Global Environmental Standard for TVs, Cell Phones, Computers Released
A global standard to help manufacturers design mobile phones, TVs, laptops and other audio and video products meet energy efficiency and reuse and recycling requirements has been released by the International Electrotechnical Commission in Geneva. The standard comes as regulators in Europe and the U.S. spotlight the energy use of electronics and ways to ensure safe disposal of discarded products.
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The standard, IEC 62075, addresses a product’s entire life cycle, from materials and energy used in making it to its efficiency when switched on or in standby, the IEC said. It also considers a product’s reuse, recycling and safe disposal. “Designers are told to consider the product’s energy efficiency, the use of various materials, such as types of plastics, as well as product packaging,” the IEC said.
To raise energy efficiency, the standard explains varied operating modes and their benefits and drawbacks. It lists the environmental regulations taking force worldwide. “If we can get designers to think holistically at the start of a product’s life cycle, then it’s a win-win for the consumer, governments and industry,” said IEC CEO Ronnie Amit. IBM, Apple, Dell and BellSouth are among U.S. companies that took part in the standards-setting.
The 146 countries in the IEC are “committed to using and adopting IEC international standards,” IEC Director of Marketing Jonathan Buck told us. IEC 62075 will be ratified by the European countries through the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization, and in the U.S. the U.S. National Committee of the IEC will decide on adoption, he said. There’s usually a small lag between IEC release of a standard and European adoption, he said.
The U.K. is working with consumer electronics makers and retailers for gradual elimination of energy hogs. And the European Parliament last week adopted a report calling for energy caps on all types of set-top boxes and phasing out of inefficient products. Most European standards are “direct adoptions” of IEC standards, adjusted slightly to fit European Union directives, Buck said.
In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency tends to follow IEC standards, said Stacy Leistner of the American National Standards Institute, which accredits nations to serve on IEC’s U.S. Technical Advisory Group. Under the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act, federal agencies must rely on standards developed by consensus, to avoid redundant or overlapping controls, he said. “So the government works in partnership with industry to develop a single standard,” he said. The EPA recently adopted the IEC’s way of testing TVs as it started work on a specification for the category.