INTERNATIONAL GUIDE

ELECTROTECHNICAL 113
COMMISSION
First edition
2000-10

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Materials declaration questionnaires –

Basic guidelines

Reference number
IEC Guide 113:2000(E)
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INTERNATIONAL GUIDE
ELECTROTECHNICAL 113
COMMISSION
First edition
2000-10

FOR INTERNAL USE AT THIS LOCATION ONLY, SUPPLIED BY BOOK SUPPLY BUREAU.
LICENSED TO MECON Limited. - RANCHI/BANGALORE
Materials declaration questionnaires –

Basic guidelines

 IEC 2000  Copyright - all rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from the publisher.

International Electrotechnical Commission 3, rue de Varembé Geneva, Switzerland

Telefax: +41 22 919 0300 e-mail: inmail@iec.ch IEC web site http://www.iec.ch

Commission Electrotechnique Internationale

International Electrotechnical Commission PRICE CODE H
Pour prix, voir catalogue en vigueur
For price, see current catalogue
 –2– Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

___________

MATERIALS DECLARATION QUESTIONNAIRES –

BASIC GUIDELINES

FOREWORD

This first edition of IEC Guide 113 has been prepared in accordance with annex P of Part 1 of
the ISO/IEC Directives by the Advisory Committee on Environmental Aspects (ACEA).

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The text of this guide is based on the following documents:

Approval document Report on voting

C/1180/DV C/1202/RV

Full information on the voting for the approval of this guide can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
Guide 113  IEC:2000(E) –3–

MATERIALS DECLARATION QUESTIONNAIRES –

BASIC GUIDELINES

1 Scope

One important aspect of product-related environmental protection is environmentally safe

product recycling or disposal. This is possible only with the knowledge of the substances
contained and the potential hazards to health and to the environment that they represent.
Therefore, the manufacturer should know which environmentally relevant substances are
contained in his products. Additionally, he should know the distribution and the concentrations
of these substances. He should be able to give the required information to those who need it.

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The flow of information on material content involves several parties, as illustrated in figure 1.

Material suppliers

Manufacturers
of components

If requested
Manufacturers
of appliances

Private customers
Industrial customers
Consumer associations

Recycling/disposal
facilities

Figure 1 – Flow of information on materials content

This guideline is not prescriptive. It is rather written to assist companies which have to
develop materials declaration questionnaires for products, for instance as part of purchase
specifications. It intends to increase the harmonization and the comparability of the various
questionnaires. This is supposed to lead to cost reduction, both for those sending
questionnaires and for those answering them, but it must be kept in mind that the possibilities
for harmonizing the materials declaration questionnaires are limited because of the differing
needs of those requiring information, and because of the continual changes of the hazardous
materials lists.

2 Definition

Within the meaning of this guide, products comprise, in particular, materials, components,
subassemblies and appliances in the field of the electrotechnical and electronic industry.
 –4– Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)

3 Procedure for developing materials declaration questionnaires

Depending on the product, requirements, level of confidentiality, etc., materials declaration

can take different forms, to be agreed between the parties involved. However, some basic
points are common to all materials declarations and taking them into account will help to
establish a sufficient level of uniformity, thus simplifying work and reducing costs.

A materials declaration always involves at least two parties, generally the purchaser (party
demanding information) and the supplier (party supplying information). Later, other parties
may make use of the original materials declaration, such as refurbishing companies,
recyclers, exporters of second-hand equipment, etc. These third parties become in due
course the party requiring information.

A number of questions should be settled between the purchaser and the supplier before a
materials declaration can be defined. The most important ones are:

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a) Which item (full product, component, part, sub-assembly, etc.) should be considered? Or
should a declaration “tree” be used: finished product and components considered
separately? If so, which level of detail is required?
b) Which criteria should be used to define substances to be declared?
c) Above which mass thresholds and/or concentrations should substances be declared?
d) Which units for quantities should be used?

These points should be settled by consensus between the purchaser and the supplier,
preferably based on consensus between all actors in the supply chain. There are cases,
however, when the purchaser may prescribe the substances to be declared and/or the mass
thresholds or concentrations, without previous discussion. This is the case when regulatory
reasons are behind the request for information.

In other cases, the choice of substances could be left to the supplier, such as when the
purchaser only states the lists of restricted substances or the criteria.

In all cases, prior to elaborating any materials declaration, a clear statement regarding the
above information in general should be provided to the supplier by the purchaser.

