Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)
“REACH" is an acronym for, Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals, which is a European Union Regulation that came into force on 1st June 2007 and replaced a number of European Directives and Regulations with a single system. REACH is focused on the production and use of chemical substances, and their potential impacts on human health and the environment. It is the strictest law to date regarding chemical substances, and it affects industries worldwide. The law basically puts the responsibility for chemical safety on the manufacturers of those chemicals. An important objective of these regulations is to encourage, and in certain situations, ensure chemicals of high concern are replaced with less dangerous chemicals or eliminated.
REACH requires all companies manufacturing or importing chemical Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) into the European Union (EU) in quantities of one ton or more per year to register these substances with the European Chemicals Agency. A major element of the REACH regulation is the requirement to communicate information on chemical content up and down the supply chain.
Galco Industrial Electronics is aware of the ever-evolving REACH requirements that are typically updated by the European Chemical Agency on a semiannual basis. We are committed to helping our customers comply with applicable REACH due diligence and disclosure requirements.
As a distributor, we do not design, manufacture, or control the content of any products. Therefore, Galco Industrial Electronics has a limited role in these new regulations and must rely upon our manufacturer partners to advise us on the REACH status of the products we distribute. Although electronic components and supplies can be characterized as articles and substances, Galco Industrial Electronics is not considered a manufacturer, importer, downstream user, or registrant under Article 3 of REACH. To the best of our knowledge, Galco
Industrial Electronics has no responsibility to register any of the components or supplies we distribute.
Galco Industrial Electronics does have the responsibility to communicate SVHC information down the supply chain when provided by the manufacturer, per article 33 of the directive.
Galco Industrial Electronics expects manufacturers to have robust environmental programs that adhere to the requirements of REACH, identify SVHC to us, and provide a Safety Data Sheet or other document prescribing the safe handling of their products which contains SVHCs in excess of 0.1% in any of the products homogenous materials. This is not always the case as manufacturers are free to comply or not comply with environmental laws from other countries.
Galco Industrial Electronics cannot sign a global agreement on REACH Compliance. Customers must take an active role in understanding environmental compliance and select products accordingly. Customers wishing to ensure purchased products are free of SVHCs should choose manufacturers that openly and publicly support REACH.