Bruce Rayner EETimes Supply Network (02/15/2005 10:25 AM EST)

Consultants and lawyers are busy these days helping companies develop plans for complying with the European Union's Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) recycling directive, which takes effect Aug. 13.

Electronics Supply & Manufacturing, spoke recently with Barry Holland, managing director of U.K.-based WEEE Audit Ltd. (www.weeeaudit.com), about how companies can achieve compliance.

Holland's consulting company employs 12 regulatory specialists who advise about 40 midtier and small electronics companies in the U.K. and the United States on steps to take to meet the WEEE deadline.

That client base is just the tip of the iceberg. In the U.K. alone there are about 120,000 organizations that produce, market or distribute electronic equipment—most are not even aware of the WEEE directive, said Holland. Here are excerpts from the interview:

ESM: It's my understanding that the U.K. is the furthest along of the 25 EU states with regard to compliance. Is that correct?

Holland: Yes, I believe it is. We've had some delays because the Department of Trade and Industry has asked electronic companies to help them shape legislation, and industry members have been slow to respond to requirements. so it's delayed the process. The legislation should have come out last autumn; now it looks like the end of February or the beginning of March. [At press time, Parliament still had not voted on the legislation.] It's getting closer and closer to the date when producers will have to comply, so I fear there's going to be a bit of anarchy in the electronics sector.

ESM: Do you think the U.K. will postpone the WEEE implementation date?

Holland: If I were a betting man, I'd say yes. It's like pushing water uphill. It's just not going to happen by August. No way. I'd love to be proven wrong, but I fear the worst. They haven't even appointed a clearinghouse to start collecting all the data. There are months and months of work to do.

ESM: What flexibility do the individual EU countries have in implementing WEEE?

Holland: Each country will have its own penal system. In the U.K., it will be in multiple levels: It starts with fines of up to £5,000 [$9,416]. Continual noncompliance could result in imprisonment of up to two years. Also, the country could stop a company from [conducting business] if they continue to not comply. The second area of difference is, for example, country A might decide to launch a national standard while country B might have an act of parliament and another might have guidance notes. Some countries will use a voluntary scheme, others will have enforcement agencies that will knock on doors and others will have certification schemes. So what they tell the local [business] community regarding how to comply is up to the country.

ESM: Who will have the strictest WEEE standards?

Holland: I'd say those countries that already have [high environmental standards]. So the U.K., Germany, Netherlands and France will lead the way forward. Whether the others will follow, time will tell.

ESM: What are you advising your clients to do now?

Holland: We are carrying out compliance assessments against the directive itself; we match the activities of companies against the WEEE directive. Once the legislation comes in, in whatever form, we will [tailor our recommendations.]

ESM: How prepared are most companies today for WEEE?

Holland: I think the biggest issue is that companies haven't realized the impact on their supply chains. They have hundreds of suppliers and they actually have to audit all of these suppliers to make sure that these companies are prepared to take back or help finance the take-back of product. [They need to] understand it's not just their own company but also their entire supply chain [that must comply]. So they might have to do product testing to make sure that what is being reported to them is accurate.

ESM: What advice would you give to companies now?

Holland: Typically with compliance legislation, companies always wait till the last minute. I have to stress they shouldn't. If the volcano erupts, they shouldn't wait till the lava flow hits their front door before they get out of town. They should do things now to get ready, because if the legislation comes along in the springtime they only have a very short time to become compliant.

ESM: So compliance is a competitive issue?

Holland: Yes. Some of our customers are already required by some of the large retailers to start branding their packaging and products with WEEE labels, far in advance of August. If they say no, they are off the shelf.

Which product categories does WEEE apply to?

Source: WEEE Audit Ltd.