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Sustainability

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How we bring KAITEKI to life

The formation of Mitsubishi Chemical Methacrylates has presented an opportunity to further develop and strengthen our approach to Responsible Care by bringing together people and ideas that allow the sharing and deployment of best practices across the group. This will lead to further performance improvements across all aspects of EHSS.

Hitoshi Sasaki

Hitoshi Sasaki

EVP, Polymers & Compounds/MMA Division

“Mitsubishi Chemical Group (MCG) seeks to provide solutions to environmental and social issues and contribute to the sustainable development of people, society and the Earth through its businesses built on a foundation of chemistry. In this way, we aim to realize KAITEKI”

Mitsubishi Chemical Methacrylates will continue to contribute towards this company objective in every way possible.

Responsible Care

Mitsubishi Chemical Methacrylates (MCM) is aligned to the MCC and MCHC policy of operating to the following Responsible Care Guiding Principles:

  • To lead in ethical ways that increasingly promote KAITEKI and benefit society, the economy and the environment.
  • To design and develop products that can be manufactured, transported, used and disposed of or recycled safely.
  • To work with customers, carriers, suppliers, distributors and contractors to foster the safe and secure use, transport and disposal of chemicals and provide hazard and risk information that can be accessed and applied in their operations and products.
  • To design and operate facilities in a safe, secure and environmentally sound manner.
  • To instil a culture throughout all levels of the organizations to continually identify, reduce and manage process safety risks.
  • To promote pollution prevention, minimization of waste and conservation of energy and other critical resources at every stage of the life cycle of products.
  • To cooperate with governments at all levels and other organizations in the development of effective and efficient safety, health, environmental and security laws, regulations and standards.
  • To support education and research on the health, safety, environmental effects and security of products and processes.
  • To communicate product, service and process risks to stakeholders and listen to and consider their perspectives.
  • To make continual progress toward a goal of no accidents, injuries or harm to human health and the environment from products and operations and openly report health, safety, environmental and security performance.
  • To seek continual improvement in the integrated Responsible Care Management System® to address environmental, health, safety and security performance.
  • To promote Responsible Care by encouraging and assisting other companies to adhere to these Guiding Principles.
7 pillars

We implement Responsible Care activities based on 7 pillars:

1. Process Safety Management

2. Occupational Safety, Health and Environment

3. Environmental Conservation

4. Chemical and Product Safety

5. Logistics Safety

6. Security

7. Quality Assurance

Pillar 1. Process Safety Management

Our aim is zero serious process safety incidents. Each year, we create action plans with policies, specific targets and key measures that help us to continuously improve our performance. All improvements involve understanding weaknesses more fully and making adjustments to support progress towards our goal of zero.

MCM implements robust risk assessments of processes, operations and chemicals, striving to prevent process safety incidents. In these risk assessments, we comprehensively identify, evaluate and work to reduce risks related to process safety. This includes the risks of normal operating conditions, and at times where there are increased challenges, such as when responding to a problem. To reduce change-related risks, we identify all changes and conduct safety assessments.

We provide education for employees at manufacturing sites to ensure that they are competent to carry out all their necessary tasks and that they understand the required practices and procedures. We ensure that employees can apply knowledge gained through education in the real working environment. In some instances, the training includes simulated process safety incidents and occupational injuries as well as emergency response exercises that help employees develop a strong awareness about danger and its potential impact. For technical staff, we provide and support ongoing continuous professional development opportunities, which is a blend of engineering education, participation in industry association expert panels and involvement in process safety assessments. Through such efforts, our engineers involved in process safety management develop the necessary specialized knowledge of risk assessment and control methods.

MCM has a range of countermeasures in place to minimize harm due to natural disasters and other external events. We evaluate potential external effects, including impact on surrounding areas, and establish response procedures to be implemented in the event of a disaster. We also conduct scenario-based training in which accidents occur simultaneously at multiple facilities due to large-scale natural disasters or other factors. 

Pillar 2. Occupational Safety, Health and Environment

Mitsubishi Chemical Methacrylates complies with the established MCC Environment and Safety Principles and Policies related to Environment and Safety.

1/ Safety lies at the foundation of our very existence, and ensuring safety is our social responsibility.

2/ We have an obligation to conserve and improve the environment, being friendly to both people and the planet.

1/ We will comply with social rules and standards, including corporate ethics in addition to applicable laws.

2/ We will aim for zero accidents and zero occupational injuries.

