Regarding product safety, we evaluate product risks in consideration of various conditions, such as use, usage, required quality and related laws and regulations to provide appropriate risk management. Based on the risk assessment, we do not only check the validity in designing quality and process, but also conduct internal deliberations for appropriate management when various changes in manufacturing technologies and methods occur, and when commercializing products. After the start of supply, in addition to performing production control, such as shipping inspection, process management and product traceability, we strive to improve quality awareness by conducting quality education. Further, we operate an internal reporting system and a system to hold countermeasure meetings for quick response in case of any problems.

Establishing Quality Assurance Departments at Each Business Division

With the aim of enhancing the Denka Group’s quality assurance systems, in April 2019 we established Quality Assurance departments directly managed by heads of the Elastomers & Performance Plastics, Infrastructure & Social Solutions and Living & Environment Products divisions. Equipping these three divisions with functions equivalent to similar existing departments in the Electronics & Innovative Products and Life Innovation divisions, this move is expected to help us develop a structure capable of accommodating customer requests in an accurate and timely manner and better position Denka to deliver products that live up to customer trust.

Status of ISO and Other Quality Management Certification

Denka and its key subsidiaries have maintained the ISO 9001 and other quality management system certification for their mainstay products to continuously improve quality management. Although ISO 9001 standards and ISO13485 medical device quality management system standards underwent revisions in 2015 and 2016, respectively, we completed updating our quality management systems in accordance with the revised standards.

Acquiring IATF 16949 standard certification

All of Denka’s production bases and its main subsidiaries are certified under the ISO 9001 quality management system standard. Furthermore, ongoing efforts are under way to acquire certification under IATF 16949, an international quality management system for the automotive industry, in order to accommodate requests from customers handling the manufacture of vehicle-mounted products.

To enhance customer satisfaction, we are developing IT-based infrastructure to support our quality management. Encompassing an upgrade of the existing customer complaint management system, the infrastructure is expected to enhance our ability to address customer grievances and complaints. Moreover, it will help increase the sophistication of design review undertaken at the research, design and development stages to ensure that customer needs are promptly and accurately met while updating our system for managing the functional and quality specification documents furnished to customers at the time of product delivery. In these ways, we strive to enhance the reliability and efficiency of our operations and facilitate the effective utilization of accumulated data.

Based on in-house guidelines for the management of chemical substances used in our products, we are properly managing substances that are potentially hazardous to human health and the environment in accordance with relevant legal regulations and industry standards. In particular, we confirm with suppliers the content of legally regulated substances before adopting a new raw material. We also inform users of the content of regulated chemical substances in our products, including molded products, by issuing safety data sheets (SDS) and employing the chemSHERPA scheme designed to communicate chemical substance content information.