Sep 17, 2012 To help the electronics manufacturing industry comply with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) final conflict minerals regulation, IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® will hold three, one-day seminars, “Conflict Minerals Critical Issues,” on October 24, 2012, in Boston, Mass.; November 1, 2012, in the San Francisco Bay Area, Calif.; and on November 14 in Chicago, Ill.
“While we are relieved, after lobbying for years, that the final regulation includes all of the key provisions we proposed, the regulation remains burdensome and costly for the electronics supply chain,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “IPC’s work in supporting our industry in the arena of conflict minerals is not over and IPC is continuing its leadership role by ensuring that clear and relevant information is disseminated to electronics manufacturers and their suppliers as quickly as possible.”
Per the regulation, conflict minerals compliance will require knowledge of not only the substances in products, but also the origin of the metals themselves. Electronics manufacturers will now have to query their entire supply chain, conduct audits and show due diligence measures taken, a costly and burdensome undertaking.
Bringing together experts in the area of conflict minerals, IPC’s full-day seminars will provide attendees with the necessary information on regulatory requirements, customer requirements and developing industry practices to help ensure conflict minerals readiness. Seminar topics include: final SEC regulation, third-party audits, legal strategies, OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) due diligence guidelines, industry programs for minerals transparency and traceability, EICC/GeSI (Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition/Global e-Sustainability Initiative) smelter audit program, supply chain communications and data exchange, and leading companies’ compliance programs.
“IPC is fortunate to have some of the top experts on the conflict minerals regulation on its staff, committees and industry network. Being able to tap into their wealth of knowledge and expertise is a clear benefit we can share with our industry members,” Mitchell added.
Each seminar will include a networking breakfast and lunch so seminar attendees can share experiences and insights into the conflict minerals regulation.
For more information or to register for a “Conflict Minerals Critical Issues” seminar, visit www.ipc.org/conflict-minerals-seminar or contact, Fern Abrams, IPC’s director of government relations and environmental policy, at +1 703-522-2287.
IPC (www.IPC.org) is a global industry association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 3,100 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2.02 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, N.M.; Arlington, Va.; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; Bangalore, India; and Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing, China.
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