3/ We will reduce our environmental impact to prevent global warming and protect the natural environment.

4/ We will educate our employees about the environment and safety so that they can act with awareness of their own responsibilities.

5/ We will communicate closely with society to enhance understanding and trust.

6/ We will continue making improvements by using the latest technologies and available information.

Based on the above principles and policies, MCM will create a Group environment and safety action plan every year. The plan reflects the results of the previous year’s plan and audits and lays out yearly targets, policies and key measures.

The fiscal 2021 improvement plan will include the annual targets of zero serious process safety incidents, zero serious occupational accidents, zero environmental incidents and contribution to the global environment. The annual policy under the plan is to effectively understand workplace weaknesses and steadily make improvements. In line with this plan and the status of each workplace, we will carry out environment and safety activities.

MCM implements robust risk assessments of processes, operations and chemicals, striving to prevent incidents and occupational injuries. In these risk assessments, we comprehensively identify, evaluate and work to reduce risks related to process safety, occupational injuries and health. This includes the risks of normal operating conditions, and at times where there are increased challenges, such as when responding to a problem. To reduce change-related risks, we identify all changes and conduct safety assessments.

Some MCM employees perform work that requires special occupational health considerations, such as the handling of specified chemical substances and organic solvents, or working in hot or noisy conditions. To protect these employees, we conduct continuous working environment measurement in accordance with relevant laws and guidelines and our own rules. In addition, MCM carries out a range of occupational health measures, such as implementing specialized health checks, workplace inspections and initiatives to reduce risks identified by chemical substance risk assessments.

We provide education for all employees to ensure that they are competent to carry out all their necessary tasks ad that they understand the required practices and procedures. We ensure that employees can apply knowledge gained through education in the real working environment. The training is a combination of theoretical and practical elements that help employees develop a strong awareness about danger and its potential impact. For technical staff, we provide and support ongoing continuous professional development opportunities which is a blend of engineering education, participation in industry association expert panels and involvement in safety risk assessment activities. Through such efforts, our team develop the necessary specialized knowledge of risk assessment and control methods.

MCM conducts safety audits and environmental audits covering all plants, R&D centers and any other significant third-party supply chain facility eg off-site storage, distribution facilities, warehousing, dock operations etc.
Future audits will build on those carried out in 2020 when despite the challenges of COVID-19, the assurance auditing program continued across all the key Methacrylate facilities. These audits checked and evaluated the workplaces’ PDCA cycles based on audit subjects designated in the fiscal 2020 audit plan and provided guidance related to necessary improvements. The results of these audits form part of the overall assurance program.

Pillar 3. Environmental Conservation

Aiming to contribute to the global environment, MCM proactively works to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, conserve resources and energy, prevent contamination of the air, water and soil, limit waste generation, encourage reuse and recycling, help conserve the natural environment and produce environmentally friendly products. 

In addition, to ensuring legal compliance, we carry out training on environmental laws and regulations.

All sites are striving to achieve the annual targets of zero environmental incidents. In addition, sites continue to promote good KAITEKI practices such as

  • Reducing Environmental Risk
    We are implementing legal education and environmental audits to ensure compliance with environmental laws and regulations while systematically reducing environmental risk through risk assessments.

  • Reducing Environmental Impact
    We are reducing our environmental impact by cutting greenhouse gas emissions, saving resources and energy, and reducing emissions of pollutants.

Coexisting Harmoniously with Local Communities
We are letting local communities know about our environmental conservation initiatives and promoting harmonious coexistence through communication.

In 2021 MCM will establish targets for the reduction of greenhouse emissions. This will be in line with MCC and MCHC requirements and will build on improvements made over previous years.

LCA enables the quantitative evaluation of the environmental burden generated by a product or service over its entire life cycle (from resource collection through raw material production, product manufacturing, distribution, consumption, disposal and recycling). MCM has been using LCAs to evaluate the environmental impact of our products and services and this has enabled us to develop more environmentally friendly operational processes and services for the benefit of society.

MCM maintains ongoing measures to reduce pollutants to air and water by installing and improving emission gas and wastewater treatment facilities.

We have been reducing or maintaining the environmental burden our businesses place on atmospheric and water quality, as measured by NOX, SOX and dust emissions as well as chemical oxygen demand (COD).

MCM is advancing 3R activities (reduce, reuse, recycle) in an effort to reduce its industrial waste. As a result of these efforts, the industrial waste recycling rate is increasing, and the waste disposed of in landfill is decreasing. We will continue working to improve our industrial waste recycling rate by strictly enforcing sorted collection and strengthening coordination with disposal contractors.

