How Arena Automates Environmental Compliance and Risk Calculations for Electronic Components

Keeping up with ever-changing regulations and supply chain risks in the electronic component world can be a full-time job. Product teams are constantly juggling new compliance requirements and trying to stay ahead of potential disruptions. That’s why Arena Supply Chain Intelligence (SCI) has introduced some exciting new capabilities in its recent product lifecycle management (PLM) and quality management system (QMS) software release: automated compliance for components and automatic risk recalculation.

We caught up with Arena Product Manager Nathan Ng to get the inside scoop on how these features make life easier (and a lot less stressful) for product companies.

Nathan, can you give us an overview of the new automated compliance for components feature in Arena SCI?

Nathan: We’re excited to introduce automated compliance for components as part of our latest SCI release. This feature is designed to simplify and automate regulatory compliance management for supplier items. Arena automatically keeps five out-of-the-box compliance requirements up to date with the latest information from component manufacturers. Instead of manually tracking compliance for every component, our customers can depend on Arena to do the work for them, saving time and reducing the risk of noncompliance.

What are these five compliance requirements for electronic components, and how are they managed in Arena?

Nathan: The five built-in compliance requirements are RoHS, China RoHS, REACH, conflict minerals, and Proposition 65 presence. These environmental regulations are essential for many companies, as they govern which components and raw materials can be sourced and how they’re integrated into product designs. In Arena, the requirements are now pre-defined and enabled with just a few clicks. Once enabled, they are automatically applied to every supplier item that matches our component database. The compliance status and evidence files remain up to date without any manual intervention from the user.

How does this new feature streamline the compliance workflow for Arena customers?

Nathan: Previously, defining compliance requirements and managing changes was a manual process. If anything changed—say, a new directive or evidence file from the manufacturer—users would update the information themselves. With automated compliance for components, Arena automatically creates compliance requirements, assigns them to each supplier item, designates the compliance status, and provides the associated evidence files. The compliance data is integrated and stored inside Arena, and users see real-time status updates like “compliant,” “undetermined,” or “noncompliant,” along with the date, directive, and relevant evidence files. Essentially, product teams no longer need to rely on external tools to find out if the compliance status for a particular component has changed or to retrieve the latest evidence file from a manufacturer.

How does Arena SCI present component compliance information to users?

Nathan: In the supplier item view, users see two tables: one for Arena-defined compliance requirements and one for admin-defined requirements. The Arena-defined table is automatically populated and updated, while the admin-defined table remains for any custom requirements users want to manage themselves. We also updated the aggregated compliance status icon, which now provides a quick visual summary of a supplier item’s compliance status. This icon appears in the object header, search results, and sourcing views, making it easy to instantly spot compliance issues.

Is the automated compliance feature flexible for different customer configurations?

Nathan: Yes, flexibility was a key consideration. The automated compliance feature operates separately from our existing supply chain risk and mitigation module, or alongside it. Customers don’t need to have risk and mitigation enabled to use automated compliance.

Users who prefer to maintain their own compliance requirements can continue to do so with our admin-defined compliance module. The new Arena-defined requirements simply offer an automated, always-up-to-date alternative.

What about searching and reporting on component compliance data?

Nathan: We’ve enhanced the search functionality so users can search supplier items by specific compliance requirements—both Arena-defined and admin-defined. The search results are split accordingly, allowing users to filter items by compliance status. All this information is available for data extraction, making it easier for companies to generate reports during audits or regulatory reviews.

Let’s talk about component risk identification. What is the new automatic risk recalculation feature, and why is it important?

Nathan: Risk levels for supplier items can change daily due to new component specifications, sourcing modifications, or updates to the bill of materials (BOM). Previously, users would manually click “Scan Risk” to recalculate risk levels when something changed. Arena now automatically recalculates risk levels whenever new information is available or when actions occur that might impact sourcing or BOM structure. This ensures that risk assessments are always current, and users are notified as soon as something changes. It’s a small but meaningful enhancement that helps companies stay proactive about risk management.

How do the automated compliance and automatic risk recalculation features work together to benefit product companies?

Nathan: These combined features keep product teams up to date on both regulatory compliance and supply chain risk. Compliance requirements are automatically tracked and updated while risk levels are recalculated in real time. This reduces manual effort, minimizes the chance of missing critical updates, and enables companies to respond quickly to regulatory changes or supply chain disruptions. Essentially, it supports better decision-making and helps companies maintain their competitive edge.

What’s next for Arena SCI in the realm of compliance?

Nathan: Our team is committed to delivering even more powerful capabilities to help our customers manage component compliance and risk with confidence. In future software releases, we will enable the roll-up of compliance status from supplier items to top-level assemblies.

Final Thoughts: Taking Control of Compliance and Supply Chain Risk

With automated compliance for components and automatic risk recalculation, Arena takes the guesswork and manual hassle out of staying current, so you’re always ready for the next regulatory change or supply chain curveball. Ultimately, you’ll spend less time chasing updates and be empowered to innovate without fear of falling behind. As Nathan states, “It’s all about helping you manage compliance and risk with confidence.”

Ready to see these new features in action? Schedule a demo today—and discover how Arena SCI keeps you ahead of the curve.