RC (Management)

What is RC?

RC is an abbreviation for Responsible Care^™. In the chemical industry, each company handling chemical substances is responsible for ensuring that safety, health, and environmental issues are addressed throughout the chemical lifecycle, from development and production to distribution, use and disposal, publishing the results of their activities and maintaining dialogue and communication with society—all voluntarily. This initiative is called “Responsible Care.”

Environment and Safety Management Policy

JSR developed the following promotional areas with reference to "Management Policies – Responsibility to Our Stakeholders" and the Japan Chemical Industry Association's (JCIA) basic policies on the environment and safety. We create concrete activity plans and promote Responsible Care activities based on these areas.

Management Policies – Responsibility to Our Stakeholders

Promotional Areas and Policy

1. Undertake product development in consideration of safety and the environment
When developing new products, JSR evaluates the environmental, safety and health impact at every stage from research and development to manufacture, transport, use and disposal, and makes utmost efforts to provide products that put into consideration such evaluations.
2. Provide safety and environmental information related to products
JSR sets in place a system for management of product-related safety and environmental information and provides Safety Data Sheets (SDS) to customers and yellow cards to transporters as necessary.
3. Preserve the environment and assure safety for local residents
JSR takes a positive approach in its measures for preserving the local environment, facility safety, and protection against major earthquakes, taking into consideration the impact its business activities have on the environment. JSR's objective is to earn even greater trust at its business locations.
4. Reduce environmental impact
JSR conducts studies on the environmental impact of chemical substances and works toward the systematic reduction of emissions. JSR engages in thorough efforts to reduce sources of emissions, reuse materials, and recycle resources in order to lessen environmental impact.
5. Assure safety and environmental preservation in international operations
JSR cooperates with cross-border transfers to environmental and safety technologies. Regarding corporate activities overseas, JSR strictly complies with the regulations of Japan and other nations, and makes every effort to assure safety and environmental preset nation at each operating site outside Japan.
6. Ensure employee health and safety
Constantly at work on pre-assessment of safety matters related to chemical substances and their handling, JSR is dedicated to improving operations and facilities, and to creating a healthy and safe workplace environment.

Environment and Safety Advancement Structure

JSR Signs Declaration Supporting RC Global Charter

The Responsible Care (RC) Global Charter is a voluntary activity policy adopted by the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) and shared by the chemical industry to enhance and reinforce RC activities around the world. JSR subscribes to this activity policy and signed a declaration supporting the RC Global Charter in October 2008. By signing the declaration, JSR has committed itself to making even greater contributions to health, safety, and environmental preservation not just in Japan, but around the world.

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ISO Certificate Acquired

By 1999, all JSR plants had acquired ISO 14001 certification, an Environment Management System that supports environmental management. Together with the ISO 9001 Quality Management System, we will continue to receive regular audits by the authority concerned to maintain ISO 14001 and ISO 9001, and will strive to improve our systems for protecting the environment and product quality. All plants successfully passed regular audits again in FY2014.
At Tsukuba Research Laboratories, the environment and safety management structure was rebuilt following the establishment of JSR Life Sciences Corporation and the reorganization of the laboratories of the JSR Group, and as part of this reconstruction, efforts are currently being made to obtain ISO 14001 certification.

The Environmental and Safety Internal Audits

JSR's Head Office conducts annual internal audits of its plants and research laboratories, with the president acting as head of the auditing team. We also audit our business sites that have been approved by the government for high-pressure gas operations as well as our approval inspection management department to ensure that both the department and the sites observe government approval requirements.
In FY2014, audits were conducted at three JSR plants and Tsukuba Research Laboratories with particular focus placed on the four areas specified below to ensure that improvement activities are being conducted at each site to achieve their environmental and safety goals.

(1) Confirm that hazards, including unexpected reactions during nonstationary work and disasters in non-explosion-proof areas, are identified, and that proper measures to mitigate them can be taken. Also, confirm that the evaluation rank obtained from prior safety evaluations considers new hazards and that measures, including irregular control, are implemented.

(2) Confirm that activities to improve knowledge and sensitivity are carried out widely under an enthusiastic administrator toward the development of both human resources and organizations that can ensure a safe environment. Also, confirm that the staff in charge of these activities, the administrator and related administrative sections cooperate with each other, maintain sufficient communication and actively adopt new ideas.

(3) Confirm that progress is well managed against plans and solving problems is promoted at each workplace about the E2 initiative and other activities to reduce our environmental impact, including actions for compliance with the revised laws (Waste Management and Public Cleansing Act, Air Pollution Control Act, Ordinance on Prevention of Health Impairment due to Asbestos, etc.).

(4) Confirm that activities to prevent cuts, getting caught in machines or other unavoidable industrial accidents are being practiced as the number of industrial accidents at Group companies declines after peaking in 2008. Also, confirm effective practices and share them across the JSR Group.

We implement measures to improve issues raised by the audits to further raise environmental and safety levels. In addition, each business site conducts its own environmental and safety internal audits on a regular annual basis.

Environmental/Safety Audits in all Group Companies

At JSR, we implement environmental and safety audits at all of our Group companies in Japan that are involved in production, transportation, and engineering processes in order to achieve integrated "Responsible Care" activities. We audited 16 business sites of 11 companies during FY2014, and provided them with assistance for raising the level of their environmental and safety activities based on the unique circumstances of their business. We also perform audits of overseas Group companies, having started audits of nine companies since FY2006. We verify the environmental and safety activities and challenges of each company within the context of local laws and culture and advise them on ways to achieve higher performance levels. In FY2014, we implemented a briefing on CSR at JSR Micro Korea Co., Ltd. at the same time we audited this company. We also conducted document-based audits regarding initiatives on the environment, safety and chemical products management at JSR Micro, Inc. We will continue to carry out environmental and safety audits of our overseas Group companies to enhance their environmental and safety levels.

Legal Compliance

When environmental and safety laws are adopted, enacted, or amended, the head office distributes information to each business site to keep them fully informed. JSR employees and personnel seconded to group companies can view environmental and safety information at any time using the Group intranet.

Violation of Environmental and Safety Laws in FY2014

One of our Group companies, JSR Life Science Corporation, was found to have disposed of equipment containing a radioactive isotope (americium-241; 3 megabecquerels) by mistake on March 12, 2013.
The company reported the issue to the Nuclear Regulation Agency on September 19. In response to a warning received from the agency on September 20, the company submitted a report explaining the background of the mistaken disposal, its cause and preventive measures to the agency on February 25, 2014, and to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on March 31. Taking this case seriously, the JSR Group as a whole identified all equipment that used radioactive isotopes and developed standards of management—from daily management to disposal—of such equipment as part of its efforts to prevent a recurrence.

RC & CSR Explanatory Briefings

To promote the company's CSR activities and responsible care activities to all employees, JSR organizes RC & CSR explanatory briefings. Every year, the officer in charge and other managers visit each plant to report the results of RC activities and share upcoming issues.

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Raising Environmental Consciousness and
Ensuring Safety in Global Business

Cooperation with the International Center for Environmental Technology Transfer

We have provided cooperation and support to the International Center for Environmental Technology Transfer (ICETT), a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation, since its inception, assisting the development of environmental and safety engineers from around the world.

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Implementation Status of Training for Foreign Engineers

FY	No. of trainings (times)	No. of participants (persons)	Content of training
1992-2013	65	565	Air/water quality management technology, industrial waste disposal/management technology, odor control technology, environmental management systems, responsible
2014	1	4
Total	66	569

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