The RoHS ripple effect presents risks to manufacturing, quality, and reliability because:

• Lead has long been a significant component of solder and component plating.
• Mercury is a component of products as diverse as reed relays and fluorescent lighting.
• Cadmium finds use in batteries and photo sensors, as well as in wires and cables.
• Hexavalent chromium sees use as a plating material for electronic chassis.
• PBB’s and PBDE’s are used to make flame-retardant cloth and other materials.

• Part availability from qualified sources;
• Lead-free part identification and tracking;
• Moisture sensitivity levels;
• Quality of lead-free solder joints contaminated with lead;
• Component assembly temperatures for lead-free soldering; and
• Reliability concerns like:
  • Tin whiskers;
  • Solder selection;
  • Component and laminate qualification.