Appliance Design - November 2008 - (Page 37)

QUALITY & STANDARDS of information in a timely fashion. It may require them to communicate up and down their, sometimes multiple, supply chains to gather the required information. In today’s age of global supply chains and compliance requirements changing almost on a daily basis, manufacturers are quickly realizing that their supply chain is not as clean and proficient as they once thought. Over the years since the emergence of RoHS, horror stories have been related about companies discovering that their supply chain is simply supplying “compliant” statements in response to customer inquiry about their product, only to be found through compliance assurance activities that the opposite is true. In these cases, certainly some endorsements of compliance were misleading, but many were supplied as a result of lack of understanding of the requirements and the full extent of the declaration. So, to expect the importers’ and producers’ supply chain to be able to provide this type of information for the initial requests is going to be reaching. Major brand owners who have gained invaluable experience from complying with previous directives such as the multiple RoHS directives, California Proposition 65, and other global restricted substance regulations, have decided to take a pro-active approach when dealing with REACH. Some of the larger companies that are mandated to take on registration right away, as they exceed the 1,000 tonnes per year criterion, have engaged in communication with their supply chain to gather the required information for immediate registration. This has proven to be useful, as it identifies not only where they themselves stand with providing product information, but also how efficient data gathering from suppliers will be. In some cases, companies with a large number of products have contracted third parties to contact suppliers and work directly with them in order to facilitate the information gathering process as well as side-step any disclosure of proprietary information squalls. These proactive approaches increase the potential for seamless compliance and uninterrupted business with in the EU community. In addition, industry organizations are also putting together guidance documents to help companies prepare for REACH. ASD-STAN, the European body for the development of aerospace standards has published two technical reports (TR9535 Substance Declaration and TR9536 Declarable Substances Recommended Practice) on chemicals and their safe use in context of the REACH Directive. Conclusion Article producers must realize that they will be affected by the REACH Regulation in some way, and will be required to provide substance information pertaining to their product. Due to the high level of complexity, and amount of information that is being requested, it is recommended to start communication up and down the supply chain to determine where suppliers and downstream users stand in terms of REACH and their ability to comply. This action will not only allow suppliers to comply with REACH with less effort in the future, but also reduce costs of potential testing for SVHCs in the event suppliers are unable or unwilling to provide information on SVHC content. < For more information, email: ageus@intertek.com or visit: www.intertek.com/reach Be wooed beyond food. 20,000 attendees. 600 exhibitors. 1 jam-packed event. The NAFEM Show brings together a tantalizing collection of foodservice equipment and supplies innovators and experts all under one roof. We are the industry’s premier event, and we guarantee you’ll see something new and fresh around every corner. So, embrace all the attention…you deserve it. Co-located with The NAFEM Show Register today — www.thenafemshow.org For more information, call +1.312.245.1054 or e-mail thenafemshow@nafem.org. www.applianceDESIGN.com AD10084Nafem.indd 1 applianceDESIGN November 2008 PM 9/16/08 2:04:04 37 http://www.intertek.com/reach http://www.thenafemshow.org http://www.thenafemshow.org http://www.appliancedesign.com

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Appliance Design - November 2008 Contents Editorial Shipments/Forecasts News Watch Metals & Metal Parts Gas Technology Displays Quality & Standards New Products Design Marts Association Report: AHAM Advertiser's Index

Appliance Design - November 2008

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