Government delays WEEE to next year: IT responds

Repic, the not for profit recycling body set up by 45 UK electrical goods producers, has welcomed the Government’s decison to delay implementation of the EU WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive by six months to January 2006. The announcement is in line with other European governments, all of have been experiencing difficulties with interpretation, company requirements, methods, payments, notification and IT. Environmentalists may be dismayed, but the group insists the extra time will allow all parties, including producers, retailers and local authorities, to firm up how they intend to implement WEEE. Following DTI minister Mike O’Brien’s announcement, Dr Philip Morton, Repic’s CEO, said: “Common sense has prevailed… There are a number of important issues that still need to be resolved and Mike O’Brien has clearly listened to our concerns.” In particular, he refers to premature implementation risking higher costs for consumers, lack of transparency and putting UK jobs at risk – with some justification, given the lack of information and agreement to date on practical issues. Repic represents companies like Indesit, Bosch, Siemens, Hoover Candy, Panasonic, Philips, Sony, Electrolux, Kenwood, Hitachi, Sharp and Glen Dimplex. Hewlett Packard supports the delay: Dr Kirstie McIntyre, HP’s WEEE UK programme manager, told the BBC: “On the face of it, WEEE looks quite simple. When you look at the detail, it is complex. It requires interaction with people we don’t usually interact with.” Much the same is true across the compliance landscape: research conducted for Dell last month, for example, illustrated that manufacturers are not only uncertain about their obligations and the systems they’ll need to support them, but are paying for additional IT and not seeing a return. Dell found more than three-quarters not fully confident they are complying with legislation. Nearly half felt a lack of understanding was holding them back from complying, and only 3% felt they were fully aware of their obligations. “Countless manufacturers may already be facing the serious repercussions of non-compliance with legislation such as the Data Protection Act and Freedom of Information Act, which can range from a court appearance to a severe fine,” says Steve Lewis, enterprise systems director, Dell UK. “With an increasing amount of legislation to deal with, organisations could benefit from being fully educated on legislation issues to mitigate any risks.” Manufacturers are also counting the cost of compliance, he observes, with nearly half of those surveyed saying their IT costs had increased as a result of having to comply. “Despite this financial outlay, our survey also showed that 56% of manufacturers don’t expect to see a return on investment from complying with legislation,” he warns. “By thinking strategically when making IT investments to meet legislation requirements – such as storage solutions – they could reap additional benefits from any new technology… Complying with legislation should be seen as an opportunity, not a threat.” Expect more help from the IT community in this quarter: Sun, for example, at its SunLive 05 conference announced that it’s working with ‘best practice partners’ to deliver “expert consultancy to enable [customers] to understand the risks and impacts of new compliance legislation, help to identify their compliance requirements, and develop a compliance policy to meet those needs. “Once the policies have been developed, Sun will provide secure, scalable and robust systems and services to facilitate the implementation.”