4 Principles of materials declaration questionnaires

a) Materials declaration questionnaires should respond to the particular product or product
group (excluding packaging).
b) Materials declaration questionnaires should ask about the specific place or component in
which a declared substance is situated.
c) Materials declaration questionnaires ask for substances which are intentionally utilized in
products and should not ask for substances and residues of substances used in
manufacturing processes.
d) Substances to be declared should be unambiguously identifiable by nomenclature,
preferably by the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) registry number or other
internationally used registry numbers.
NOTE 1 CAS registry numbers are given to chemical compounds. Since a chemical compound can have different
names, the CAS registry number is used for unambiguous identification.
e) Weight limits above which components or parts of products are taken into consideration
should be defined.
NOTE 2 Decisive factors can be the risks given by the contained substances and the end-of-life treatment. For
example, it can be necessary to declare small switches containing mercury because they can lead to the
contamination of shredded material. On the other hand, it may be acceptable to leave out minor flame-retarded
plastic parts if the whole product will be incinerated.
Guide 113  IEC:2000(E) –5–

f) Concentration limits for the substances in the materials declaration questionnaire should
be defined. In the case of hazardous substances, concentration limits should preferably be
based on an assessment of the risks involved.
NOTE 3 The threshold value could be 0,1 % by mass in accordance with the limit for the consideration of
carcinogenic or mutagenic substances for classification. In the case of declaration of carcinogenic or mutagenic
substances, this exact threshold value should be chosen. To simplify the materials declaration this concentration
limit may also be used for all other substances.

g) Whenever possible, concentration values should refer to the proportions of the substances
in their immediate vicinities, for example a toxic substance as stabilizer in an insulating
layer or a carcinogenic substance as pigment in a plastic housing.
h) Materials declaration questionnaires may consider substances
– falling under relevant legal regulations (see annex A);
– falling under relevant international treaties;
NOTE 4 This covers materials whose movement and disposal are subject to international treaties such as the

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Basel Convention.

– hazardous to health or to the environment (see annex B). In most cases, these
substances are concentrated in certain components or product parts (see annex C and
4b);
– relevant to end-of-life treatment;
– relevant in another respect, and not covered by the above categories.
i) The different categories of substances to be declared may be clearly identified on the
materials declaration questionnaire.
j) In some cases it may be advantageous to group components together as a family.

It is advisable to use computer processable questionnaires.

NOTE 5 No weighting or hierarchy has been applied to the above list of principles.
 –6– Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)

Annex A

Examples of legally restricted substances (status 1998)

The following substances or groups of substances are concerned by legal regulations which
affect putting on to the market products from the electrical and electronics industry. The table
gives a rough survey of the situation in some economically important regions. The regulations
range from restrictions for some applications to total bans with rare exceptions. For all
restrictions and bans, concentration limits, which depend on the application concerned, are
set.

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It is the responsibility of the vendor to consult the most up-to-date registry of information in
the relevant country.

Table A.1 – Restricted substances

Restricted in
EU Japan USA
Asbestos Yes Yes Yes
Cadmium and its compounds Yes No Yes
Chlorinated fluorocarbons (CFCs) Yes Yes Yes
Mercury (in batteries) Yes No Yes
(VIC*)
Polychlorinated biphenyls and terphenyls (PCBs and PCTs) Yes Yes Yes
Polybrominated biphenyls and diphenylethers (PBBs and PBDEs) No No No
(VIC*) (VIC*) (VIC*)
* VIC = Voluntary industrial commitment not to use these substances
Guide 113  IEC:2000(E) –7–

Annex B

Examples of criteria for the declaration of hazardous substances

Substances which comply with the following criteria may be contained in materials declaration
questionnaires.

Table B.1 – Possible criteria

Hazardous to health: Carcinogenic, mutagenic, toxic for reproduction (CMR)

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Acutely or chronically toxic
Easily transforms into CMR substances or toxic substances*
Causes sensitization
Radioactive
Hazardous to the environment: Water-polluting
Persistent + bioaccumulative
Contributes to global warming
Ozone depleting
Leading to acidification
Leading to soil contamination
* Easily means that the transformation of the substances in this group takes place under conditions (for example,
temperature) not far from the processing or operating conditions. An example is the formation of poly-
halogenated dioxins by processing thermoplastic moulding compounds containing additives which belong to this
group.
 –8– Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)

Annex C

Examples of possibly critical components and parts

Declaration of hazardous materials may concentrate on certain components or product parts

which, in some cases, will require removal and selective treatment to ensure safe recovery
and environmentally sound disposal of the product:

• Capacitors and transformers

• Relays and switches

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• Discharge lamps
• Batteries and accumulators
• Diodes, rectifiers, and parts with photoconductive layers
• Cathode ray tubes
• Displays
• Non-inflammable plastic housings

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