Training

To successfully achieve the WSSD 2020 goal, it is indispensable to steadily manage risks across the supply chain. In concrete, we must ensure: information collection when purchasing, procuring, and developing a product; compliance with legal requirements in each country before and after product launch; risk management based on risk assessment; and provision of safety information to customers.
Each Mitsui Chemicals’ employee is responsible for supporting our product stewardship. We provide them with training programs to acquire knowledge to comply with regulations and handle products correctly, and spread the knowledge across the supply chain in order to establish a corporate culture that protects human health and the environment.

The chemical safety management training program comprises the following three courses:

1. E-learning for all employees
2. Basic seminars for responsible officers for purchasing, R&D, and sales
3. Advanced courses for specific issues

The e-learning course is mandatory for all employees to acquire basic knowledge in the following areas and notification of contact points for advice. The e-learning attendance results are stored and managed by our own talent management system .

• Product risk assessment
• Legal compliance before product launch
• Provision of safety information, such as SDSs and labels
• Continuing management after product launch

The basic seminars cover the knowledge required by staff members responsible for chemical safety management. The following educational programs were provided in fiscal 2018:

• Importance of identification with traceability of chemical substances contained in a product at the design stage
• Identifying chemical substances in products and collection and verification of information of chemicals in products
• Legal compliance (before and after product launch)
• Product risk assessment
• Providing safety information (SDS & labels)

In addition to the basic seminar, an information check tool training session was provided for identifying chemical substances in products and product information surveys. The training session included the following activities:

• How to check regulations in Japan and overseas countries and regions where business launches (production/exporting) are planned
• Introduction of the “reference substance list” according to global regulatory requirement including self-declaration request from downstream users or their sectors group.

The advanced course is designed to provide knowledge specific to a product or usage purpose, such as food packing materials. We hold this course for officers who are responsible for a specific product or usage purpose.

Other than the courses listed above, the Chemical Safety Department provides the RC officers in purchasing and procurement divisions, business sectors, R&D centers, and information system divisions with the following information in monthly meetings to keep up their knowledge levels, as well as confirming that they undertake designated actions, and to provide support to them. RC officers spread the information they acquire across their respective divisions and report back on related actions undertaken to the Chemical Safety Department.

• Global trend of tightening regulations concerning chemical safety management and response by Mitsui Chemicals
• Our policies and schedules for designated regular reports to authorities