IEC GUIDE 113

Materials declaration questionnaires - Basic guidelines

One important aspect of product-related environmental protection is environmentally safe product recycling or disposal. This is possible only with the knowledge of the substances contained and the potential hazards to health and to the environment that they represent. Therefore, the manufacturer should know which environmentally relevant substances are contained in his products. Additionally, he should know the distribution and the concentrations of these substances. He should be able to give the required information to those who need it.[
]This guideline is written to assist companies which have to develop materials declaration questionnaires for products, for instance as part of purchase specifications. It intends to increase the harmonization and the comparability of the various questionnaires.

Vprašalniki za deklaracijo materialov – Osnovne smernice

General Information

• Status: Not Published
• ICS: 13.020.60 - Product life-cycles
• Technical Committee: ACEA - ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS
• Current Stage: PPUB - Publication issued
• Start Date: 18-Oct-2000
• Ref Project: SIST-V IEC Guide 113:2006 - Materials declaration questionnaires - Basic guidelines

Overview

IEC GUIDE 113 sets out basic guidelines for developing materials declaration questionnaires used in the electrotechnical and electronic industry. The guide supports environmentally safe recycling and disposal by ensuring manufacturers and suppliers can identify which environmentally relevant substances are present in products, their distribution and concentrations. The objective is to increase harmonization and comparability of questionnaires, reduce costs across the supply chain and improve information flow between material suppliers, manufacturers, recyclers and customers.

Key Topics

• Scope and purpose: Focuses on product-related environmental protection and the flow of material-content information among suppliers, manufacturers, recyclers and end users.
• Declaration level: Decide whether to declare a finished product, components, subassemblies or to use a declaration tree detailing several levels of the product structure.
• Substance identification: Use unambiguous nomenclature; CAS registry numbers or other internationally accepted identifiers are recommended.
• Thresholds and limits: Define mass thresholds and concentration limits (the guide cites 0.1 % by mass as an example threshold used for certain hazardous substances). Thresholds should be based on risk assessment and end-of-life considerations.
• Component focus: Questionnaires should identify the specific component or part where a substance is located rather than only product-level reporting.
• Categories for declaration: Include substances restricted by law (see annex A), those covered by international treaties (e.g., Basel Convention), hazardous-to-health/environment substances (annex B), and substances relevant to end-of-life treatment.
• Practical form: Prefer computer-processable questionnaires and consider grouping similar components into families to simplify reporting.

Applications

IEC GUIDE 113 is practical for:

• Procurement teams creating purchase specifications that require materials declarations from suppliers.
• Manufacturers and component suppliers compiling product content data for downstream users.
• Recyclers, refurbishers and waste-management facilities that rely on accurate substance information for safe recovery and disposal.
• Regulatory compliance and regulatory reporting where legal restrictions or concentration limits must be demonstrated.

Benefits include improved supply-chain communication, reduced duplication of requests, better comparability of responses and potential cost savings when questionnaires are harmonized.

Related Standards

• The guide was prepared in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives (Annex P) and developed by the IEC Advisory Committee on Environmental Aspects (ACEA).
• Annex A and B of the guide reference legally restricted substances and criteria for hazardous substances; Annex C lists components often critical for declaration (e.g., batteries, capacitors, displays).
• Relevant topical classifications include Environmental impact assessment (ICS 13.020.30) and Product life-cycles (ICS 13.020.60).

