Basic Approach
The UBE Group complies with the chemical-related laws and regulations of countries worldwide, including Japan. We ensure rigorous chemical product management throughout distribution systems and proactively disclose safety information about our chemical products. Across these efforts, chemical substance management at Ube Industries takes into account health, safety, and the environment.
Management System
UBE Group’s Product Safety (Chemical Substance Management) System
We have established a management system to ensure that all departments involved in our business operations manage chemical substances appropriately. Considering the regional nature of laws and regulations pertaining to chemical substance management, UBE (Japan) has jurisdiction over Asia, while UBE Corporation Europe (Spain), our European manufacturing base, has jurisdiction over Europe and North America. In Japan, we have standardized an annual schedule for compliance with the Act on the Regulation of Manufacture and Evaluation of Chemical Substances, the Industrial Safety and Health Act, and other laws and regulations to ensure that no omissions occur. For China, Taiwan, and South Korea, where export volumes are increasing, we work closely with dedicated personnel at each local subsidiary to ensure compliance with revisions to the laws and regulations of each country or region.
Complying with Chemical Substance Management Laws and Regulations
Product safety is part of quality, and we work to manage this in line with our quality management system. We use our (SDS)*1 production support system, as well as UBE-CHemical Regulation Information Platform (U-CHRIP), a comprehensive database developed by UBE, for managing information about chemical substances, and other ICT to manage hazard information*2 of substances we use and the compliance status of substances we handle to ensure that we adhere to laws and regulations.
Supply Chain Communication
UBE supplies local-language versions of SDSs and product labels for all products, complying with regulations in each country or region to ensure the safe use of chemical products throughout their life cycles. We make SDSs for key products available for download from our website.
To realize green procurement*3, we are identifying hazardous chemical substances in our products and informing customers.
For logistics safety, we have also been working on the development of emergency contact numbers that can be used in the event of transportation accidents. In fiscal 2021, we prepared to expand the coverage area of our 24-hour emergency contact service to the entire world, and we began operating the service in fiscal 2022.
Cooperating with Industry Associations
Since fiscal 2011, we have participated in the Japan Chemical Industry Association (JCIA)’s voluntary chemical substance risk management activities while gathering and disseminating hazard information and risk assessments.
We support the International Council of Chemical Association (ICCA)’s voluntary Long-Range Research Initiative, which focuses on the effects of chemical substances on human health and the environment.
- *1 Safety Data Sheet (SDS): Documentation containing hazard and toxicity information about chemical substances that manufacturers disclose when supplying chemical substances and products incorporating them.
- *2 Hazard information: Information on the inherent risks of chemical substances.
- *3 Green procurement: Corporate purchases of raw materials, parts, and manufacturing facilities with minimal environmental footprints.
SDS
SDSs are necessary and important documents for proper communication of hazard information on chemical products through the supply chain. UBE considers SDSs to be an integral part of its products and, regardless of the product-specific hazards, prepares and provides SDSs to customers. You can download the SDSs that you need by registering as a user on the UBE Chemical Information
website.