ShinEtsu

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Product quality improvements and product safety control

Policy

The Group will stably supply high-quality products to customers.

Awareness of Issues

The Group is working to achieve "Claim Zero."

The superior quality of general-purpose products as well as high-value-added products will lead to non-price competitiveness. In order to ensure a stable supply of products, it is essential for the sales, R&D, production, quality assurance, and shipment departments to fulfill their respective roles. In addition to product characteristics, environmental and health safety are also important factors for product quality.

Quality Control

The Group focuses on stably supplying the high-quality products that customers demand. In quality control, we are committed to "defensive quality control" that does not produce or ship irregular products, and "aggressive quality control" that minimizes variations in quality and creates quality that cannot be followed by other companies. We have established a robust internal quality management system and are continuously working to improve quality and reduce deviations and waste.

In each of our business divisions and group companies, Sales Department, R&D Department, Production Department, and Quality Assurance Department cooperate in the following roles to respond customer requests.

Sales department

Understands the customer's requests, and promptly and accurately share the information with our R&D Department and Production Departments.

Research and development department and production department

Research and develop new products and improve existing products based on the customer's requests.

Also promote the automation of the manufacturing process to achieve consistent quality.

Quality assurance department

Makes the final quality confirmation on the product while taking into account product characteristics and customer usage.

Enhances the accuracy of quality measurement by pursuing the automation of measurement processes to eliminate variations due to quality measurement personnel, sample preparation, and measurement procedures. In addition, converts measurement results into data and used to prevent typing errors when creating inspection tables and labels.

Holds quality assurance department meetings three times a year, bringing together the quality assurance department managers of each plant to organize the issues at each plant, determine quality targets for each term, and check progress. Similarly, holds quality analysis technical meetings where the details of each plant's initiatives are reported in order to promote DX in quality assurance and share new inspection and analysis technologies.

Almost all of the Group's manufacturing bases, both domestic and overseas, have obtained certifications for their quality control systems, such as ISO 9001. In addition, some Shin-Etsu Chemical plants and group companies have acquired quality management system certifications such as IATF16949*.

We have also established a strict rule to respond to all inquiries of product quality from customers within two business days.

*IATF16949
A quality management system for the automotive industry

Related information

Quality Audits and Support

Since 2000, we have conducted quality audits annually to improve quality and customer service at each plant, and we confirm the status of quality and report on the efforts to meet quality targets. We also confirm measures to deal with important customer complaints and work to improve quality levels.

Quality audits evaluate quality from two different viewpoints: customer and quality cost. Through this, we work to identify the root cause of quality issues to prevent re-occurrence. We have also designated November as Quality Month, and work to strengthen our quality management throughout the Group.

In the quality audit in FY2023, the following items were audited as priority items:

  1. "Efforts to reduce variations in manufacturing processes": In addition to improving the conventional manufacturing variations, we confirmed the improvement status of quality through the introduction of DX and AI.
  2. “Examples of countermeasures for quality problems and status of horizontal deployment”: We checked whether permanent and logical countermeasures against past quality problems were implemented and continued, and whether they were deployed horizontally to other products.
  3. “Division audits”: The sales, production, and quality assurance departments select quality issues that they consider important for their business or product, and the sales department reports on and confirms the status of quality improvement plans and their implementation.

We are also implementing six sigma activities* throughout the Company to improve quality standards.

Quality audit
(August 2023, Shin- Etsu Chemical Kashima Plant)
The 24th debrief session of the results of Shin- Etsu Six Sigma
(February 2023, Shin-Etsu Chemical Head Office)

*Six Sigma programs
Quality improvement method developed by Motorola in the 1980s. Focusing on processes with quality variation, it is designed to minimize variations within the processes, thereby reducing the incidence of quality defects. This approach has been adopted across the Group.

Initiatives of Shin-Etsu Silicone Taiwan (Taiwan)

Cooperation between Quality Assurance Department and Sales, R&D, and Production departments

At Shin-Etsu Silicone Taiwan's Hsinchu plant, the Quality Assurance Department manages product safety in accordance with the ISO9001 quality management system. Specifically, it conducts acceptance inspections of raw materials, makes acceptance judgments, and attaches notices with information on chemical substances. It also provides regular maintenance of inspection and measurement equipment and helps implement changes in product design. In addition, it conducts quarterly internal quality audits to supervise corrective and preventive measures and confirms the effectiveness of corrective actions.

The Quality Assurance Department works with the Sales, R&D, and Production departments on the following initiatives.

  • Sales department
    Preparation of product specifications, preparation of COA*1, QC*2 process chart and complaint report, explanation of product shelf life and storage conditions, preparation of complaint report, provision of process change notice to customer, answering to customer audit questionnaire and inspection questions.
  • R&D department
    Execution of product design changes, pre- and post-trial discussions, development of new product specifications, chemical analysis of customer complaints.
  • Production department
    Inspection and judgment of intermediates and products, support for quality education and training of employees and managers, conducting quarterly internal quality audits, investigating the causes of customer complaints, tracking corrective and preventive actions, organizing quality improvement meetings, correction of process abnormalities and preventive measures and confirmation of effects after correction.

