HERNDON, VA – “Environmental legislation is proliferating around the globe, and harmonization is essential. Equally important is the need for industry to coordinate its technical responses, and that requires a proactive approach.”
 
That’s according to iNEMI vice president of global operations Bob Pfahl, who is helping organize an industry-wide action plan for dealing with the green movement.
 
The two-day program takes place Sept. 22-23, at Motorola’s Galvin Center in Schaumburg, IL. 
 
iNEMI hopes to use the summit to identify and prioritize areas where the electronics industry can collaborate on proactive environmental programs, and to respond to legislators, consumers and civil groups.
 
“The long-term goals are to prepare industry for future regulations before regulatory deadlines are reached, and to help develop scientific bases for emerging requirements,” Pfahl said. 
 
“Industry is going to need to keep pace with emerging material restrictions, end-of-life requirements, customer preferences for energy-efficient products, and holistic design requirements. We must work with stakeholders to evaluate alternative technologies and determine tradeoffs between product functionality, environmental impact, reliability, safety and cost.”

The summit will feature speakers from industry, associations and university research programs, and will include several open discussions and brainstorming sessions. Topics include:






 
“Our goal for this summit is to go beyond discussing the issues. We are looking to define specific actions for the industry to take on the environmental front and to organize programs to execute,” said Pfahl.
 
Registration is free for members, $250 for nonmembers. For additional details and to register, go to http://www.inemi.org/cms/calendar/Sustainability_Summit_Sept08.html.