ECOLOGY

Environmentally responsible engineering, and why it is important to SOMA

We live on a planet with finite resources and an environment that is increasingly suffering the consequences of the last few hundred years of human industrial civilization. We see it as our responsibility towards future generations to minimize the negative environmental impact our business has, and where possible, to actively protect the environment with the choices we make as an international manufacturer of top quality electronic music instruments. 

We oppose planned obsolescence* in all its forms- we want our instruments to last you a lifetime! 

We firmly believe in the values of durability, easy maintenance and low-cost repair. 

1. Long lifetime of components. Using only high-quality components decreases the need for repairs and replacements, and the related shipping costs and CO2 emissions.
2. Professional boutique-style manufacturing by experienced engineers who know the instruments inside and out, continually subject to refinement, improvement and scaling.
3. Designed for repair: in high-end instruments such as PULSAR-23, PCBs are easily accessible and can be individually removed and replaced
4. When possible and applicable, offering customer-requested updates that can be installed in existing machines by the user (i.e. the new PULSAR-23 Bass Drum module version)
5. Guaranteed service for all SOMA products, also outside warranty.

The manufacturing process of all SOMA gear has been purposely designed to reduce CO2 emissions and minimize waste as much as possible:

• SOMA EU complies with RoHS guidelines and CE standards (LVD and EMC directives) from the beginning of production.
• The company’s activity is carried out in accordance with the WEEE directive in the field of waste management and used electronic equipment.
• We recycle everything from cardboard, cartons and plastics when possible.
• We are transitioning from whitened cartons to more environmentally-friendly cardboard with natural colors.
• When possible, we transport large shipments of components via train or ship.
• SOMA EU factory uses LED lighting to lower CO2 emissions.
• We use efficient methods for production and storage, keeping down heating costs and CO2 emissions.
• During the production process of Soma instruments, we actively collect metals and ‘electro waste’ for recycling.

Bottomline, ecological thinking is integrated in SOMA product manufacturing at every step of the process, and we are continually looking at further improvements in this regard.

*Planned obsolescence is the practice of designing products to break quickly or become obsolete in the short to mid-term, which has led to massive landfills across the globe full of needlessly discarded and toxic products while exhausting the earth’s supply of raw materials.