Tag Archives: EPEAT

IEEE 1680.1 – Revised Ecolabel Standard for Computers and Monitors

The draft for the revised IEEE 1680.1 “Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products, Including Notebook Personal Computers, Desktop Personal Computers, Slate/Tablets, Small Scale Servers, Signage Displays and Personal Computer Monitors” was completed by the Work Group in February 2017 and will be posted for balloting March 28, 2017.

The revised draft expands the scope of the standard to cover tablets and signage displays in addition to computers and monitors.  It also expands the scope of assessment criteria to include corporate social responsibility (CSR) and criteria that reach deep into the supply chain.

Anyone that is interested in voting/commenting on the ballot must register their interest in the IEEE Standards Association (SA) system by no later than Friday, March 24th.

Contact ECD Compliance for support on conformity to the IEEE 1680.X series of environmental assessment standards.

Principal Consultant of ECD Compliance named as IEEE 1680.1 WG Chair

On April 18, 2015, the IEEE Computer Society Standards Activity Board appointed Walter Jager, principal consultant of ECD Compliance, as the chair of IEEE P1680.1 working group (WG). P1680.1 is undertaking the update of the IEEE 1680.1-2009 standard on “Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products, Including Notebook Personal Computers, Desktop Personal Computers, and Personal Computer Displays”. The standard is used by the EPEAT registry internationally assisting governments and private sector purchasers in identifying computer products that have a reduced impact on the environment.

Paul Eastman, Sponsor Chair – SAB Special Projects, made the annoucement saying, “I am confident that the Working Group will move forward with speed and confidence under his leadership.”

 

U.S. Executive Order — Federal Purchasing and Sustainability Requirements

On March 19, 2015, the U.S. President, Barack Obama, signed Executive Order 13693 for advancing sustainability objectives in the U.S. Federal Government. The Executive Order specifies requirements on Policy, Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions, Sustainability Goals for Agencies, and Duties of various Federal government offices and officers. The Executive Order is available on the Whitehouse website.

Of specific interest to many EEE manufacturers that sell products to the U.S. government is subsection 3(i) that directs federal purchasing to sustainable products (excerpted below).

3(i) promote sustainable acquisition and procurement by ensuring that each of the following environmental performance and sustainability factors are included to the maximum extent practicable for all applicable procurements in the planning, award, and execution phases of the acquisition by:

(i) meeting statutory mandates that require purchase preference for:

(A) recycled content products designated by EPA;

(B) energy and water efficient products and services, such as ENERGY STAR qualified and Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP)-designated products, identified by EPA and the Department of Energy (DOE); and

(C) BioPreferred and biobased designated products designated by the United States Department of Agriculture;

(ii) purchasing sustainable products and services identified by EPA programs including:

(A) Significant New Alternative Policy (SNAP) chemicals or other alternatives to ozone-depleting substances and high global warming potential hydrofluorocarbons, where feasible, as identified by SNAP;

(B) WaterSense certified products and services (water efficient products);

(C) Safer Choice labeled products (chemically intensive products that contain safer ingredients); and

(D) SmartWay Transport partners and SmartWay products (fuel efficient products and services);

(iii) purchasing environmentally preferable products or services that:

(A) meet or exceed specifications, standards, or labels recommended by EPA that have been determined to assist agencies in meeting their needs and further advance sustainable procurement goals of this order; or

(B) meet environmental performance criteria developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies consistent with section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-113) and OMB Circular A-119;

(iv) acting, as part of the implementation of planning requirements of section 14 of this order, until an agency achieves at least 95 percent compliance with the BioPreferred and biobased purchasing requirement in paragraph (i) of this subsection, to:

(A) establish an annual target for the number of contracts to be awarded with BioPreferred and biobased criteria and dollar value of BioPreferred and biobased products to be delivered and reported under those contracts in the following fiscal year. To establish this target, agencies shall consider the dollar value of designated BioPreferred and biobased products reported in previous years, the specifications reviewed and revised for inclusion of BioPreferred and biobased products, and the number of applicable product and service contracts to be awarded, including construction, operations and maintenance, food services, vehicle maintenance, and janitorial services; and

(B) ensure contractors submit timely annual reports of their BioPreferred and biobased purchases; and

(v) reducing copier and printing paper use and acquiring uncoated printing and writing paper containing at least 30 percent postconsumer recycled content or higher as designated by future instruction under section 4(e) of this order;

The requirements specified in this subsection replaces the previous Executive Order 13423 of January 24, 2007 which directed federal agencies to purchase IT products that were EPEAT registered.

Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) that provide specifications, standards, or labels that meet the requirements will need to be developed. This has the potential to bring many other types of EEE products within scope of sustainability requirements.

ECD Compliance will be tracking the implementation of this Executive Order and will provide updates when new information becomes available.

[1] Executive Order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/03/19/executive-order-planning-federal-sustainability-next-decade

Slates/Tablets Become Eligible for EPEAT Registry – September 2014

With the addition of slates and tablets to Energy Star, these products have become eligible for the EPEAT registry of environmentally preferable products. Many governments and other large organizations specify EPEAT registration as a mandatory requirement in their IT purchasing specifications and RFPs; therefore, EPEAT registration can be an important declaration for manufacturers and distributors.

The IEEE 1680.1 standard specifies the mandatory and optional requirements for listing a computer product on the EPEAT registry. Within this standard, Energy Star is a mandatory requirement, therefore tablets and slates have, in the past, been ineligible for EPEAT.  The new Energy Star specification opens the door to additional procurement opportunities but it creates risks for manufacturers that do not register their products.

ECD Compliance assists manufacturers with conformity to EPEAT requirements and EPEAT verification.  For additional information on EPEAT services, see our webpage or contact ECD Compliance.