Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (NYSE: VSH) today announced that its entire line of standard optocouplers is completely lead (Pb)-free. Vishay has shipped more than a billion lead (Pb)-free optocouplers for use in a wide range of industrial, consumer, and telecommunications applications. The Company was the first manufacturer to offer lead (Pb)-free optocouplers, which it introduced in 1997 in response to concerns about lead (Pb) in the environment.

Vishay is in the process of eliminating or reducing the lead content of Vishay products in early accordance with the European Union?s Restrictions on the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS). The majority of Vishay's products have lead (Pb)-free terminations, and Vishay expects 100% of required products to have lead-free terminations by June 2006.

?We place great importance in preserving the health of the environment, as evidenced from our efforts to offer lead (Pb)-free optocouplers starting eight years ago,?said Paul Sinclair, Vishay?s Director of Marketing for Optocouplers. ?Today, we are very pleased to announce that our entire optocoupler line, consisting of thousands of different part numbers, is now completely free of lead (Pb).?br>
The terminations of Vishay optocouplers are composed of pure tin with no compromise in performance. Vishay has streamlined the transition on the customer end by maintaining the same part numbers for the new lead (Pb)-free versions, eliminating the need for customers to re-qualify new part numbers with safety agencies. This is consistent with Vishay?s lead (Pb)-free program, under which parts that have been lead-free for several years will maintain their current part numbers.

Details of Vishay optocoupler lead (Pb)-free implementations were provided in product change notification documents (PCNs) and are available at www.vishay.com/how/leadfree.

Vishay, a Fortune 1,000 Company listed on the NYSE, is one of the world's largest manufacturers of discrete semiconductors (diodes, rectifiers, transistors, optoelectronics, and selected ICs) and passive electronic components (resistors, capacitors, inductors, and transducers). The Company?s components can be found in products manufactured in a very broad range of industries worldwide. Vishay is headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and has plants in 17 countries employing over 25,000 people. Vishay can be found on the Internet at http://www.vishay.com.