RoHS Policy Announced by Panasonic Electric Works
Panasonic Electric Works of America (the new name for Aromat), as part of the Matsushita organization, is committed to being a leading company for environmental compliance and sustainability. We take our responsibility to the environment very seriously, and are actively working to comply with the European RoHS Directives. This letter relates to all relay, snap-action switch, and connector products, as well as Pimites devices sold by Panasonic Electric Works Corporation of America (PEWA)*.
Lead-Free Compliance:
We have been transitioning parts to lead-free compliance over several years, and are proud to announce that all catalog products** shipped after May 1, 2006 are lead-free.
Cadmium-Free Alternatives:
PEWA also offers Cadmium-free alternative products in line with the original Directive (such alternatives will be designated "-F" at the end of the part number). Following the 4-year Cd exemption recently announced, PEWA will continue to offer the original Cd-containing parts for a period of time, but encourage our customers to embrace the change to more environmentally sustainable materials.
Compliance charts and specification sheets are available on our website for all new parts (http://pewa.panasonic.com/pcsd). In addition, we can provide certificates of conformity to customers for specific part numbers upon request.
Details of RoHS Compliance Transition
1) Labeling. RoHS compliant, Cd-free parts manufactured after September 1st 2005 are labeled with an "Ro" marking. After April 1st 2006, any RoHS compliant parts which contain Cadmium will be labeled "Ro + Cd"
2) Lead-Free. As of May 1st 2006 all catalog parts** shipped by PEWA are lead free***
3) Cd-Free. As of May 1st 2006, Cd-free alternatives are available for all PEWA relays and switches (with some minor exceptions).
For more information, please contact Panasonic Electric Works at 800-276-6289, or visit us at www.pewa.panasonic.com.
* Products such as capacitors and resistors sold by our sister company, Panasonic Industrial Company, are not covered by this policy. For RoHS compliance details for other Panasonic products, go to www.panasonic.com/industrial
**All catalog products, except where noted otherwise. The majority of PEWA lead-free parts will perform per specification in an existing tin-lead solder process (results may be application specific)
***Stock already in distribution channels may include lead-containing parts. Please contact PEWA Authorized Distributors for details of their RoHS policy,
About Panasonic Electric Works Corporation of America
Headquartered in New Providence, NJ, Panasonic Electric Works (formerly Aromat), the US subsidiary of Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd., is a market leader in electromechanical and solid state relays. Products include signal, power, PhotoMOS, high frequency and automotive relays. We also market a wide range of sealed and snap-action switches, as well as motion, light and pressure sensors for safety and energy conservation, and acceleration sensors for mobile devices and automotive applications. Other products marketed by Panasonic Electric Works include surface mount connectors and other automation control devices (PLCs, HMIs, Servo/AC Drives, Sensors, Laser Markers, Temperature Controllers, Limit Switches, Timers, Counters, Hour Meters and Magnetic Contactors).
Contact Information:
Cathy Newman, ext. 2016
cnewman@us.pewg.panasonic.com
