Counterfeits: a clear, transparent policy and zero tolerance.

The offshoring of the electronics industry to Asia has brought the problem of counterfeits into the spotlight. China in particular is known for the limited resources it devotes to protecting intellectual property, patents and copyrights.

Our computer and electronic waste is shipped to China, India and Kenya (to name just a few countries), often illegally, to be processed. Most of the time this is done by villagers of all ages equipped with nothing but hammers and pliers, who break up the printed circuit boards to recover the components soldered onto them. The consequences of this "recycling" are disastrous for the environment and for local populations: this waste contains hazardous substances such as mercury, lithium, cadmium and lead.

These components are then cleaned, refurbished and re-tinned. The original markings are removed, leaving only PLCC44, DIP16, SO8 and similar packages, sorted by case type. They are re-marked and repackaged according to market needs, sometimes clumsily, but more and more often in a professional way that a buyer cannot detect without close examination.

Other forms of counterfeiting are more insidious: clones are made in clandestine workshops and resold under various labels. These parts will work for a few weeks or months after being fitted, then cause malfunctions and short circuits in the short or medium term.

Finally, it is not uncommon to see genuine parts on the market that were rejected by the manufacturer and diverted by fraudsters, who have no trouble selling them for next to nothing. The main country of origin of these parts is China. Shenzhen is where most of these fake parts end up, before being exported to the USA and Europe.

Beyond the significant financial losses, particularly for manufacturers and their customers, counterfeiting threatens the health and lives of users.

The AC ATEL Electronics team is fully aware of this problem and intends to take its responsibilities as an active player in the fight against counterfeiting. To that end, we took several radical measures in 2007, aimed at reducing to zero any risk of receiving counterfeit goods.

What we do

We select our suppliers strictly

Our market experience, which goes back to 1987, allows us to choose our suppliers carefully. The components we buy come from authorised sources or directly from manufacturers, thanks to the good contacts we have built with certain factories and the franchises some of our offices have acquired.

We check before we quote

If the parts you are looking for are obsolete or on allocation and must be sourced on the spot market, we take every necessary precaution before even giving our customers a quote. We only consider parts offered in their original packaging. We obtain photos and analyse barcodes and lot numbers, calling on the manufacturer to verify them if necessary. We react very quickly, and our modern means of communication let us obtain this information within hours.

We inspect every delivery

Components arriving at our premises are photographed and examined under an electron microscope. If the leads or the markings look suspicious, we will not take the risk of sending them to our customer. We do not return counterfeit parts to the supplier, to avoid them being put back on the market, but keep them at the disposal of customs.