By Elena Andreula, EMEA Regulatory Program Expert
On June 4, 2015, the European Commission published a new Directive (EU) 2015/863 adding four additional substances to the list in the Annex II of RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU.
Lighting Industry
For the Lighting industry, up until now, the following six substances have been regulated:
- Mercury (Hg) — 0.1%
- Lead (Pb) —– 0.1%
- Cadmium (Cd) —– 0.01%
- Hexavalent chromium (Vi) —– 0.1%
- Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) —– 0.1%
- Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) — 0.1%
The restriction of the four new substances, which applies starting July 22, 2019, concerns phthalates with the following maximum concentration permissible:
- Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) — 0.1%
- Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) — 0.1%
- Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) — 0.1%
- Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) — 0.1%
Appliances Industry
For the Appliances industry, the new restriction became effective July 22, 2019, with the following maximum permissible concentrations:
- Bis (2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) – 0.1%
- Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) – 0.1%
- Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) – 0.1%
- Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) – 0.1%
Manufacturer’s Obligations
Manufacturers must comply with Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) requirements if they utilize any of the restricted material. They must do the following:
- Ensure that the design and manufacturer of the product complies with RoHS
- Set up production control to ensure that product remains compliant over time
- Draw up technical documentation demonstrating compliance
- Complete an assessment of conformity with the regulations
- Prepare a declaration of conformity
- Fix the European Conformity (CE) marking
How UL can help
UL is expertly qualified to assist companies in demonstrating their products meet the requirements of the RoHS Directive, providing testing for appliances and lighting industry.