For organizations developing or updating materials-declaration questionnaires, IEC GUIDE 113 provides a practical framework to ensure clarity, traceability and consistency in hazardous-substance reporting across the supply chain.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-september-2006
Vprašalniki za deklaracijo materialov – Osnovne smernice
Materials declaration questionnaires - Basic guidelines
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: IEC GUIDE 113
ICS:
13.020.30 Ocenjevanje vpliva na okolje Environmental impact
assessment
13.020.60 Življenjski ciklusi izdelkov Product life-cycles
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

INTERNATIONAL
GUIDE
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
First edition
2000-10
Materials declaration questionnaires –
Basic guidelines
 IEC 2000  Copyright - all rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from the publisher.
International Electrotechnical Commission 3, rue de Varembé Geneva, Switzerland
Telefax: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail] IEC web site http://www.iec.ch
Commission Electrotechnique Internationale
H
PRICE CODE
International Electrotechnical Commission
Pour prix, voir catalogue en vigueur
For price, see current catalogue

– 2 – Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
___________
MATERIALS DECLARATION QUESTIONNAIRES –
BASIC GUIDELINES
FOREWORD
This first edition of IEC Guide 113 has been prepared in accordance with annex P of Part 1 of
the ISO/IEC Directives by the Advisory Committee on Environmental Aspects (ACEA).
The text of this guide is based on the following documents:
Approval document Report on voting
C/1180/DV C/1202/RV
Full information on the voting for the approval of this guide can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.

Guide 113  IEC:2000(E) – 3 –
MATERIALS DECLARATION QUESTIONNAIRES –
BASIC GUIDELINES
1 Scope
One important aspect of product-related environmental protection is environmentally safe
product recycling or disposal. This is possible only with the knowledge of the substances
contained and the potential hazards to health and to the environment that they represent.
Therefore, the manufacturer should know which environmentally relevant substances are
contained in his products. Additionally, he should know the distribution and the concentrations
of these substances. He should be able to give the required information to those who need it.
The flow of information on material content involves several parties, as illustrated in figure 1.
Material suppliers
Manufacturers
of components
If requested
Manufacturers
of appliances
Private customers
Industrial customers
Consumer associations
Recycling/disposal
facilities
Figure 1 – Flow of information on materials content
This guideline is not prescriptive. It is rather written to assist companies which have to
develop materials declaration questionnaires for products, for instance as part of purchase
specifications. It intends to increase the harmonization and the comparability of the various
questionnaires. This is supposed to lead to cost reduction, both for those sending
questionnaires and for those answering them, but it must be kept in mind that the possibilities
for harmonizing the materials declaration questionnaires are limited because of the differing
needs of those requiring information, and because of the continual changes of the hazardous
materials lists.
2 Definition
Within the meaning of this guide, products comprise, in particular, materials, components,
subassemblies and appliances in the field of the electrotechnical and electronic industry.

– 4 – Guide 113  IEC:2000(E)
3 Procedure for developing materials declaration questionnaires
Depending on the product, requirements, level of confidentiality, etc., materials declaration
can take different forms, to be agreed between the parties involved. However, some basic
points are common to all materials declarations and taking them into account will help to
establish a sufficient level of uniformity, thus simplifying work and reducing costs.
A materials declaration always involves at least two parties, generally the purchaser (party
demanding information) and the supplier (party supplying information). Later, other parties
may make use of the original materials declaration, such as refurbishing companies,
recyclers, exporters of second-hand equipment, etc. These third parties become in due
course the party requiring information.
A number of questions should be settled between the purchaser and the supplier before a
materials declaration can be defined. The most important ones are:
a) Which item (full product, component, part, sub-assembly, etc.) should be considered? Or
should a declaration “tree” be used: finished product and components considered
separately? If so, which level of detail is required?
b) Which criteria should be used to define substances to be declared?
c) Above which mass thresholds and/or concentrations should substances be declared?
d) Which units for quantities should be used?
These points should be settled by consensus between the purchaser and the supplier,
preferably based on consensus between all actors in the supply chain. There are cases,
however, when the purchaser may prescribe the substances to be declared and/or the mass
thresholds or concentrations, without previous discussion. This is the case when regulatory
reasons are behind the request for information.
In other cases, the choice of substances could be left to the supplier, such as when the
purchaser only states the lists of restricted substances or the criteria.
In all cases, prior to elaborating any materials declaration, a clear statement regarding the
above information in general should be provided to the supplier by the purchaser.
4 Princip
...