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Product Life Cycle

 

Brother machines are designed in Japan using energy-saving technology and ensuring they comply with the necessary European laws and regulations. 
Production takes place at our manufacturing facilities in Asia, where reducing power consumption, CO2 emissions and waste are at the heart of the process. 
Our products are packaged safely but minimally and using recyclable materials to reduce waste. 
Different product categories such as printers, scanners and labellers are combined for distribution to maximise shipment loads and reduce CO2 emissions.
Energy, paper, toner and ink saving features are included in our machines, from automatic two-sided printing to deep sleep mode.
Brother machines, cartridges and packaging are collected and recycled through a free return scheme to support Cool Earth, a charity working to halt rainforest destruction.

Certificates, Statements and Directives

ISO 14064

Brother’s headquarters in Japan holds the accreditation for ISO 14064 which specifies principles and requirements for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Details about our emissions can be found on the global Brother website. 

ISO 14001

ISO, or the International Organisation for Standardisation, is the world’s largest developer of standards to make industry more efficient and effective.
We at Brother believe holding the ISO 14001 accreditation for Environmental Management is important to show our commitment to reducing our environmental impact.
The standard was updated in 2015 to ensure environmental good practice is fully embraced across all areas of a business.  All Brother Sales offices have held the ISO 14001:2015 standard since September 2018.

 

 

ISO 14001 Certificate

This latest version specifies the requirements for an Environmental Management System that an organization can use to enhance its environmental performance. All Brother Sales offices will upgrade their current certification ISO 14001 to the new standard before September 2018.

REACH is a European Union regulation concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals. It aims to improve the protection of human health and the environment by implementing regulations for all European companies.

As a responsible and environmentally conscious company, Brother fulfils REACH regulations by gathering information on the properties of chemical substances and registering substances used in our products according to REACH deadlines.

REACH Chemical Regulation

Every Brother product is issued with a Declaration of Conformity, proving that it meets the relevant requirements of all applicable directives. The declaration must be issued by the manufacturer.

Please note: The RoHS Statement is now included in this Declaration of Conformity.

As an environmentally responsible company, we comply with the following European legislations on waste: Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, Battery Directive, Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive. 

Following the WEEE Directive, Brother machines are designed with the recycling and recovery of materials in mind, and we have established systems for collecting waste equipment at the end of their lifespan.

The Battery Directive aims to reduce the environmental threats posed by batteries and increase recycling rates. Therefore, each of our sales offices in Europe is a member of a battery recovery and recycling compliance organisation.

The Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive focuses on four areas of waste management; Prevention, Reuse, Recycling and Recovery. Under this directive, we ensure our packaging is as efficient and environmentally friendly as possible.

The Ecodesign of Energy Related Products Directive is European legislation setting out ecological requirements for energy-related products. Its objective is to improve the energy efficiency and reduce the negative environmental impacts of a product during its design and development. As well as our products complying with the legislation, Brother is a member of EuroVAprint, an association of imaging equipment manufacturers that have signed the Voluntary Industry Agreement to continuously improve energy consumption within the industry.