European Parliament’s vote in favor of RoHS recast strengthens reuse opportunities
Venlo, The Netherlands, 30 November 2010 - Océ, an international leader in document management and delivery, is pleased with the revised law on hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. The European Parliament has voted in favor of the recast of the Directive on the restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS) in electrical and electronic equipment. By adopting the proposed amendments non-RoHS-compliant parts do not have to be disposed of but can be reused. This not only saves the creation of unnecessary waste, but it also greatly reduces the use of resources and energy to produce and transport new parts through the global supply chain.
“Océ’s products are typically built for long, intensive operation. When lease contracts expire, equipment is typically returned to our manufacturing facilities under a “closed loop” principle. Those systems and their components are well suited for reuse and remanufacturing to full new model status, for a second or even a third efficient lifetime.
With the adapted Directive, non-RoHS-compliant parts and components manufactured before 2006 are allowed to be reused in new equipment. The result is a further increase in the sustainability of our products and manufacturing processes, and a reduction in the overall environmental impact”, says Harry Loozen, Senior Vice President Corporate Public Affairs and Sustainability.
In addition he says: “This achievement is a good example of excellent collaboration between public and private partners, who both underlined the importance of this revision for the sake of as well environmental as economical interests.” The amendment proposal has been made by various Dutch members of the European Parliament: Mrs. Esther de Lange, Mrs. Judith Merkies, Mr. Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy, Mr. Peter van Dalen, Mr. Kartika Liotard and Mrs. Ria Oomen-Ruijten.
"The European Commission was never consistent. First they were always advocating more reuse, and then they proposed banning reuse. Luckily, common sense has prevailed. These components - after strict quality and environmental controls - may now be used. This spares the environment significantly and ensures the preservation of this already common practice within different companies in the Netherlands ," says environmental spokesperson Esther de Lange.
About Océ
Océ is one of the world’s leading providers of document management and printing for professionals. The broad Océ offering includes office printing and copying systems, high speed digital production printers and wide format printing systems for both technical documentation and colour display graphics. Océ is also a foremost supplier of document management outsourcing. Many of the world’s Fortune 500 companies and leading commercial printers are Océ customers. The company was founded in 1877. With headquarters in Venlo, The Netherlands, Océ is active in approximately 100 countries and employs some 22,000 people worldwide. Total revenues in 2009 amounted to € 2.6 billion. Océ is listed on Euronext in Amsterdam. For more information on Océ, visit www.oce.com.
Creating the global leader in printing
Canon and Océ have joined forces to create the global leader in the printing industry. For our customers this combines Canon and Océ technology with the support of the Océ direct sales and service organisations. Look to the new Canon-Océ combination for:
Enterprise printing in the office and corporate printroom
Large format printing of technical documentation, signage and display graphics
Production printing for marketing service bureaus and graphic arts
Business Services for document process outsourcing
In 2010 Océ became a Canon Group company.