Product Stewardship
Regulatory Compliance and Providing the Safety Use Information
In order to achieve the SDGs, many countries in the world are now enacting new laws or renewing regulations related to chemicals management. Compliance with these laws is the foundation of sustainable business and Mitsui Chemicals implements various measures to ensure our legal compliance. Also, providing information throughout the supply chain is indispensable for product stewardship. We are making extra efforts to provide information about the safe handling of our products—even beyond attaching the legally-specified Safety Data Sheets (SDSs) and labels.
Compliance with New or Revised Regulations Related to Chemical Substances
Following the EU REACH regulations that systematically changed the chemicals management system, many countries are also strengthening their local regulations. A number of revisions to laws and regulations will also take place. We have formed a cross-organizational team, in which all business and corporate divisions participate, to formulate response measures for newly enforced or revised laws and regulations in each country. Working together with raw materials manufacturers, our internal supply chain, and suppliers, we remain fully compliant with laws and implement risk management measures systematically.
Compliance in a planned manner is needed for the Act on Registration and Evaluation of Chemical Substances in Korea, and Kimyasalların Kaydı, Değerlendirilmesi, İzni ve Kısıtlanması (KKDIK) in Turkey, and the UK REACH in the U.K., which are similar to the REACH regulation in Europe, and we will register the pre-notified chemicals by the deadlines specified according to the amount of production or imports.
Contribution to the Industry
Mitsui Chemicals contributes to product stewardship in the chemical industry.
We are striving to resolve issues surrounding chemicals with other chemical corporations through the activities of the Japan Chemical Industry Association (JCIA) in Japan and the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) worldwide.
Global Network
We need the latest information from each country to maintain our compliance with local laws and regulations. We appoint Regulatory Experts in our affiliates in the US, Germany, China, Taiwan, and Thailand to gather information on local legislation and the policies of chemical industry organizations. In fiscal 2021, the Regulatory Experts in different countries and Mitsui Chemicals also exchanged information in the Regulatory Experts Meetings.
Centralized Chemicals Information and Providing the Safety Information
Thorough data management is important for chemicals management. Mitsui Chemicals uses the Mitsui Chemicals Safety Information System (MiCSIS) to centrally manage data concerning chemicals in products and raw materials we handle. The range of functions provided by MiCSIS enable us to conduct the following tasks in a prompt and reliable manner: confirming legal compliance with domestic and foreign regulations; managing production/import quantities; linking to chemSHERPA*; and creating SDSs and product labels compliant with laws and standards in Japan, the US, Europe, East Asian countries, and Thailand. We continue to reinforce data management across the Group through MiCSIS, use of which was extended to domestic affiliates in fiscal 2019.
In addition, we endeavor to obtain information on chemical substances contained in raw materials by requesting raw material suppliers to submit the latest SDSs, chemSHERPA, and Regulatory Survey Report.
The legally-demanded registration of chemical substances and chemical products in each country is only a beginning. Chemicals management does not end even after the products are introduced to the market. The Mitsui Chemicals Group continues adapting to changes around our products on sale and keeps our customers informed of the latest information.
*chemSHERPA:
Chemical information Sharing and Exchange under Reporting Partnership in supply chain.
A scheme for conveying information about chemical substances contained in products. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is developing and promoting this scheme in aims of having the scheme utilized globally.
AI Solutions for Chemical Compliance Surveys
The Mitsui Chemicals Group utilizes an AI solution to support surveys on information related to chemical compliance. By teaching AI (IBM Watson) to parse various countries’ legal documents relating to regulatory compliance—as well as information on synonymous chemical substance names, high-level concepts, technical terms and more—this solution makes it possible to simply input a question, get that question translated into various languages and then quickly find the necessary information. The system has been in use since January 2020, and we plan to extend the scope of its usage by increasing the learning contents and implementing the system in affiliated companies.
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