TI screens all incoming chemicals before incorporating them into our manufacturing processes. Screening includes a review of customer concerns and regulatory standards, in addition to any environmental, safety and health controls required for their use. If concerns about a chemical or material arise during review, the matter is elevated to a chemical and material review board staffed by company experts.
If a chemical or material is thought to be necessary for manufacturing but still raises concerns, the company's manufacturing leaders review the issue and in some cases authorize additional time and resources to seek a safer alternative or more stringent use controls.
Customers can assess the compliance of our products with national and international standards throughout the supply chain at TI's Eco-Info and Pb-free Web site. The site includes downloadable reports that depict both the amount and type of substances within our finished integrated circuit products. The information demonstrates global compliance with regulations and managing other controlled substances.
Europe and China's banned substances
Both the European Union (EU) and China have issued stringent standards for product content and have banned some chemicals altogether.
In 2006, the EU's Restriction on Use of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) regulation took effect, banning new electrical or electronic equipment containing lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyl and polybrominated diphenyl ether flame-retardants beyond a specified threshold. Eliminating lead (Pb) was the major challenge for semiconductor manufacturers. By 2006, TI was already leading the industry in developing Pb-free alternatives.
To comply with the EU's Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulations, TI and other manufacturers must gather and file information on the properties of our chemical substances. For customers, TI created REACH information focused on relevant product compliance related to these requirements.
China also published a set of production requirements: the China Management Methods for Controlling Pollution by Electronic Information Products (China RoHS). Although our components are not required to meet China RoHS labeling requirements (which apply primarily to end-equipment manufacturers), we have changed our shipping labels and provided additional information to our customers so they can meet their compliance needs.
TI actively engages with government officials globally in an effort to help align these types of regulations worldwide.
Lead
Long before legislation required such measures, TI led the industry in developing lead (Pb)-free alternatives for products. In 1989, we introduced our first Pb-free alternative, a nickel-palladium finish. We completed most component conversions well ahead of the EU RoHS deadline. For products not identified for conversion, we work with customers to find suitable RoHS-compliant or other green solutions.
Although most of our customers have shifted to using Pb-free products, we continue to manufacture a few products that contain lead for customers who require it. Upon request, we provide certification and analytical data from our suppliers to independently verify the content of the materials in our products.
Halogens, antimony and red phosphorous
One of the current challenges facing TI and the semiconductor industry today is how to reduce or eliminate two halogens integral to semiconductor processing, bromine and chlorine, used within flame retardants incorporated into some of our products.
Although the small amounts of halogens contained in the products pose no risk, improper and unsafe recycling practices could cause harm to human health and the environment. Thus, many electronic product distributors are under increasing pressure from environmental groups to eliminate this potential risk.
TI continues to educate customers about the challenge of developing halogen-free products and the potential risk to product integrity. As part of this effort, we conducted an internal inventory of halogens used in our existing product line in 2009 and evaluated our plans for future halogen use.
TI's green-defined integrated circuit products, which address environmental concerns beyond government regulations, meet lead (Pb)-free requirements. They are also bromine- and antimony-free, meaning that the material does not exceed 0.1 percent by weight of homogeneous material. We completed the majority of our conversion to green compounds at the end of 2005 and continue to convert more today. In 2009, more than 90 percent of our semiconductor products were considered TI-green.
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