RoHS Heavy Metal Control for Furniture Manufacturing

RoHS standards play an important role in global trade. They protect human health and the environment and serve as an important measure of reliability for manufacturers of consumer products, including furniture.

What Is the RoHS Standard?

RoHS stands for Restriction of Hazardous Substances. It is an EU standard established through directives and regulations that restrict certain hazardous substances in materials. These include:

• RoHS is Directive 2002/95/EC, issued in 2006.
• RoHS 2 is Directive 2011/65/EU, issued in 2011.
• RoHS 3 is Directive 2015/863, issued in 2015 and effective from 2019.

In Vietnam, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has also issued two documents related to RoHS management in products:

• Circular 30/2011/TT-BCTCircular providing provisional limits for certain hazardous chemicals in electrical and electronic products.
• Decision 4693/QĐ-BCTissued in 2011 to correct Circular 30/2011/TT-BCT on provisional limits for hazardous chemicals in electrical and electronic products, promulgated by the Minister of Industry and Trade.

Restricted Substances under RoHS

The original directive limited six substances in electrical and electronic products. On 31 March 2015, Directive (EU) 2015/863 added DEHP, BBP, DBP, and DIBP, bringing the total to 10 restricted substances:

Business Benefits of RoHS Compliance

RoHS certification is mandatory for products within its scope to be sold in the EU market. National enforcement bodies, such as the National Measurement Office (NMO), monitor compliance with restrictions on hazardous substances. Manufacturers and distributors that fail to comply may face penalties that vary by EU country.

RoHS and equivalent international standards provide independent evidence of product compliance. RoHS helps companies meet legal obligations while strengthening trust with customers and business partners.

Solutions for Controlling Hazardous Heavy Metals (RoHS) in Furniture

Of the 10 restricted substances, four are metals: lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), and hexavalent chromium (Cr6+). In furniture manufacturing, apart from lead in paint, these substances may occur in metal trim, bed and lamp legs, door handles, tables, chairs, cabinets, and more.

Several methods can detect hazardous metal content. Among them,Optical Emission Spectrometry (OES)is widely used as a fast, highly accurate method.

Advantages of OES compared with other methods include:

• Fast analysis time
• High detection capability (down to 50 ppm)
• Less demanding sample preparation; easy to use and user-friendly.
• Durable equipment can operate in harsh areas with high temperatures and dust, such as foundries and machine shops.
• Low total investment cost, lower equipment price, and fewer consumables.

Among mid-range, high-performance instruments, a notable option isFoundry Master Smart – FMSfrom Hitachi High-Tech.

Manufactured in Germany, it uses advanced technology for high accuracy and stability.

• Analyzes multiple alloy bases (up to 10), depending on the installed analytical programs (see details below).
• Analyzes up to 28 elements in an Fe base, 24 in a Cu base, and 30 in an aluminum base.
• Detection limits (LOD) for selected elements: C 30 ppm; Si 30 ppm; P 20 ppm; S 20 ppm; Al 20 ppm; Mg 5 ppm, etc.
• An open three-way sample clamp accommodates complex shapes.
• Flat-field, multi-CCD optics with a direct optical path (no fiber-optic cable).
• Analytical wavelength range: 175–420 nm, extendable to 671 nm for Cu, Li, and Na.
• Includes a GRADE database with more than 340,000 alloy grades and about 12,000,000 names (DIN/EN, ASTM, AISI, JIS, GOST, and others).
• Weight: 35 kg

For consultation or a demo: Phone/Zalo (24/7), Huy –0902 903 826