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Quality certification and environmental labelling specialist TCO Development intends to introduce quality control labelling of mobile phones. The first TCO approved mobile phones are expected next summer.
"More and more people use mobile phones in their daily lives. Therefore, it is important to ensure that they don't have a negative effect on our health or the environment," says Jan Rudling, MD of TCO Development, which specialises in developing quality certification and environmental labelling.
TCO Development has put forward a quality control and environmental safety labelling scheme for mobile phones. In order to be TCO labelled, handsets have to comply with certain criteria for RF emissions, environmental safety and ergonomics. Jan Rudling continues:
"We have sent a proposal in principle to all mobile phone manufacturers world-wide as well as to a broad group of researchers, consumer organisations and unions."
Reactions are expected soon, and TCO Development believes that final specifications could be completed by the end of March this year. The first TCO labelled handsets are likely to be available early next summer. Manufacturers must themselves make sure that handsets are tested at an accredited lab. Following approval by TCO Development, phones are then marked with the TCO symbol.
The SAR value and a novel method for determining a handset's communication ability, TCP, are used to assess the effect of RF emissions on human tissue. Since the scheme is intended to be used globally, TCO Development has opted to use the more stringent American SAR limit of 0.8W/g per 10g of human tissue.
Hazardous compounds like mercury, lead and halogen containing flame retardant are banned in the proposed scheme, which also states that handsets should be recyclable.
TCO Development has put forward a quality control and environmental safety labelling scheme for mobile phones. In order to be TCO labelled, handsets have to comply with certain criteria for RF emissions, environmental safety and ergonomics. Jan Rudling continues:
"We have sent a proposal in principle to all mobile phone manufacturers world-wide as well as to a broad group of researchers, consumer organisations and unions."
Reactions are expected soon, and TCO Development believes that final specifications could be completed by the end of March this year. The first TCO labelled handsets are likely to be available early next summer. Manufacturers must themselves make sure that handsets are tested at an accredited lab. Following approval by TCO Development, phones are then marked with the TCO symbol.
The SAR value and a novel method for determining a handset's communication ability, TCP, are used to assess the effect of RF emissions on human tissue. Since the scheme is intended to be used globally, TCO Development has opted to use the more stringent American SAR limit of 0.8W/g per 10g of human tissue.
Hazardous compounds like mercury, lead and halogen containing flame retardant are banned in the proposed scheme, which also states that handsets should be recyclable.
Gittan Cedervall
