After a challenge from Denmark and the European Parliament, the European Commission-granted EU ROHS (European Union restriction-of-hazardous-substances) exemption for DecaBDE (decabromodiphenyl ether) will end on July 1.

DecaBDE is a common flame retardant used in various components and electronics, including HIPS (high-impact-polystyrene) enclosures, polyethylene-wire insulation, and PBT (polybutylene-terephthalate) connectors, as well as in some types of nylon and other plastics.

Experts expect the end of the DecaBDE exemption to be a significant issue for component suppliers, as some of their customers will no longer accept plastics with DecaBDE because of time-line pressure, from buying parts to putting finished products on the market. They also expect a significant problem for manufacturers with stocks of parts containing DecaBDE because they cannot include those parts in ROHS-compliant equipment put on the EU market as of July.

To comment on the end of the DecaBDE exemption, visit "The DecaBDE exemption debacle."