On June 2007, the European Regulation 1907/2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and restriction of Chemicals (REACH) came into force. The objective of the legislation is to protect human health and the environment from the risks arising from the use of chemicals.

Two of the main obligations under REACH are

Registration of all substances (in all its forms) put on the EU market and
Communication on Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs) present in articles put on the EU market.

• 1.1 REGISTRATION OBLIGATION
All substances in quantities of 1 ton or more per year need to be registered. Depending on the volumes and the hazards of the substance this had to take place in 2010, 2013 or 2018 and can include (expensive) tests to assess the effect on human health and environment. Substances already on the EU market had to be pre-registered before 1/12/2008 in order to stay in the European market after this date. If pre-registration is missed, the substances have to be withdrawn from the EU market.

Brady Actions
Since the legislation came into force, Brady has been investigating the different responsibilities and its different roles to play under REACH.
As an importer, we have reviewed all the quantities we import into the EU. As we did not import a ton or more of any of the substances, we have no registration obligation.

• 1.2. SUBSTANCES OF VERY HIGH CONCERN (SVHC)
The European Chemical Agency (ECHA) will, based on the test results, determine whether some substances have to be restricted or need to be authorized for certain applications. These ‘Substances of Very High Concern’ are included on the Candidate list, which is updated on a regular basis (twice a year). (http://echa.europa.eu/chem_data/candidate_list_table_en.asp)

Brady Actions
Brady is in close contact with its vendors to review every update of the Candidate List, if one or more of the SVHCs are present in the parts and materials we put on the European market. Under REACH it is an obligation to inform customers on the presence of a SVHCs >0,1% w/w in the products sold in Europe.

REACH information on our products can be found at product level on our website.

On a regular basis, SVHCs from the Candidate List are selected for the Authorization List (Annex XIV). Those authorized substances cannot be imported or used in production in the EU after their so called “sunset date” (https://echa.europa.eu/authorisation-list).

For the SVHCs that are currently on the Authorization List and that occur in our parts or materials, Brady is working closely with its vendors to redesign them to an “SVHC-free”’ version.

https://echa.europa.eu/recommendation-for-inclusion-in-the-authorisation-list

BRADY ORGANISATION

The past few years, a whole European team has been working on the follow up of this legislation. In Europe, a team of local REACH coordinators has been established for each site. These coordinators are in close contact with the suppliers to obtain the requested SVHC information and are organizing the feedback on the customer requests. For specific questions related to our products and REACH, please contact your local sales or customer service representative.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

http://echa.europa.eu/support/qas-support/qas