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BANNOCKBURN, IL – When it comes
to lead-free readiness, North American OEMs trail their counterparts in Asia and
Europe. However, barely half the Asian OEMs
declared themselves “fully engaged” in lead-free assembly.
That’s according to “Report
on IPC Lead-Free Preparedness Study,” released by IPC this month. The study looked
at the level of lead-free implementation at 196 OEMs and 94 EMS
companies worldwide. IPC did not break out the number of respondents in each
region.
EMS companies worldwide indicate they are farther along on
the path to lead-free than OEMs. In Asia, 78% of EMS
companies are fully engaged, versus just 51% of OEMs. In North America, 65% of EMS companies and 34% of OEMs are fully engaged. In Europe,
the numbers are 64% and 48%, respectively, for EMS
and OEMs.
Just 2 (Asia) to 8% (North America) of EMS companies reported being not prepared at all. Among North
American OEMs, 26% said they are not prepared, versus 18% in Asia and 17% in Europe.
The report warned that the percentage of
implementation by North American OEMs can be misinterpreted. “Some North American
OEMs produce products which are today either exempt or excluded from the RoHS requirements.
In addition, some OEMs produce product for consumption only in North America or other regions and as a result, at the
time of the publication of this report, are not affected by RoHS or RoHS-type requirements.”
However, being “prepared” for lead-free has yet to
translate into volume production. On average, less than
10% of assemblies are lead-free. That trend is expected to shift by 2010, when respondents
expect 90% of assemblies to be lead-free.
Both sectors indicated reliability
concerns, component acquisition and labeling, and inventory management as the
greatest hindrances to lead-free implementation. Systems and inventory
management, and components, were identified as the major costs in lead-free
implementation.
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