What has changed with regard to the restriction on monomer isocyanates?
Timm Schulze: The first stage of the REACH regulation on approval restrictions for diisocyanates came into effect on 24 February. As a result, products with a diisocyanate content of more than 0.1 percent by weight must be labelled with the notice “As from 24 August 2023 adequate training is required before industrial or professional use.” The isocyanate producers’ associations ISOPA (European Diisocyanate and Polyol Producers Association) and ALIPA (European Aliphatic Isocyanates Producer Association) have designed these training courses in partnership with the trade associations—in our case, FEICA (Association of the European Adhesive & Sealant Industry). The first training courses went online in English on 1 November 2021, with the German versions following a month later. The training modules are highly complex and must be selected based on exposure. This means that more extensive training is required to use a hot melt adhesive than other substances, such as assembly foam.
How can Jowat help with this?
TS: The easiest way is for people to use Jowatherm-Reaktant® MR adhesives. “MR” stands for "monomer-reduced" and indicates a diisocyanate content of less than 0.1 percent by weight. This means that these adhesives do not bear a hazardous substances label, and can continue to be used without specialized training. Our portfolio of MR adhesives is constantly expanding, and we can now provide a monomer-reduced alternative in many fields of application for which we supply PUR hot melt adhesives.
How have customers responded to the upcoming changes?
TS: At the latest when they read the label, customers who purchase a product with the hazard symbol will be made aware of the training requirement. We have already registered a signifi cant increase in the demand for MR adhesives, but many of our customers are still unsure how to proceed. We continue to recommend looking into the issue as early as possible—this will help both us and our customers to avoid potential delays in the changeover process.
Read other interesting articles in our customer magazine or have a look at our Jowatherm-Reaktant® MR adhesives.