IPC PRINTED CIRCUITS EXPO / APEX / DESIGNERS SUMMIT, Anaheim, Calif. (February 8, 2006) - The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI), an industry-led consortium focused on strengthening the global electronics manufacturing supply chain, today announced that a significant number of its members — OEMs, EMS providers and suppliers — are committed to implementing IPC-1752, Materials Declaration Management.  This standard, which is expected to be published by IPC this quarter, establishes uniform electronic data formats and standardized forms to simplify the way industry collects, tracks and discloses material content information.

IPC-1752 is intended to reduce the cost and complexity of RoHS compliance, while increasing data quality and decreasing response times.  Development of this standard began two years ago with two iNEMI projects that brought together users and solution providers interested in shaping the standards-based processes that industry would use to communicate materials content data.  The specifications developed by these projects provided the starting point for IPC-1752.

Establishing compliance with the European Union’s (EU’s) RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) Directive is driving new requirements for the management and exchange of material composition data.  Information about the material contents of all components and bulk materials used to manufacture electronic products is frequently requested and shared across the supply chain in order to assure RoHS compliance. iNEMI members issued the following statement in support of the new IPC standard:

IPC-1752 is a cornerstone in the overall industry strategy for standardization of materials content declarations across the supply chain.  This standard integrates and leverages several industry efforts, establishing a common solution that is shaped not only by regulatory guidelines but also by industry needs and requirements.  By agreeing to implement IPC-1752, electronics manufacturers will eliminate the costly, and burdensome, use of multiple materials declaration formats that differ from company to company.  At the same time, each company requesting data will be able to select from several options in terms of the level and scope of the data that is requested.

The following companies have committed to implementing processes for material composition data exchange that will be based on IPC-1752.  Given that a number of these companies have already deployed solutions that may or may not comply with IPC-1752, we expect that there will be a transition period to phase over to the lower-cost standards-based solutions with schedules driven by individual company business plans.

Agile
Celestica  
E2open
Foxconn 
Jabil Circuit
Lucent Technologies  
PCNalert
PTC  
Sanmina-SCI
Speedline Technologies
Solectron
Sun Microsystems
Teradyne
Texas Instruments  
Tyco Electronics

A number of other iNEMI member companies have played an active role on the iNEMI materials declaration projects as well as the IPC 2-18 Subcommittee that developed IPC-1752.  These firms will be evaluating IPC-1752 for incorporation into their materials declaration processes.

IPC-1752 not only builds on the formats and data collection processes developed by iNEMI, it also references the Material Composition Declaration Guide, created by EIA, JEDEC and JGPSSI (commonly known as the Joint Industry Guide, or "JIG") to define the specifics of what needs to be reported (substances and methodology).  IPC-1752 also conforms with RosettaNet Partner Interface Processes® (PIPs®) 2A13 (Distribute Material Composition Information) and 2A15 (Request Material Composition Information), providing a direct path to full B2B automation of material composition data exchange.  The IPC standards committee is also coordinating efforts with the International Electrotechnical Commission’s (IEC) Technical Committee 111 (TC111) to promote IPC-1752 as an international materials declaration standard.

"As the RoHS deadline approaches, the entire electronics supply chain is scrambling to ensure that they can establish necessary information and evidence of compliance," said Richard Kubin, Vice President of E2open, Inc., and chair of the IPC 2-18 Supplier Declaration Subcommittee and of the iNEMI Materials Composition Data Exchange Project.  "Through adoption of IPC-1752, these companies can now utilize a consistent format both for collection of data as well as its distribution.  The associated XML schema and standard forms allow for the automation and direct integration of this information into key internal systems, greatly reducing the manual effort required in managing compliance."

"As the majority of manufacturers had already made the necessary steps to provide RoHS compliant products to market, the next step was to provide a manageable method of material declaration," said Mark Frimann, a customer quality engineer manager for Texas Instruments and co-chair of the IPC 2-18 Subcommittee.  "TI has been deeply involved in the creation of the standard within this IPC subcommittee.  We are pleased that iNEMI took the initiative to begin work on what is now the IPC-1752 materials declaration standard."

According to Dr. Sunny Cheng, vice president of SPARC operations, Sun Microsystems, "We have been tracking the development of IPC-1752 from its beginnings as an iNEMI project.  Sun Microsystems intends to adopt IPC-1752 as a key requirement for our suppliers as they document and communicate their compliance for the elimination of specific materials of concern.  By embracing an industry standard, we are convinced that the entire supply chain will benefit."

"We are enthusiastic about the imminent release of the IPC-1752 industry standard.  The adoption of this standard will provide the industry with a common information interchange platform that will result in greater accuracy, efficiency and simplification of data exchange," said Mike Shannon, senior vice president of corporate compliance for Sanmina-SCI.  "Additionally, the adoption of this format will definitely assist in the responsiveness that can be provided, while driving cost effectiveness associated with the challenge of data sharing."

"Standards like IPC-1752 address critical issues facing the electronics supply chain as RoHS draws near," said David Castro, senior manager, global material and component engineering for Solectron. "In fact, standardization is so critical that Solectron is attempting to create internal standardization by assigning new site part numbers for all RoHS-compliant assemblies and BOM components, regardless of the part numbering schemes adopted by manufacturers or customers. We applaud and support iNEMI and IPC efforts to address this critical issue."

"IPC-1752 is particularly significant because it streamlines and consolidates a multitude of competing data formats, which in turn will simplify the RoHS compliance process," said Dries D'hooghe, senior director, product strategy and management, Agile. "For us, support of this standard makes sense as several of our customers have been active on the IPC committee and they plan to adopt the processes and forms specified by IPC-1752."

"PCNalert welcomes IPC-1752 and applauds the efforts of all the stakeholders that participated in its creation," said Cliff Frescura, CEO.  "IPC-1752 will provide clarity and velocity to the supply chain which will result in reduced costs for everyone."

About iNEMI
The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative’s mission is to assure leadership of the global electronics manufacturing supply chain.  Based in Herndon, Va., the industry-led consortium is made up of approximately 70 manufacturers, suppliers, industry associations and consortia, government agencies and universities.  iNEMI roadmaps the needs of the electronics industry, identifies gaps in the technology infrastructure, establishes implementation projects to eliminate these gaps (both business and technical), and stimulates standards activities to speed the introduction of new technologies.  The consortium also works with government, university and other funding agencies to set priorities for future industry needs and R&D initiatives.  For additional information about iNEMI, visit www.inemi.org.

For further information:
Cynthia Williams, iNEMI
office: +1 207-871-1260
cwilliams@inemi.org