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RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substance) Directive 2002/95/EC and
WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive 2002/96/EC

On 1st July 2006, the RoHS and WEEE directives came into force. Adax has completed its RoHS and WEEE planning, including: the updating of the product build specifications; the creation and maintenance of a database containing Material Declarations and Letters of Warranty for every RoHS device used; and the purchasing of lead free parts. Adax is manufacturing two types of RoHS compliant boards: one with lead free solder and one with leaded solder (as exempted from the requirements of Article 4(1) of the RoHS Directive). Both boards use the same lead free parts.

No Change to Form, Fit or Function
The RoHS and WEEE requirements have not required any changes to be made to the form, fit or function of the Adax HDCII and ATM cards.

Part Numbers
RoHS compliant Adax products that use the Exemptions of the RoHS Directive (as detailed below), and in particular are manufactured with leaded solder, have an “NE” (Network Exempt) suffix added to the current product number.

RoHS compliant Adax products that do not use the exemptions, I. E those that are manufactured with lead-free solder, have an “R” suffix added to the current product number.

Please Note: As of 1st July 2006, Adax will ship ‘NE’ boards as standard to customers requesting RoHS compliant HDCII and ATM products. Due to limited customer demand, Adax will only build ‘R’ boards for special orders subject to extended delivery times.

Exemptions
Adax products with the R suffix are built in accordance with Article 4(1) of Directive 2002/95/EC on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment provides ‘that from 1 July 2006, new electrical and electronic equipment put on the market does not contain lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, PBB or PBDE. ’

Adax products with the NE suffix are built in accordance with Article 5(1)(b) of Directive 2002/95/EC which provides that materials and components can be exempted from the substance restrictions contained in Article 4(1) if their elimination or substitution via design changes or materials and components which do not require any of the materials or substances referred to therein is technically or scientifically impracticable, or where the negative environmental, health and/or consumer safety impacts caused by substitution outweigh the environmental, health and/or consumer safety benefits thereof.

The Annex to the Directive lists a limited number of applications of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium, which are exempted from the requirements of Article 4(1). Despite the use of the word ‘Exemption’ products built using the following exemptions are RoHS compliant:

1. Mercury in compact fluorescent lamps not exceeding 5 mg per lamp.
2. Mercury in straight fluorescent lamps for general purposes not exceeding:
   - halophosphate 10 mg
   - triphosphate with normal lifetime 5 mg
   - triphosphate with long lifetime 8 mg.
3. Mercury in straight fluorescent lamps for special purposes.
4. Mercury in other lamps not specifically mentioned in this Annex.
5. Lead in glass of cathode ray tubes, electronic components and fluorescent tubes.
6. Lead as an alloying element in steel containing up to 0,35 %lead by weight, aluminium containing up to 0,4 %lead by weight and as a copper alloy containing up to 4 %lead by weight.
7. Lead in high melting temperature type solders (i.e. tin-lead solder alloys containing more than 85 %lead),
   - lead in solders for servers, storage and storage array systems (exemption granted until 2010),
   - lead in solders for network infrastructure equipment for switching, signalling, transmission as well as network management for telecommunication,
   - lead in electronic ceramic parts (e.g.piezoelectronic devices).
8. Cadmium plating except for applications banned under Directive 91/338/EEC (1)amending Directive 76/769/EEC (2) relating to restrictions on the marketing and use of certain dangerous substances and preparations.
9. Hexavalent chromium as an anti-corrosion of the carbon steel cooling system in absorption refrigerators.
10. Within the procedure referred to in Article 7(2),the Commission shall evaluate the applications for:
    - Deca BDE,
    - mercury in straight fluorescent lamps for special purposes,
    - lead in solders for servers, storage and storage array systems, network infrastructure equipment for switching, signalling, transmission as well as network management for telecommunications (with a view to setting a specific time limit for this exemption),and
    - light bulbs,
    as a matter of priority in order to establish as soon as possible whether these items are to be amended accordingly.

The exemptions in this Annex pertinent to the Adax products include item numbers: 5, 7 and 10.

On the basis of Article 5(1)(b) of Directive 2002/95/EC the Commission has also received from industry additional requests, with substantiated evidence, for applications to be exempted from the requirements of the directive:

• Lead in tin whisker resistant coatings for fine pitch applications.
• Lead bound in glass as a function part of electrical or electronic equipment.
• Solders containing lead and/or cadmium for specific applications.
• Hexavalent chromium (CR V1) passivation coatings.
• Lead in connectors, flexible printed circuits, and flexible flat cables.
• Cadmium as doping material in avalanche photodiodes (APDs) for the optical fiber communication systems.
• Low melting point alloys containing lead
• Galvanized steel containing up to 0.35% lead by weight and aluminum with an unintended lead content up to 0.4% lead by weight in electrical and electronic equipment.

Letter of Warranty
The Adax Letter of Warranty for RoHS and WEEE compliance can be downloaded here: download

WEEE (Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment) Compliance Progress:
Adax now uses WEEE-compliant packaging materials for all shipments to Europe, and Product Manuals include details about the recovery and recycling of Adax products. All Adax WEEE compliant products and packaging display the crossed through ‘wheeled-bin’ marking as shown here.

Non RoHS Compliant Products
RoHS versions of certain, older, Adax products cannot be produced due to the unavailability of lead-free parts. This includes the APC, APC7 and ACT boards, and old versions of the HDC and ATM boards. If you are an existing Adax customer and want to continue using these products after June 2006, you must contact your Account Manager. It is possible that Adax can continue to supply you with these products after June 2006 in certain circumstances. In particular, Adax may be able to accommodate your requests if you intend to use the Directive Exemptions for existing equipment, or if you are supplying the products outside of the EU to countries that are not implementing the directive.

For more information on how RoHS and WEEE affect the Adax products that you currently have deployed or intend to purchase please email rohs@adax.co.uk or contact your Account Manager.

For additional information about RoHS and WEEE, please visit: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/weee_index.htm