic Equipment ("EEE") and discard it as waste have no legal obligations under the WEEE Regulations. However, as a private householder who uses EEE, the WEEE Regulations encourage you to play your part in the separate disposal of WEEE when you discard it as waste. EEE will be marked with this symbol to help remind you to discard it separately from other household waste: Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment. For advice on all aspects of recycling household waste, including recycling of waste electronic equipment, please visit www.recycle-more.co.uk where you can find out the locations of collection points near to you. The website offers a fun and easy way to explore the world of recycling and how to minimise the effect you have on the environment.

Non-Household WEEE

Premier Farnell UK Limited is a Member of the B2B Compliance scheme (Scheme Approval Number WEE/MP3338PT/SCH). B2B will act on our behalf to make sure we comply with the WEEE Regulations in relation to the disposal of Non-Household/commercial WEEE. For further information, please contact B2B Compliance on 01691 676124. Farnell joined the compliance scheme run by B2B Compliance to take care of its Producer responsibilities (registration number WEE/AK0049TZ/Pro). B2B is a not-for-profit initiative of GAMBICA-the national organisation representing the interests of companies in the instrumentation, control, automation and laboratory technology industry in the UK. GAMBICA represents an industry sector with an output in excess of £6.8 billion.

Further information

Do you have WEEE, scrap electrical or electronic waste which you need disposing of safely and environmentally? Electrocycle can collect and recycle this for you locally and using an infrastructure established under the WEEE regulations. Electrocycle Ltd is a specialist WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) recycling company holding significant contracts for the disposal of WEEE for many hundreds of organisations. Electrocycle is contracted to arrange the collection and recycling of WEEE on behalf of the largest BtoB WEEE Producer Compliance Scheme in the UK. Whatever your business or electrical waste, we can safely collect the end-of-life electrical equipment and environmentally deal with it at one of our regionally authorised recycling centres strategically located throughout the whole of the UK. Unlike some electrical recyclers, Electrocycle can deal with nearly every kind of waste electronics. From the keyboard and mouse you are using now to the monitor screen you're looking at, the air conditioning unit controlling the temperature of the room, as well as medical, laboratory and industrial equipment most people have not heard of. All this equipment should be sent for recycling at fully authorised treatment facilities when they reach their end of life.

Waste Batteries

Did you know that:

• Around 1 billion household batteries are used in the UK every year.

• In 2009, only 3% of household batteries were recycled and the rest went to landfill.

• Each year we throw away about 600 million batteries – laid end to end these batteries would reach from the UK to Australia and back again.

• Each year about 22,000 tonnes of UK household batteries are sent to landfill. That's the same weight as 110 Jumbo Jets.

• Batteries can be found in virtually every room in the house. They're used in a wide range of objects including toys, remote controls, mobile phones, ipods and even doorbells.

The Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009 ("Regulations") came into force in the UK on 5 May 2009. The Regulations encourage companies that manufacture or import batteries ("Producers") to reduce the environmental impact of battery waste. The Regulations achieve this by placing obligations on companies to finance the collection and treatment of batteries, and to offer take back of portable batteries (batteries which are sealed and can be carried by hand without difficulty).

Click here to download the Directive documentation

To comply with its legal obligations as a Producer under the Regulations, Premier Farnell UK Limited has joined a compliance scheme with a company called Budget Pack. Budget Pack will act on our behalf to make sure we comply with the Regulations. Budget Pack has registered Premier Farnell UK as a Producer, and we have been given the following Producer number: BPRN00563

If you wish to return used portable batteries to us you can dispose of these at the battery bins stationed in our trade counter at CPC (Component House, Faraday Drive, Fulwood, Preston, Lancs, PR2 9PP). We appreciate that many of our customers do not live near the trade counter, and for such customers, Budget Pack provides a network of battery recycling facilities where customer's can dispose of their batteries. Please visit the web site provided by Budget Pack at www.recyclenow.co.uk where you can find out the locations of the nearest collection points to you. The website also contains general information on the recycling of batteries. Alternatively, if you don't have access to the web you can call Budget Pack on 0845 094 2228.