Conflict Minerals

Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act requires the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue new disclosure and reporting obligations for publicly traded companies concerning minerals that directly or indirectly finance or benefit armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) or adjoining countries.

On August 22, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted a rule mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to require companies to publicly disclose their use of “conflict minerals” that originated in the DRC or an adjoining country.

The term “conflict mineral” is defined in Section 1502(e)(4) of the Act as:

A. columbite-tantalite, also known as coltan (the metal ore from which tantalum is extracted); cassiterite (the metal ore from which tin is extracted); gold; wolframite (the metal ore from which tungsten is extracted); or their derivatives; or

B. any other mineral or its derivatives determined by the Secretary of State to be financing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or an adjoining country.

Perle Systems Limited and its subsidiaries ("Perle") are committed to helping customers comply with Section 1502, by adopting the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas.

Perle is using the Conflict Minerals Reporting Template and Dashboard developed by The Conflict-Free Sourcing Initiative to obtain information from suppliers and disclose data to customers.