Based on MCHC’s Biodiversity Conservation Policy, MCM pursues initiatives that contribute to the global environment and thus conserve biodiversity. Through these initiatives, we work to reduce environmental risk and impact, which reduces our impact on biodiversity. In addition, we strive to conserve the natural environment by cleaning up neighboring areas and coastal areas and protecting the green spaces at our sites.

In recent years MCM has invested significantly in areas including reinforcing wastewater management, air pollution prevention and energy usage reduction.

Pillar 4. Chemical and Product Safety

Product Safety refers to responsible product management in cooperation with stakeholders that protects the environment and the health and safety of people through the supply chain. It includes product life cycles (procurement of raw materials, research & development, production, distribution, marketing, use, waste and recycling). Product Safety is at the foundation of Responsible Care (RC).

In line with our mission of realizing KAITEKI and as part of our RC activities, MCM implements product safety through management practices at every life cycle stage of its products. In addition, we provide information about product risks to stakeholders and also work to ensure appropriate end use of our products from the perspective of security export control.

MCM maintains systems that ensure the rigorous management of chemicals in all its business domains. 

Chemical regulations vary by country and region and so MCM have appointed people who are responsible for overseeing product safety.  These people follow established MCM Chemicals management practices which also align with MCC Chemicals Management Regulations, Standards for the Safe Management of Chemicals and Standards for Product Safety Management.

To meet the target deadline for achieving the goals of SAICM1, countries around the world, including China, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the US and Turkey, have been enacting and amending legal regulations on chemicals. In particular, the mandatory registration of existing chemicals, begun under REACH2 in Europe, has commenced in South Korea and Taiwan. To respond to these changes, MCM is working with all of its legal entities, regional headquarters and local Group companies to ensure full compliance and business continuity.
 
1Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM): A strategic approach to international chemicals management adopted by the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme in 2002.
 
2Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH): European Union regulations regarding the registration, evaluation, approval and restriction of chemical substances.

Participation in Industrial Initiatives

MCM contributes to many relevant product safety groups including the US Monomers Association and European CEFIC Monomers Committee. It also works closely with many national regulatory and chemical trade associations (eg JCIA, CEFIC etc)

Voluntary Initiatives

To prevent the theft and/or abuse of chemicals, MCM has established safety management guidelines for managing substances at plants and laboratories, during logistics operations and during transfer to customers. In this way, we are working to reinforce the management of such substances.

Safety Data Sheet Management

MCM uses comprehensive chemicals management systems to support our expert staff in the proper provision of information to customers and supply chain operators as well as reliable chemicals management within the company.

The systems contain databases of the chemical substances and components of products handled, their hazardous properties, relevant domestic and international laws and regulations. The systems are capable of performing the GHS8 classification of chemical substances, determining the applicability of laws and regulations, and producing SDSs and labels in line with the laws and standards of a wide range of countries and regions, including Japan, Europe, the US, and East Asian and ASEAN countries for review by expert staff.

Pillar 5. Logistics safety

MCM has Logistics safety programs designed to facilitate the safe management and movement of people, goods, information and other resources throughout the supply chain.

Pillar 6. Security

MCM ensures that there are security plans for each of its business units which satisfy the local regulatory requirements. These plans will cover physical and cyber security elements.

Pillar 7. Quality assurance

MCM believes that implementing thorough quality control is important in ensuring product safety and continuous quality improvement, which means that customers can use the products safely and with confidence. As an integrated chemical company that provides an array of products and services to customers in a broad range of industries, it is our duty to prevent quality and product liability issues while working to continuously increase customer satisfaction. We strive to fulfil this duty in line with the following principles:

To realize KAITEKI for customers, we provide products and services that they can use with confidence. We listen carefully to each customer request and respond rapidly and sincerely. In accordance with the basis of our Responsible Care activities, we strive to achieve continuous quality improvement.

MCM is building appropriate quality management systems, based on ISO 9001* at our manufacturing sites and is working to strengthen our quality assurance framework.

*ISO 9001: International standard for quality management published by the International Organization for Standardization.

EcoVadis Sustainability Rating

Our Cassel site in Billingham, UK has achieved a Gold rating in the EcoVadis assessment. This evaluation underlines our commitment to KAITEKI principles for sustainable development and places us in the top 3% of companies rated in our industry sector.

EcoVadis Gold Sustainability Rating for 2022
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