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EuP Directive 2005/32/EC establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-using products and amending Council Directive 92/42/EEC and Directives 96/57/EC and 2000/55/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
What is the EUP ?
EuP is the short form of “Directive 2005/32/EC - the
eco-design of Energy-using Products” , such as electrical and electronic devices
or heating equipment, provides coherent EU-wide rules for eco-design and ensure
that disparities among national regulations do not become obstacles to intra-EU
trade.
The Directive does not introduce directly binding requirements
for specific products, but does define conditions and criteria for setting,
through subsequent implementing measures, requirements regarding environmentally
relevant product characteristics (such as energy consumption) and allows them to
be improved quickly and efficiently.
By encouraging manufacturers to design products with the
environmental impacts in mind throughout their entire life cycle, the Commission
implements an Integrated Product Policy (IPP) and accelerates the move towards
improving the environmental performance of energy-using products.
After
adoption of the Directive by the Council and the European Parliament, the
Commission, assisted by a Committee, will be able to enact implementing measures
on specific products and environmental aspects (such as energy consumption,
waste generation, water consumption, extension of lifetime) after impact
assessment and broad consultation of interested parties.
EuP, a framework directive on eco-design of energy-using products -- which the European Commission defines as“a product that, once placed on the market and/or put into service is dependent on energy input (electricity, fossil fuels, and renewable energy sources) to work as intended, or a product for the generation, transfer, and measurement of such energy, including parts dependent on energy input and intended to be incorporated into an EuP” -- was published in the Commission's Official Journal in July 2005, came into force in August 2005, and member states have until August 11, 2007, to implement it into national law.
EuP and its eco-design requirements expects manufacturers to consider the entire lifecycle of product groups -- from raw materials, acquisition, manufacturing, packaging, transport and distribution, installation and maintenance, use and end-of-life disposal -- and to assess the ecological profile of the equipment by requiring manufacturers at each stage to evaluate consumption of materials and energy, emissions to air and water, pollution, expected waste and recycling/re-use.
Unlike other EU directives that focus on one phase of the production process, as REACH does with the materials stage, EuP aims to have an impact on the entire design cycle, primarily because the Commission has estimated that more than 80 percent of all product related environmental impacts are determined during the product planning phase. It has, therefore, determined that integration of environmental considerations as early as possible into the product development process is the most effective way for introducing changes and improvements to products.
In the case of EuP, manufacturers, not just producers as defined by RoHS, will be responsible for assessments; and, between testing, tracking and labeling requirements, this could add a significant amount of work for some members of the electronics supply chain. Enter product lifecycle management (PLM), the process of managing the entire lifecycle of a product from its conception, through design and manufacture, to service and end-of-life disposal.
“The [EuP] idea is to create a green supply chain for energy-using products. Energy consumption and proof of environmental readiness are risk factors.”
The relationship between PLM and the electronics supply chain is a mutually beneficial one. While PLM can lend a hand in better compliance design, compliance is lending a hand in increasing sales in the PLM market through risk management.
2 complementary ways
Apart from the user's behaviour, there are two complementary ways of reducing the energy consumed by products: labelling to raise awareness of consumers on the real energy use in order to influence their buying decisions (such as labelling schemes for domestic appliances), and energy efficiency requirements imposed to products from the early stage on the design phase.
The production, distribution, use and end-of-life management of energy-using products (EuPs) is associated with a considerable number of important impacts on the environment, namely the consequences of energy consumption, consumption of other materials/resources, waste generation and release of hazardous substances to the environment. It is estimated that over 80% of all product-related environmental impacts are determined during the design phase of a product. Against this background, Eco-design aims to improve the environmental performance of products throughout the life-cycle by systematic integration of environmental aspects at a very early stage in the product design.
The Council and the European Parliament therefore adopted a Commission proposal for a Directive on establishing a framework for setting Eco-design requirements (such as energy efficiency requirements) for all energy using products in the residential, tertiary and industrial sectors. Coherent EU-wide rules for eco-design will ensure that disparities among national regulations do not become obstacles to intra-EU trade. The directive does not introduce directly binding requirements for specific products, but does define conditions and criteria for setting requirements regarding environmentally relevant product characteristics (such as energy consumption) and allows them to be improved quickly and efficiently. It will be followed by implementing measures which will establish the eco-design requirements. In principle, the Directive applies to all energy using products (except vehicles for transport) and covers all energy sources.
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