Limited classified areas
Most Free Zone factories are light manufacturing; classified areas are concentrated around fuel storage and handling.
Manaus has a tropical monsoon climate with an average temperature of 27.4 degrees Celsius, high air humidity and about 2,300 mm of rain a year, so enclosures and seals face constant moisture. Hazardous areas arise mainly at the Ream refinery site and fuel handling rather than in the factories; the refinery has reportedly stopped refining crude since early 2025. This page explains what to look for in a rugged mobile phone for Manaus Free Trade Zone, and where the IS-04Z1 stands against that list today.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Manaus Free Trade Zone: pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
Status: pre-launch. IECEx, ATEX, UKEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress and no certificate has been issued; launch is planned for Q4 2026. An operator's own vendor approval is a separate step. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Ingress protection | IP65 to IP68 sealing | IP68 design |
| Drop and shock | A stated drop height onto concrete | Specification on request |
| Explosion protection | A separate certificate and marking | In progress; not issued |
| Where it applies | Manaus Free Trade Zone: Fuel storage and loading, Refinery and fuel logistics, Port petroleum and chemical handling | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Manaus Industrial Zone. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
Who operates there and which kinds of classified area a handset would meet, from the SAMS site research.
Most Free Zone factories are light manufacturing; classified areas are concentrated around fuel storage and handling.
Manaus is served by the Negro and Amazon rivers and by an international airport, with limited road links, so deliveries from the south-east take longer.
Suframa describes the Manaus Industrial Pole as about 600 high-tech industries in electronics, IT goods, two-wheelers, naval, mechanical, metallurgical and thermoplastics, with 2025 revenue of R$227.67 billion and over half a million jobs.
Transport links include Eduardo Gomes International Airport and the Rio Negro Bridge, and the city sits on the Rio Negro, making river and air the main freight routes.
The Manaus Free Trade Zone was formalised by Law 3.173 on 6 June 1957 and for its first ten years operated from a rented warehouse in the Port of Manaus.
Federal tax exemptions administered by SUFRAMA and SUDAM created the comparative advantage that attracted manufacturers to the zone, so supplier and import procedures follow its own administrative regime.
A rugged phone is built to survive water, dust, drops and rough handling, usually rated by an IP code and a drop specification. Ruggedness is an environmental property: it says nothing about whether a phone may be used where flammable gas or dust is present. That is decided by explosion-protection certification and marking.
The IS-04Z1 combines both: an IP68 sealed rugged build and a design for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4). The explosion-protection certificates are in progress and none has been issued.
In Manaus Free Trade Zone. Equatorial conditions bring average humidity of about 81 per cent and rainfall of about 2,362 mm a year. Sealing and ingress protection are therefore important, and IP68 is a helpful rating here. It is not explosion protection, which is a separate marking requirement.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
No. Nothing can be bought or taken into a classified area today: certification is in progress and launch is planned for Q4 2026. What is available now is the datasheet, the written certification schedule and evaluation units for safe-area use.
SAMS has not published a price. Any figure you are offered for an uncertified Ex phone should be treated with caution; written indicative pricing is available for a defined quantity and site.
It is designed to IP68 sealing, with glove-friendly controls. Ruggedness is not explosion protection: that depends on the certificates, which are in progress.
Likely candidates are fuel storage and loading, refinery and fuel logistics, port petroleum and chemical handling. Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Not exactly. Explosion proof is a broad everyday term; intrinsic safety is one protection concept, which limits energy so ignition cannot occur. Flameproof (Ex d) is a different concept that contains an explosion. The IS-04Z1 is intrinsically safe by design.
Mostly fuel handling: the refinery, tank and terminal areas and product loading, plus solvent, paint and battery processes in some factories. Zones are set by each site's classification study, so ask the plant safety team which areas need certified mobile devices.
Only where flammable gases, vapours or dusts can occur, such as fuel storage, solvent and coating areas. Many electronics assembly halls are non-hazardous, so check the plant's area classification before buying certified devices for every user.
Manaus is served by the Negro and Amazon rivers and an international airport, with limited road links, so deliveries from the south-east take longer. Plan lead times and spares accordingly, and confirm delivery routes with the supplier or distributor concerned once certification is complete.
Related guides for Manaus Industrial Zone and for Brazil.
Tell us what you need to equip and where. The SAMS team answers by email with the datasheet and where each certification route stands.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule.