reach & issue of chem in apparel

8/11/2019 REACH & Issue of Chem in Apparel

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REACH & the Issue of Chemical Substances Presentin Apparel/Garments

Compliance Obligation on Exporters

Dr. Rashmi NaiduSr. General Manager (Technical Services)REACH Support, INDIA

http://www.reach-support.com
http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-support.com/


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About REACH Support

Most sought after, one of its kind helpdesk in India

Clientele spread across Asia, Europe and growing steadily to other

places

Caters to over 800 companies presently

Entire basket of REACH compliance services offered

Providing Assessment & Certification services to various article

exportersProfessionals comprise of experts who have been following REACH

regulation since the draft stages


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Contents

REACH in a nutshell

Articles within REACH

REACH Accessories and Embellishments

Is packaging an article?

SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII of the REACH regulation)

REACH requirement for substances in article

Notification obligation & Notification deadlines

Communication Obligation

How to calculate the SVHC thresholds within REACH

Importance of supply chain communication


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REACH In a nutshellREACH - Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of

Chemicals

This regulation requires information to be submitted to the European

chemical agency (ECHA) on the properties of chemicals (exported assuch) as well as chemicals contained in articles

For exporters of chemicals, the major compliance process is

REGISTRATIONFor exporters of articles, the compliance process is NOTIFICATION

(though not in each case)


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Articles within REACHDefinition

an object which during production is given a special shape, surface or design

which determines its function to a greater degree than its chemical

composition

Apparel/garments are considered as articles within REACH as they come in

various shapes & design imparting various functionalities


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REACH - Accessories & Embellishments

Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & ZippersSliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc

Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch ,rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc

If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, theywill be treated individually as articlesAccordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/358793434/Fashion_gold_metal_embellishments_sequins_accessory.htmlhttp://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/374580730/rhinestone_embellishment.htmlhttp://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/369068405/flower_like_metal_embellishments.html


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Is PACKAGING an article? YES

The apparel can be packaged in cardboard boxes, plastic bags, paper, etc.

Packaging is considered as a separate article within REACH

Exporters also have obligation to check for SVHC and restricted chemicalsin packaging

Important to check the chemical used like paints, etc used to mark thepackaging

If an SVHC is present, the obligations for the packaging would be the sameas for the apparel

However, if the packaging ends up as waste in Europe, no separateobligation exists for the packaging


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Substances of very high concern (SVHC)


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What are SVHC

Substances of very high concern are:

PBT substances vPvB substances

CMR category 1, 2 substances

Substances of equivalent concern (having endocrinedisrupting properties)

In a nutshell, substances very toxic to the human health andenvironment shall be categorized as SVHC


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SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII) of REACH

ECHA has finalized 53 SVHC till date

The complete list can be found atwww.reach-or.com /www.apparel-reach.com/www.echa.europa.eu

Annex XVII (52 substances & in some cases category of substances

(Phthalates, PAHs, CMR substances in Annex I of EC/67/548)

Restrictions on the Manufacture, Placing on the Market and Use ofCertain Dangerous Substances, Preparations and Articles

Name & category of chemicals Conditions of Restriction

Annex XVII entry into effect from June 2009


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REACH Requirements for Substances in Article

There are essentially three requirements

1. Pre-registration & Registration of chemical released intentionallyfrom the article during normal or foreseeable conditions of useprovided:

Release is intentional (e.g. perfume from the shirts)Intentional release Deliberate and contributes to an added value ofthe article

Chemical (which is released) is present in greater than one ton* inthe export consignment ( per annum )

The substance has not been registered for that use


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Examples of intentional release from apparel

Socks Antibacterial chemical released upon contact with body to avoidsmelly socks

Perfumed Shirts Fragrance chemicals added to provide freshness

Inner wear Softners added specially in baby inner wear to avoid rashes to thedelicate skin

Pre-registration/registration seem highly unlikely for the majority of theapparel exporters, except for similar cases as above.


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REACH Requirements for Substances in Article(Contd..)

