IEEE 1680-2018
Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products — EPEAT
Standard Introduction
IEEE 1680-2018 is an active standard published by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). It is commonly used across Electronics, Manufacturing, Retail, Services, Government and applies in United States, Global.
Use this page to review the official documentation, current status, and the certification or assessment bodies most commonly associated with IEEE 1680-2018.
Material Selection
Restricts hazardous substances and encourages recycled, renewable, and bio-based materials in computer products.
Energy Efficiency
Requires products to meet ENERGY STAR or equivalent criteria and report typical energy consumption.
End-of-Life Design
Promotes product longevity, modular design, and responsible recycling to reduce e-waste.
list_alt EPEAT Assessment Criteria
- Reduction of substances of concern
- Energy conservation and climate
- Material selection
- End-of-life management
- Product longevity and life-cycle extension
- Packaging
- Corporate performance
- Supply chain responsibility
Who Needs to Comply?
Manufacturers, resellers, and purchasers of PCs, displays, notebooks, tablets, servers, and imaging equipment. Commonly required by government and enterprise procurement policies.
Key Requirements
Environmental Criteria Compliance
Meet the required, optional, and point-based criteria for Bronze, Silver, or Gold EPEAT registration in the relevant product category.
Conformity Verification
Provide evidence through third-party verification, declarations, and testing to support EPEAT registration claims.
Public Registration
List certified products on the EPEAT registry with accurate product family information and applicable registration level.
Continuous Improvement
Maintain compliance as criteria evolve and respond to corrective actions identified by EPEAT or verification bodies.
Implementation Roadmap
Define IEEE 1680-2018 scope
Identify the environmental and social responsibility assessment for computers and displays in scope, the legal or customer obligations that apply, accountable owners, affected products or services, jurisdictions, suppliers and evidence expectations. Confirm coverage for product category, EPEAT registration level, required and optional criteria, substances of concern, energy use, materials, packaging, product longevity, end-of-life services and supply-chain criteria.
Assess obligations and gaps
Compare current design, operations and documentation against IEEE 1680-2018. Review product category, EPEAT registration level, required and optional criteria, substances of concern, energy use, materials, packaging, product longevity, end-of-life services and supply-chain criteria, then prioritise gaps by safety, legal exposure, market-access impact, customer commitments, reporting deadlines and assurance readiness.
Implement controls and evidence
Deploy the procedures, technical controls, testing, training, supplier controls, review gates and operating records needed for IEEE 1680-2018. Maintain criterion worksheets, test reports, supplier declarations, material declarations, energy data, packaging evidence, take-back program records, verifier findings and EPEAT registry submissions as traceable evidence.
Review, verify and maintain
Run management review, internal checks, retesting or independent assessment where appropriate. Refresh the program when products, services, suppliers, standards, regulations, incidents, customer commitments or market-surveillance expectations change.
Compliance Checklist
checklist Scope and accountability
checklist Controls and records
checklist Monitoring and assurance
Penalties & Enforcement
EPEAT registration is voluntary but widely used in procurement. Loss of registration can disqualify products from government contracts and enterprise purchasing programs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who needs IEEE 1680-2018?
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IEEE 1680-2018 is relevant to organizations that design, manufacture, import, distribute, operate, certify, test or procure environmental and social responsibility assessment for computers and displays. Exact applicability depends on the product or service scope, jurisdiction, role in the supply chain, customer commitments and the specific obligations triggered by the standard or regulation.
Is IEEE 1680-2018 certifiable?
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Products are normally verified through EPEAT registration rather than an organization-wide certificate. Verification bodies review evidence and products can be listed at Bronze, Silver or Gold where the criteria are met.
What should a IEEE 1680-2018 implementation start with?
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Start by defining scope and accountable owners, then map the applicable requirements to existing products, services, systems, suppliers and evidence. A focused gap assessment should identify missing tests, records, procedures, labels, declarations, risk assessments or assurance steps before detailed remediation begins.
What evidence is useful for IEEE 1680-2018?
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Useful evidence includes criterion worksheets, test reports, supplier declarations, material declarations, energy data, packaging evidence, take-back program records, verifier findings and EPEAT registry submissions. Evidence should be version-controlled, traceable to requirements and owners, retained for the required period and ready for customers, auditors, certification bodies, regulators or market-surveillance authorities.
How often should IEEE 1680-2018 compliance be reviewed?
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Review it on a planned cycle and whenever products, services, suppliers, manufacturing sites, legal requirements, harmonised standards, test methods, incidents, customer commitments or market access assumptions change. High-risk products and regulated services should also be reviewed after complaints, field failures or regulator guidance.
Official Documentation
Official PDF for IEEE 1680-2018
Official publication or summary for IEEE 1680-2018
Official online resource
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) guidance and reference material
Implementation toolkit
Templates, guidance, or companion resources for IEEE 1680-2018