RoHS in the European Union
European Union Directive 2002/95/EC - The Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS), will be enforced throughout the European Community beginning July 1, 2006. The intent is to restrict the use of six chemical substances to agreed upon levels within electrical and electronic equipment in the interest of health and environmental protection. Products not meeting RoHS compliancy are forbidden to be sold to the European Community after this date.
Often RoHS is incorrectly simplified as requiring products to be “lead free” even though there is a threshold concentration limit as well as certain waivers permitted. Moreover, EU RoHS also covers five other chemicals. Here is the complete list along with concentration limits by weight in homogeneous materials (which cannot be mechanically disjointed):
- Lead (0.1%)
- Mercury (0.1%)
- Cadmium (0.01%)
- Hexavalent chromium (0.1%)
- Polybrominated biphenyl (0.1%)
- Polybrominated diphenyl ether (0.1%)
It is Sierra Wireless' policy to comply with sound environmental practices without sacrificing performance and quality, and to comply with applicable laws and regulations. As such, all future products developed by Sierra Wireless will be EU RoHS compliant, including the following available today that are either EU RoHS compliant or exempt:
AirCard® PC Card Series
| EU RoHS Compliant |
AirCard 850, AirCard 860, AirCard 875, AirCard 595 AC597E, AC880, AC881, AC880E, AC881E, AC875U, AC880U, AC881U and AC595U. |
| Not EU RoHS Compliant |
AirCard 775, AirCard 750, AirCard 710, AirCard 580, AirCard 550, AirCard 555, PC 3300, PC 5220, AirCard 750, and all other legacy AirCard PC Card modems. |
Embedded Modules
| EU RoHS Compliant |
EM 5625, MC 5720, MC 5725, MC 8755, MC 8765, MC 8775, MC8780, MC8781 and MC8785V. |
| Not EU RoHS Compliant |
EM 3420, and all other legacy embedded modules. |
| MP Rugged Modem Series |
Rugged vehicle mount modems are exempt for EU RoHS requirements. |
For more information on RoHS requirements in the European Community, please visit:
RoHS in the United States and China
United States
US RoHS regulations are being drafted for the most part at the State level. California will be the first to enact RoHS law beginning January 1, 2007 by taking a sub-set of the European Union's definition. Important to note California RoHS covers only the four metals (Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, and Hexavalent chromium) and further, limits inclusion to devices featuring video displays greater than 4 inches. Therefore, all of Sierra Wireless' products are currently exempt from California RoHS.
For more information on California RoHS policy, please click here.
China
China is still in the process of developing their RoHS policy, but it is expected to be similar to EU RoHS policies. More details to come.