Responsible Care
Responsible Care
 The program of Responsible Care* introduced in 1995 at the Asahi Kasei Group, comprising measures for environmental protection, product safety, physical integrity and safe operation, workplace safety, hygiene, and health, and community outreach, is not limited to chemicals-related operations but includes operations in all fields, including fibers, construction materials, housing, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices.*Responsible Care represents the commitment and initiative to secure and improve safety and environmental protection at every step of the product life-cycle through the individual determination and responsibility of each firm producing and handling chemical products. |
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| Investment for Environment and Safety Measures for environmental protection, operational safety, and workplace safety, hygiene, and health have long been an important priority in the investment of management resources at the Asahi Kasei Group. Investments in plant and equipment modifications related to environmental and safety measures have averaged approximately ¥5 billion per year since fiscal 1970. In fiscal 2004, ¥2.4 billion was invested in environmental protection measures including prevention of water pollution, suppression of release of substances specified for pollutant release and transfer register (PRTR), and energy conservation, while ¥5.1 billion was invested in operational safety and workplace safety and hygiene measures including fire prevention systems and plant modification.
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| Preventing Global Warming Greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to meet targets set by the Japan Chemical Industry Association (JCIA) and the Japan Business Association (Keidanren). Emissions have been reduced by about half since FY 1990, to 6.1 million tons in FY 2004.
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| Emotional Health and Care The maintenance of employees’emotional health and care is advanced in tandem with our physical health and fitness programs. The corporate Emotional Health Guideline provides for measures to improve the workplace environment together with four complementary approaches to care: By the individual employee, by line of supervision, by industrial medical staff, and by specialists. To promote self-awareness and care, we began implementing the Japan Mental Health Inventory (JMI) survey in fiscal 1993. In fiscal 2001 we began expanding coverage to include all personnel, with completion in fiscal 2004. The survey will be repeated for all personnel on a rolling three-year cycle. The JMI survey was developed by the Mental Health Research Institute of the Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development, a non-profit organization advocating advanced industrial productivity. For supervisory and managerial personnel, an additional survey on workplace conditions is conducted to help guide improvements to the workplace environment.  The Oita Plant of Asahi Kasei Chemicals was selected by the Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association as a model workplace for implementation of the four approaches in fiscal 2003 and again in fiscal 2004, demonstrating the beneficial results for emotional health and care of employees. |
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| Responsible Care Reports As a corporate member of the community, we have the obligation to proactively convey information about our operations to the public. Since 1997, the Asahi Kasei Group has published Responsible Care Reports describing the day-to-day effort for the environment, safety, and health, and the concrete results of the measures we implement. In addition, local Responsible Care Reports are prepared at several of our main operating locations to enrich the dialog with the local communities. These include Nobeoka, Mizushima, Moriyama, Fuji, Ohito, Kawasaki, and Suzuka. |
