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The requirements cover a wide range of issues: environment,
ergonomics, usability, emission of electrical and magnetic fields, energy
consumption and electrical and fire safety.
The environmental demands concern restrictions on the presence and
use of heavy metals, brominated and chlorinated flame retardants, CFCs
(freons) and chlorinated solvents, among other things. The product must
be prepared for recycling and the manufacturer is obliged to have an
environmental plan which must be adhered to in each country where the
company implements its operational policy. The energy requirements
include a demand that the computer and/or display, after a certain period
of inactivity, shall reduce its power consumption to a lower level in one or
more stages. The length of time to reactivate the computer shall be
reasonable for the user.
Labelled products must meet strict environmental demands, for example,
in respect of the reduction of electric and magnetic fields, physical and
visual ergonomics and good usability.
TCO’95 is a co-operative project between TCO (The Swedish
Confederation of Professional Employees), Naturskyddsforeningen
(The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation) and NUTEK (The National
Board for Industrial and Technical Development in Sweden).
Environmental Requirements
Brominated flame retardants
Brominated flame retardants are present in printed circuit boards, cables,
wires, casings and housings. In turn, they delay the spread of fire. Up to
thirty percent of the plastic in a computer casing can consist of flame
retardant substances. These are related to another group of
environmental toxins, PCBs, which are suspected to give rise to similar
harm, including reproductive damage in fisheating birds and mammals,
due to the bio-accumulative* processes. Flame retardants have been
found in human blood and researchers fear that disturbances in foetus
development may occur.
TCO’95 demand requires that plastic components weighing more than
25 grams must not contain organically bound chlorine and bromine.
Lead**
Lead can be found in picture tubes, display screens, solders and
capacitors. Lead damages the nervous system and in higher doses,
causes lead poisoning.
TCO’95 requirement permits the inclusion of lead since no replacement
has yet been developed.
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