Chemical Substance Management and Legal Compliance
Chemical Management
The Nidec Group’s Approach to Chemical Management
The Nidec Group’s business sites take great caution in the use, management, etc. of chemicals to prevent their leakage, and reduce, to the best extent possible, the use and emissions of those chemicals as part of our production process improvement and innovation efforts. Utilizing information systems and analytical technologies, we comprehensively abide by international regulations for the hazardous chemicals in our products as well.
Preventing Chemical Leakage
A promoter of ISO14001 and ISO45001 certificates, the Nidec Group built and operates a management system based on these certificates (the latter is largely for the group’s main production sites outside Japan). We accordingly identify environmental aspects and sources of danger, assess risks, make decisions on risk management, etc. to launch such measures as a thorough chemical management for the purposes of preventing chemical leaks and anticipating disasters.
Tracking and Disclosing Information on Chemical Discharge and Displacement
In compliance with the PRTR (Pollutant Release and Transfer Register) system based on Japanese laws, the Nidec Group keeps track of and discloses information on the discharge and displacement of the chemicals that are designated by the system and used by Nidec’s group companies in Japan, while proactively tracking the discharge and displacement of chemicals not covered by this system as well.
Discharge and Displacement of the PRTR-covered Substances (FY2022)
| Substance | No. | Discharge | Displacement | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atmosphere | Public water |
Soil on property |
Landfill on property |
Sewer | Displacement off property |
||
| Indium and other compounds | 44 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Ethylbenzene | 53 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Ethylene glycol monomethyl ether | 58 | 16.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Ferric chloride | 71 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Chromium and trivalent chromium compounds | 87 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Beryllium and its compounds | 394 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Cadmium and other compounds | 75 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Xylene | 80 | 2,300.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 40.0 |
| Iron and its water-soluble compounds | 82 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Methylene chloride | 186 | 1,700.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 18.0 |
| Styrene | 240 | 16,120.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 160.0 |
| 1,2,4-trimethyl-
benzene |
296 | 1,900.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 |
| Toluene | 300 | 29,332.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 610.0 |
| Nickel compounds | 309 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 1-bromopropane | 384 | 1,320.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Methyl-
naphthalene |
438 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Compliance with Product Hazardous Chemicals Regulations
Many chemicals, including those present in nature, significantly improve the functions of products and components if those chemicals are used properly, while causing unpredictable effects to the global environment if left in a product. In particular, the use of those chemicals that can harm the human body and the ecosystem is regulated by laws, regulations, etc.
While addressing the following and other regulations and reduction demands, we manage restricted substances by product, and promote the reduction of the use (inclusion of ingredients) of, or abolition of such substances.
(1) RoHS Directive (the regulation of the use of mainly lead, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, mercury, PBB/PBDE, and four types of phthalic acid ester)
(2) The ELV Directive (regulation with a main focus on lead, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, and mercury)
(3) The REACH regulation (regulation on chemicals)
(4) Halogen-free requirements
Chemical substances Management System
After the enforcement of REACH, the EU-led comprehensive chemical regulation, Nidec launched in 2012 a system to manage chemicals included in products, and has been using the system by improving it constantly. The system has the following three characteristics:
- 1. Information sharing and visualizing progress
- Under the system, Nidec and any of its supply chain partners can immediately check the progress of an investigation and any information received, and share information and manage progress online.
- 2. Addressing customer needs more promptly and accurately
- Requests to provide a supply chain partner can be handled with the system. With data tabulation and reporting into a customer-designated form all performed automatically, we can handle customer requests with a short lead time and high accuracy.
- 3. Measures for high-level information management
- The system can handle frequent additions of restricted substances, manage supply chain-related information ranging from processors to material manufacturers, and collect and centrally manage detailed ingredient tables.
Securing Testing Data Reliability
In March 2009, the Quality Management Department, Quality Assurance Division, Small Precision Motor & Solutions Business Unit of Nidec Corporation’s Central Technical Laboratory became qualified as a chemical testing facility under the international standard ISO/IEC 17025.
With this certification, which the team acquired to guarantee the reliability of the data described in our products’ analysis result reports on those substances covered by Europe’s RoHS Directive, the reliability of the data that our testing facility provides will be internationally guaranteed within the certified range.
