Commonly referred to as RoHS, the European directive bans the sale of equipment containing more than the agreed level of lead, mercury, cadmium and other substances. The majority of Agilent products come into the scope of the directive in 2017. The company’s multi-year effort to design compliant products has involved substantial investment in research and development as well as extensive process and production re-engineering.
Agilent’s RoHS effort emphasizes its commitment to pursue the most advanced strategies for adhering to current and emerging restricted materials regulations. Agilent used the RoHS compliance effort as a catalyst for overall sustainability and reliability improvements throughout the design, supply-chain and manufacturing process.
“We are committed to sustainability in our products and the processes used to create them,” said Eric Taylor, vice president of Customer Experience & Quality in Agilent’s Electronic Measurements Group. “We wanted to not only meet RoHS requirements but to meet them ahead of schedule. Incorporating breakthrough technologies such as lead-free design, we were driven to succeed because the safety of our customers and minimizing our ecological footprint are high priorities.”
Agilent recently replaced its standard one-year warranty with the introduction of a standard three-year warranty on most of its electronic test products, further underscoring its commitment to environmental and product sustainability and its dedication to reducing toxic waste. Agilent takes its commitment a step further by offering to take back any product when it is no longer needed, to ensure that it is properly recycled.
In the process of eliminating harmful and resource-depleting chemicals and materials, Agilent invested heavily in research for alternative materials and methods to be used in its products. The combination of extensive research and the new warranty program provides assurance to customers that products will continue to meet or exceed a high degree of reliability.
