Congratulations!
You have just purchased a TCO’99 approved and labelled product! Your choice has provided you with a product developed for professional use. Your purchase has also contributed to reducing the burden on the environment and also to the further development of environmentally adapted electronics products.
Why do we have environmentally labelled computers?
In many countries, environmental labelling has become an established method for encouraging the adaptation of goods and services to the environment. With the growing manufacture and usage of electronic equipment throughout the world, there is a recognized concern for the materials and substances used by electronic products with regards to their eventual recycling and disposal. By proper selection of these materials and substances, the impact on the environment can be minimized.
There are also other characteristics of a computer, such as energy consumption levels, that are important from the viewpoints of both the work (internal) and natural (external) environments. Electronic equipment in offices is often left running continuously, resulting in unnecessary consumption of large amounts of energy and additional power generation. From the standpoint of carbon dioxide emissions alone, it is vital to save energy.
What does labelling involve?
The product meets the requirements for the TCO’99 scheme which provides for international and environmental labelling of personal computers and/or displays. The labelling scheme was developed as a joint effort by the TCO (The Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees), Svenska Naturskyddsforeningen (The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation) and Statens Energimyndighet (The Swedish National Energy Administration).
Approval requirements cover a wide range of issues: ecology, ergonomics, emission of electrical and magnetical fields, energy consumption and electrical safety.
Ecological criteria impose restrictions on the presence and use of heavy metals, brominated and chlorinated flame retardants, and other substances. The product must be prepared for recycling and the manufacturing site(s) shall be certified according to ISO14001 or EMAS registered.
Energy requirements include a demand that the system unit 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 system unit shall be reasonable for the user.
Labelled products must meet strict environmental demands, for example, in respect of the reduction of electrical and magnetical fields as well as work load and visual ergonomics.