Oct 3 2013
The Buffalo, New York facility of Materion Microelectronics & Services, a Materion Corporation business, has been certified as a Conflict-Free Gold Refiner and is in compliance with the Conflict-Free Smelter (CFS) Program protocol of the Conflict-Free Sourcing Initiative.
“This demonstrates Materion’s commitment to conducting business in a manner that protects people and the environment,” says Mike O’Neill, Vice President of Commercial Integration & Metal Management Services. “Through our CFS certification, we validate that gold materials supplied by Materion in Buffalo are derived from conflict-free sources.”
CFS Certification
The Conflict-Free Smelter Program is a voluntary global initiative developed by the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) and the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) to provide a credible system for companies to substantiate responsible sourcing. Under the CFS Program, an independent third-party evaluates smelter and refiner procurement activities and verifies that relevant materials are from conflict-free sources. Upon successful review by the organization’s Audit Review Committee (ARC), the applicant site is added to the CFS Compliant Smelter and Refiners List. Materion’s Buffalo facility has now been qualified for CFS listing as a compliant Gold Refiner. This commits Materion to the CFS Gold Supply Chain Transparency Audit Protocol standards.
Legislation Drives “Conflict-Free”
Publicly traded companies such as Materion Corporation are required to comply with the Conflict Minerals Rule, 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act. The overall goal of the Conflict Minerals Rule is to eliminate the human rights abuses occurring in Africa by discouraging the purchase and use of Conflict Minerals that directly or indirectly finance or benefit armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and surrounding countries.
Materion’s Conflict-Free Policy
Materion has in place a conflict-free mineral policy that ensures that its products meet the due diligence and reporting requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange (SEC) rule under the Conflict Minerals Rule. Using gold derived from Materion’s own reclaim and recycling programs enables adherence under this policy as does the CFS compliance status. As a company with more than 100 years of experience in refining precious metals, Materion is committed to responsible stewardship practices that include the use of conflict-free minerals.
Microelectronics & Services is a Materion Corporation business. Materion Corporation is headquartered in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. The company, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, supplies highly engineered advanced enabling materials to global markets. Products include precious and non-precious metals, inorganic chemicals and powders, specialty coatings, specialty engineered beryllium alloys, beryllium and beryllium composites, and engineered clad and plated metal systems.