WASHINGTON – The National Association of Manufacturers contends the proposed Toxic Chemicals Safety Act bill hurts manufacturers’ ability to innovate and remain competitive.

“It dramatically expands the scope of the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority over every sector of our nation’s economy, sets unrealistic standards and timeframes, and puts unnecessary burdens on manufacturers with new and inconsistent statutory requirements,” vice president for energy and resources policy Keith McCoy said in a statement.

He said the bill will upset the tenuous relationship between manufacturers and regulators.

“Manufacturers support a US chemical regulatory and management system that is risk-based and uses the best science to ensure chemicals are safe for their intended use. We believe federal regulation should protect human health and the environment, promote innovation, restore public confidence, and avoid unnecessarily adverse economic impacts on small and large businesses.

“If enacted, this bill will create even more uncertainty for manufacturers and will hurt their ability to create jobs and grow our economy at a critical time in our nation. Manufacturers will continue to work with Congress to achieve meaningful reform of our chemical regulatory system, which is not overbearing and cumbersome to manufacturers.”

BUCKS, UK – Smart Group will soon launch its third Pb-free guide, featuring more than 25 pages of examples and causes of defects.

The new, color booklet covers wave, selective, reflow and manual soldering. It also features defects associated with conformal coating, PoP technology, cleaning, and land grid array components.

To download the current defect guide for free and be the first to receive the updated version, visit http://www.smartgroup.org/leadfreedefectsguide/.    
 

SAN JOSE -- Flextronics, the world's second-largest contract electronics manufacturer, said fiscal first-quarter net income was $118.2 million, up from a loss of $154 million last year.

TORONTO -- Celestica swung to a second-quarter GAAP net loss of $6.1 million, one year after earning $5.3 million.