In addition, the person in charge at the Director's Office of the Technology Center prepares and issues safety data sheets (SDSs) to ensure product safety. As a safety measure for product transportation, the plant ensures that products are filled and packaged according to packaging specifications, and that accidents during transportation do not affect the environmental safety. Dangerous goods are marked with UN number, dangerous goods classification, pictogram classification, etc. according to UN standards. Furthermore, the plant provides customers with product specifications, COA, and QC process charts, and explains the shelf life and storage conditions.

Going forward, the plant will continue to focus on the following points and stably supplying the high-quality products that customers demand.

  1. In order to deliver accurate data to our customers, automatically import inspection data for each item from the quality assurance department into the shipping report system.
  2. Implementation of training according to standard procedures for inspectors in the quality assurance department.
  3. Confirmation and follow-up of improvements to issues pointed out in internal quality audits of each department.
  4. Prevention of contamination of products with foreign substances and management of products that do not contain harmful substances.

*1COA(Certificate of analysis):
A legal document created to ensure that a product meets the specifications printed on its label. Assurance to the customer that the manufacturer has duly considered its product and completed the necessary quality control processes.

*2COA(Certificate of analysis):
A legal document created to ensure that a product meets the specifications printed on its label. Assurance to the customer that the manufacturer has duly considered its product and completed the necessary quality control processes.

Product Safety Control

We manage product safety, from product development to transportation, based on internal regulations.

We strives to prevent health hazards and minimize the environmental impact of chemical substances in the processes of development, manufacturing, distribution, use, consumption and disposal. We appropriately design chemical substances in accordance with laws and regulations, evaluate their safety based on the latest information collected in cooperation with government agencies and affiliated organizations, manufacture our products using optimal facilities, and strive to reduce emissions of chemical substances. For example, in response to the POPs Convention, PFOS and PFOA were designated as specified chemical substances of Class I (prohibited to manufacture and use) under the Chemical Substances Control Law*1. PFOA, which had been used as a product raw material, has already been replaced with an alternative raw material. In addition, although the use of foam extinguishing agents containing PFOS is permitted, we have completed the switch to foam extinguishing agents that do not use PFOS, with some exceptions. In addition, we are investigating the use of substances that are scheduled to be regulated in Japan and overseas, and are taking steps to change them. Furthermore, we are taking measures to comply with the regulations stipulated in the revised Industrial Safety and Health Act to minimize the impact on workers when manufacturing and handling chemical substances.

To ensure the safety of new chemical substances, we assess and confirm environmental and health risks at the development stage. When developing new chemical substances, we focus on products and manufacturing technologies that do not use hazardous substances that have been designated by the Industrial Health and Safety Act and Chemical Substances Control Law, as well as the EU RoHS Directive*2. Furthermore, we make sure that the necessary notifications and reports are submitted according to laws and regulations.

We offer customers information such as on product hazards and harms in the form of SDS*3 in order to ensure the proper transmission of information to customers and transportation firms. In addition, we request customers to handle products safely by complying with laws and regulations, installing abatement equipment, wearing protective equipment and so on through SDS. As a product transportation safety measure, we issue yellow cards*4 and container yellow cards*5 that are affixed to containers. In accordance with the Industrial Safety and Health Act, we also attached symbols to indicate hazardous and harmful substances in accordance with GHS*6 on product containers and packaging.

*1Chemical Substances Control Law
Short for "Act on the Evaluation of Chemical Substances and Regulation of Their Manufacture, etc.," it is intended to prevent environmental pollution by chemical substances that can be harmful to human health or to ecosystems.

*2Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)
An EU directive that restricts the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.

*3Safety Data Sheet (SDS）
SDS lists the physical and chemical properties of chemical substances, together with their harmfulness and emergency response procedures. Designed to promote safer use of chemical substances and prevent accidents and incidents, SDS are supplied by manufacturers, importers, and distributors to customers during sales or shipment.

*4Yellow cards
Yellow cards are cards that describe all relevant information on the treatment required in case of an accident during the transportation of chemical substances. The cards are handed to the transport contractor, who carries them when transporting the chemical substances in tanker lorries, etc.

*5Container yellow cards
The standard yellow card system is not suitable for use with mixed cargoes and small-lot deliveries; instead, each container carries a label displaying the safety information such as the UN number of a chemical name and the ERG guide number.

*6Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS)
An internationally standardized system of classification and labeling of chemicals.

Related Data

Aspect Classification Scope Unit FY2021 FY2022 FY2023
Product safety training Number participants(Total number of persons) Consolidated Persons 49,851 71,142 82,735

Key Sustainability Issues