2. Notification of SVHC if:SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) and tonnage of SVHCexceeds 1 ton per annum in the annual exports of apparel to Europe

3. Communication of SVHC if:

SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) in article but less than1 ton per annum

Apparel exporters need to confirm Notification or Communicationobligations based upon a technical assessment of the chemical usedin their entire production chain


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Notification Requirements to the ECHA

The information to be notified includes the following:

The identity and contact details of the producer of article The registration number (s) for the SVHC, if available The identity of the SVHC (s) like name of the substance, CAS, EINECS

No, etc The classification of the SVHC, which will be available from the

Agency A brief description of the use (s) of the SVHC in the article and of the

uses of the article (s) The tonnage range of the SVHC, i.e. 1 -10 tonnes, 10-100 tonnes etc.


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Notification Deadlines

For substances included in the SVHC list before 1 December 2010 ,the notifications have to be submitted not later than 1 June 2011

If Notification applies but has not been done, it is mandatory to

complete the Notification before exporting article to avoidpenalties

For substances included in the SVHC list on or after 1 December

2010 , the notifications have to be submitted no later than 6 monthsafter the inclusion in candidate list


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Communication Requirements to the ECHA

The recipient of the article with sufficient information to allow safeuse of the article including, as a minimum, the name of thesubstance

Only for SVHC on the Candidate List

No tonnage limit (i.e. also applies below 1 ton/year)

REACH Article 33(2)Consumers can request the same information. The information

should be provided within 45 days, free of charge.


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How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE)

Intentional Release

Consider a baby innerwear containing chemical lotion

Wt of 1 inner wear 100 gmWt of chemical in this inner wear 10 gm

Amount of chemical that shall be intentionally released 06 gmInner wear pieces exported to Europe (1 calendar year) 10,000Total wt of the annual export 10,00,000 gm (1000 kg)Total quantity that shall be intentionally released 60 kg

Intentional release quantity less than 1000 kg or 1 ton.

Thus NO PRE-REGISTRATION & REGISTRATION obligation of the exporter ofthis innerwear


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How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE)

No Intentional release but SVHC present

Consider a ladies top containing Cobalt dichloride, an SVHC used as mordantdye

Wt of 1 ladies top 300 gm

Wt of chemical in this ladies top 20 gm%wt/wt 6.66%wt/wtLadies top exported to Europe (1 calendar year) 10,000 piecesTotal wt of the annual export 30,00,000 gm

(3000 kg)Total quantity of chemical in the annual export 200 kg

Thus NO NOTIFICATION obligation (since total quantity is less than 1 ton perannum)but obligation of COMMUNICATION since %wt/wt exceeds 0.1% (6.6%)


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Some restricted substances in textile

Tris (2,3 dibromopropyl) phosphate ( CAS No 126-72-7 ) - Shall not be used in

textile articles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to comeinto contact with the skin.

Tris(aziridinyl)phosphinoxide ( CAS No 5455-55-1 ) - Shall not be used in textilearticles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to come into

contact with the skin.

Nickel (CAS No 7440-02-0 ) and its compounds - rivet buttons, tighteners, rivets,zippers and metal marks, when these are used in garments

Azocolourants - above 30 ppm in the finished articles clothing, bedding, towelsand nappies


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REACH - Accessories & Embellishments

Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & ZippersSliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc

Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch ,rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc

If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, theywill be treated individually as articlesAccordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/358793434/Fashion_gold_metal_embellishments_sequins_accessory.htmlhttp://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/374580730/rhinestone_embellishment.htmlhttp://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/369068405/flower_like_metal_embellishments.html


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Importance of supply chain communication

If the entire production chain is in-house, get the supply chain inventorized forall chemical inputs

If certain operations like dyeing/printing are outsourced, ask for the details ofthe chemicals used in these operations and make a note of the same

For the accessories and embellishments used in the apparel, ask the suppliersfor the raw materials used in their production

If the suppliers cite confidentiality as the reason for not sharing the details,share with them the SVHC list & request them to give you an undertaking that

none of the SVHC is used

PLEASE REMEMBER It is very important to get the entire supply chainscanned for the chemicals used during production of the export article(finished and packed apparel)


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Contact Details

For details, please visithttp://www.reach-support.com

http://www.reach-or.com

http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu

http://www.apparel-reach.com For answers to queries, please write to

[email protected] / [email protected]
http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-or.com/http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu/http://www.apparel-reach.com/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.apparel-reach.com/http://www.apparel-reach.com/http://www.apparel-reach.com/http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu/http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu/http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu/http://www.reach-or.com/http://www.reach-or.com/http://www.reach-or.com/http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-support.com/http://www.reach-support.com/

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