Brake makers pushing to meet new regs

CLOVER, S.C. (March 12, 2013) — As at least two states have issued new regulations governing friction materials that can be used in brake pad manufacturing, companies are concentrating on meeting upcoming deadlines.

Laws are pending in California and Washington State to ban certain concentrations of harmful materials used in making brake pads. As previously reported by Tire Business, Brake Parts Inc., manufacturer of Raybestos brake components, for example, has pledged to take a leadership role in complying with and disseminating the Brake Friction Materials Self-Certification Compliance Program, a self-certification plan developed by the Brake Manufacturers Council. It is an affiliate of the Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association and the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association in response to the brake pad content laws passed in California and Washington in 2010.

Clover-based Performance Friction Corp. (PFC), maker of PFC CarbonMetallic brake pads, claims they were the first pads to become certified as 100-percent copper compliant with the Automotive Manufacturers Equipment Compliance Agency (AMECA). "With the new copper legislation in effect," PFC said in a press release that it has been "ahead of the curve—offering copper-free brake pads before the legislation even surfaced."

The company also claims it was the first brake pad maker to submit data from copper testing to AMECA. "In order to attain certification, testing was done by a third-party laboratory, registered through a registrar while also providing the information publicly, and marking friction materials' environmental compliance level on the brake pad edge code," PFC said.

The compliancy levels include the "A," "B," and "N" edge codes, the company said, adding that each edge code "represents a different level of legal maximums of the different friction material weight percentages which include: copper (Cu), asbestos, chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and cadmium (Cd).

"PFC pads have an 'N' rating, which has the lowest amount of allowable materials, including copper-containing less than 0.50 percent."

According to the company, leaf marks that indicate the compliancy level will be required on brake pad packaging starting in January 2014. PFC said "this mark will give consumers and installers the ability to tell if the brake pads are safe and environmentally compliant—straight from the box."

PFC said it has been distributing copper-free brake pads through major auto makers since 1982 and new-generation copper-free Carbon Metallic pads are also being sold for OE production.

The AMECA certifications are available on the organization's website. www.ameca.org

PFC manufactures application-specific brake upgrades for hundreds of domestic and import models, the company said.