Contact: Dan Green
847-790-5371
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
IPC GETTING THE LEAD OUT AT IPCWORKS '99
Northbrook, IL 02/08/99
Public and political pressure continues to build against the use of lead in
electronics assembly. Japan, Denmark and the European Union (EU) are all proposing
bans on lead and products containing lead, and even though the United States isn't
likely to entertain any such bans, international OEMs are becoming more sensitive to
the issue. With that in mind, IPC -- Association Connecting Electronics Industries
is featuring an International Summit on Lead-free Electronic Assemblies at IPCWorks
'99, being held October 26-28, 1999, at the Minneapolis Convention Center in
Minneapolis, Minnesota.
"It is time to develop a roadmap for lead elimination," says IPC Vice President of
Standards and Technology David Bergman. "It's time to identify the issues and
roadblocks and encourage research and education to take the industry on the path to
eliminating lead in electronics assembly."
Bergman says that the path taken for the elimination of lead is really a question of
where the industry wants to put its money. Rather than losing money fighting
legislators on possible regulations that would eliminate lead usage, Bergman says the
industry's money and time would be better spent building new products, and
introducing lead-free alternatives.
The EU has introduced a proposal that if passed would eliminate the use of lead and
other metals in electronics equipment by 2004. The European Federation of
//more//
IPCWORKS '99, Pg. 2
Interconnection and Packaging has urged the European Commission to extend the
proposed deadline until 2009, but if the proposal is passed as is, there isn't much
time left to develop feasible lead-free alternatives. This is why it is important
for members of the printed wiring board (PWB) and electronics assembly industries to
attend IPCWorks '99.
"In the early 1990s, the PWB industry was tasked with eliminating the use of
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which were used in the process of cleaning circuit
boards. The industry was able to eliminate CFC usage by discussing alternative
technologies openly. IPCWorks '99 gives the industry the opportunity to do the same
with lead-free alternatives by providing a forum for the open exchange of ideas,"
says IPC Director of Public Policy Christopher Rhodes. Rhodes adds that this
conference is the first known in the United States dedicated to the investigation of
lead-free alternatives in the electronics assembly industry.
For information on IPCWorks '99, contact IPCWorks '99 Conference Coordinator Chris
Jorgensen at (847) 790-5328, or e-mail [log in to unmask]
IPC is a US-based trade association dedicated to the competitive excellence and
financial success of its nearly 2,500 member companies which represent all facets of
the electronic interconnection industry, including design, printed wiring board
manufacturing and electronics assembly. As a member-driven organization and leading
source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy,
IPC supports programs to meet the needs of a $26 billion US industry employing more
than 250,000 people.
//30//
Chris Jorgensen
Project Manager
IPC
2215 Sanders Rd
Northbrook, IL 60062
-p- 847-509-9700 x. 5328
-f- 847-509-9798
[log in to unmask]
################################################################
TechNet E-Mail Forum provided as a free service by IPC using LISTSERV 1.8c
################################################################
To subscribe/unsubscribe, send a message to [log in to unmask] with following text in the body:
To subscribe: SUBSCRIBE TechNet <your full name>
To unsubscribe: SIGNOFF TechNet
################################################################
Please visit IPC's web site (http://www.ipc.org) "On-Line Services" section for additional information.
For technical support contact Hugo Scaramuzza at [log in to unmask] or 847-509-9700 ext.312
################################################################
|
