A big challenge facing businesses as the SCIP submission date looms is to submit quality, accurate, and complete information, on time. One of the ways ECHA allows dossiers to be submitted is through a system-to-system transfer – from a company’s existing system to the ECHA submission portal. In other words the entire process of gathering, preparing, and submitting the data can be seamlessly automated.

But first, a look at what is SCIP compliance and how it is changing the way businesses collect and share data.

What is ECHA SCIP compliance?

In a bid to reduce the content of hazardous substances in materials and products ECHA has mandated making information pertaining to all such substances available throughout the lifecycle of articles and materials, including at the waste stage. Specifically, information on articles containing Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) above 0.1% by weight as specified by the REACH Candidate list. This wealth of information will constitute the SCIP database. Businesses are required to prepare their supply base with the additional information SCIP compliance requires and submit information from January 5, 2021 onwards, the launch date of the SCIP database.

Who is affected?

All manufacturers who produce products in the European Union, all businesses that bring products to the market or import them into the European Union are obligated to report the additional data now required by the SCIP compliance.

How automation can help

The process of gathering and submitting this additional data in the IUCLID format required by the SCIP database is a complex, detail oriented one requiring supply chain engagement. For businesses that handle large volumes of data the manual, error-prone option is simply not an option.

Here are a few benefits of using automation.

Skip the challenges

From requiring an ECHA account to the intricacies involved in submitting to validating the challenges are many. A proprietary software such as APA’s helps automate data gathering, prepares and validates the dossiers, and provides you access to ECHA’s SCIP submission portal through a single interface.

Accelerate the process

As a sweeping example a product is usually made up of thousands of individual parts. Assuming many of them contain SVHCs, the process begins with making a notification for the simple articles containing SVHC above the limit. Then comes the task of complex notification or grouping articles. This is followed by formatting and validating the dossier in accordance with ECHA guidelines. It can be a daunting several hours for several full-time employees.

An automated solution can reference existing submissions in an existing data system such as a supply chain system and not only ensure accuracy but drastically reduce the response time as well.

Save money, gain efficiency & productivity

Automation frees up employees to continue doing what they do best while businesses stand to cut costs, save money and time.

How can APA help businesses automate SCIP compliance?

APA’s GreenCheck software allows businesses to submit and validate dossiers in a streamlined manner through their existing ERP systems. With APA as partner businesses not only get a team of SCIP experts to oversee the submission but stay up to date on the evolving requirements from ECHA enabling faster turnaround.

GreenCheck has been designed to help both small and large businesses navigate through SCIP compliance information and ensure timely and accurate compliance. APA’s growing records show businesses benefitting from cost savings of 30% and a productivity increase of 2x with GreenCheck.

About APA Engineering

Established in 2000, APA specializes in providing turnkey compliance services for manufacturers across REACH, RoHS, IMDS, SCIP, SDS, and Prop65.

APA combines domain expertise, software tools and clear processes to achieve high standards of compliance that leading manufacturers expect.

Using APA Engineering will save you time and extra resources while giving you the confidence to achieve compliance and be ready to conduct business safely in the European Union and anywhere else in the world.

Contact APA Engineering for a demo of the automated SCIP submission