RoHS is a EU directive that deals with the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.  It was publicized and enforced on 13 February 2003 and 1 July 2006 respectively.  The RoHS Directive restricts the use of six hazardous substances: 

Hazardous Substance refers to any material as listed in the RoHS directive and any additional customer requirements as prohibited from usage and is interchangeable with restricted substances.

The RoHS directive restricts the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.  According to EU definition, electrical and electronic equipment means equipment which is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly including equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields.   Electrical and electronic equipment under RoHS directive confines to those designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1000 Volt for alternating current and 1500 Volt for direct current.  Therefore a lot of the electrical and electronic equipment commonly used at home fall under the RoHS coverage.

Whether consumable type of products, like printer cartridges, are within the scope of RoHS coverage is not clearly defined in the directive. Opinions of professional organizations are also divided.  However, due to increasing public awareness of product safety, many customers require RoHS compliance from their aftermarket printer cartridges suppliers.

It is necessary for customers selling into the EU countries to supply products that are RoHS compliant to comply with the existing product safety regulations and new regulations to be implemented in accordance with the RoHS directive.

Even if you are not selling into the EU countries, by buying RoHS compliant products, you can be assured that the products are safe to use and do not contain those hazardous materials in excess of  the restricted limits.

All materials used in UTec’s manufacturing site for production have been RoHS compliant since 1 January 2006.  The site is also the World's First printer cartridge manufacturer to certify to IECQ QC080000.  (Please refer to the IECQ QC080000 FAQ for more information.)

An organization that has been certified to IECQ QC080000 can demonstrate that it has an effective system in place for the control and management of hazardous substances in order to comply with the requirements of EU RoHS and other relevant product safety regulations.

There is an increasing public awareness of product safety after the outbreak of a number of major incidents relating to hazardous substances found in toys and other products.  The governments in many countries have also tightened the corresponding product safety regulations.  It is therefore very important that companies supply products that are safe to use and comply with those regulations.

By selecting UTec products, customers can be assured that no hazardous substances are being used in production and they can avoid the risk of breaching the relevant regulations on product safety.  Documents and certificates are also readily available to customers to support them in fulfilling regulatory requirements as well as specific requirements by their customers.