Safety
Targeting Zero Occupational Injuries Through Risk Reduction by All Personnel, from Top Management to the Plant-floor Frontlines
Basic ConceptEach and Every Employee Has the Ability to Identify Dangerous Situations
At the core of safety, it is important that each and every employee has the ability to identify dangerous situations and take appropriate steps to protect themselves and fellow employees. Even if equipment can be made completely safe, it is necessary to recognize that work and actions taken by individuals can have hidden risks. For this reason, we are making concerted efforts at safety education and raising sensitivity to risks, while following rules and creating a protective corporate culture.
At the same time, constructing a work environment in which employees can work with safety and security is our responsibility as a company and we consider it to be one of the most important priorities for management. Sekisui Chemical Group is implementing total safety activities (i.e. zero occupational injuries, zero equipment-related accidents, zero commuting-related accidents, and zero extended sick leave) based on five themes*.
* Five themes:
(1) Intrinsic safety of equipment; (2) safety management using OHSMS; (3) safety education of employees; (4) risk prevention through risk detection activities and other initiatives; and (5) auditing of health, safety, and accident prevention.
- 6-005

Activity Policy and Promotion SystemWe Thoroughly Implement a Safety Policy That Includes Partner Companies (contractors) Outside the Group
In the case of the various efforts related to occupational health and safety, an activity policy is formulated by the Safety Subcommittee established under the CSR Committee. These actual activities are promoted by the Manufacturing Infrastructure Enhancement Center Safety & Environment Group.
We have formulated the Sekisui Chemical Group Safety Policy, which forms our basic philosophy on occupational safety and is shared by all employees within the Group. In addition to collecting a range of occupational health and safety data such as incident frequency rates, we also collect data from partner companies (contractors) outside the Group including those that occur during production and construction operations as well as any incidence of occupational health and safety issues during research activities. In fiscal 2019, two meetings of the Safety Subcommittee were held in September and March.
In event of an actual occupational injury, information including the form of employment of the injured party is collected. Improvements as required are also sought when there is a problem with the management of a business site.
While Sekisui Chemical does not undergo such external certifications as ISO 45001, the Company does promote activities based on international standards at business sites. This includes reflecting ISO and Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) requirements in audit evaluation items.
- 6-006
- 6-042
Safety-promotion System (to FY2019)

Safety-promotion System (from FY2020)

- The name of the CSR Committee was changed to the Sustainability Committee on April 1, 2020.
Occupational Safety Committee HeldManagement and Labor Work Together to Assess, Research and Propose Solutions for Occupational Safety
The Occupational Safety Committee at each business site of Sekisui Chemical Group holds a meeting every month, as mandated by law. In addition, the Central Occupational Safety Committee, consisting of members from corporate headquarters and labor unions, meets once a year. The Central Occupational Safety Committee was created on the basis of collective labor agreements to conduct disaster-related investigations and make strategic proposals related to occupational health and safety. Every employee can potentially become a member of the Central Occupational Safety Committee.
Based on the outcome of the Occupational Safety Committee’s deliberations, Sekisui Chemical Group aims to strictly comply with laws and regulations, including the Industrial Safety and Health Act, ensure the safety and health of employees at work, and create a comfortable workplace environment. The Central Occupational Safety Committee and the Occupational Safety Committees at each business site assess workplace environments, draw up and implement solutions to workplace problems, and decide rules with regard to various topics related to occupational safety and health.
Example in Safety ActivitiesLeaders from Each Division Declared Their Commitment to Safe Business Practices
Based on the recognition that it is of the utmost importance for the top managers at business sites to exercise leadership and take the initiative in safety activities, leaders from each division, including the president, declare their commitment to safe business practices each fiscal year, and their personally written declarations are published on the intranet.
- 6-007

A safety declaration posted on the intranet
Safety AuditsConducting Audits based on Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) Audit Evaluation Reports
Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems (OHSMS) audit evaluation reports are drafted and used in self-assessments and corporate audits at each business site. Evaluation items are revised annually, which include incorporating ISO 45001 requirements published in March 2018. Taking into consideration the status of safety management activities and the incidence of natural disasters, corporate audits were conducted at 20 business sites in Japan, a smaller number than in previous years, in fiscal 2019.
Occupational Safety AssessmentsImplementation of Preliminary Safety Assessments When Launching a New Business
Article 14 of the Group’s Safety Management Rules stipulates that a comprehensive preliminary occupational safety assessment must be undertaken by the business general manager concerned when launching a new business. Based on this stipulation, the relevant divisional company that is looking to launch a new business implements an assessment.
Development of Human Resources to Take the Initiative in Safety ActivitiesEncouraging the Gaining of Qualifications to Become Key Persons in Charge of Safety Activities
In fiscal 2019, 38 employees (68 in total since fiscal 2017) were certified under the “safety leader” qualification to serve as personnel who take the initiative in safety activities. Safety leaders are tasked with identifying and mitigating risks at their respective workplaces, holding workshops with other safety leaders Group-wide, and promoting the standardization of safety training curriculum.
In addition, we encourage employees to obtain the qualification called “safety sub-assessor,” holders of which play a role in promoting intrinsic safety in equipment. Since fiscal 2017, 140 employees in total have been certified as safety sub-assessors. We have deployed safety sub-assessors in Group-wide projects extending over several business sites, where they promote improved safety in areas such as elevated opening/closing fences, pinch rollers, and handcarts commonly used at these locations.
Review of Equipment Safety StandardsReviewing Equipment Safety Standards in Conjunction with Providing Explanations to Equipment Manufacturers
In fiscal 2017, we issued Equipment Design Safety Guidelines, which summarize the safety design standards necessary for production equipment used by Sekisui Chemical Group. Steps are taken to monitor the status of compliance on an ongoing basis. Safety specification checklists must be attached to equipment manufacturer estimates. Corporate audits are conducted to verify that equipment safety standards are actually being adhered to at workplaces and intrinsic safety is being promoted.
Early Detection of RisksTraining to Improve the Ability to Identify Risks
We conduct practical risk assessment-improvement training in order to develop personnel able to identify and mitigate risks at their workplaces. In fiscal 2019, training sessions were conducted at Sekisui Fuller Company, Ltd. Shiga Plant and Chushikoku Sekisui Heim Industry Co., Ltd. The identification of risks by personnel, who have undergone training, and improvements made at their workplaces are monitored. Since fiscal 2016, this training program has been held at a total of 10 workplaces, with the number of participants reaching 239 to date. In addition, the training program has resulted in over 1,900 risk items being identified and unacceptable risks being mitigated.
Measures to Prevent Fires and ExplosionsInitiated Emergency Audits, to Which Outside Experts Are Invited
To prevent fires and explosions that, once they occur, have a major impact on the surrounding environment and on business continuity, in addition to the safety audits performed thus far, we implement emergency response audits, to which we invite outside disaster experts. We verify items such as the storage and handling status of hazardous materials as well as the recovery systems used following a disaster, including natural disasters, and promote the quick identification of disaster risks and the subsequent implementation of preventative measures.
Of the 147 measures implemented to prevent a reoccurrence of the 20 fires (including small fires) between fiscal 2104 and fiscal 2017, we confirmed that 139 were still in place. We recommended further measures for strengthening the remaining eight measures and confirmed that these improvements had been made.
Building on the accident prevention handbook issued in 2017, we published a second edition in 2019. Based on this handbook, steps are being taken to identify fire and explosion risks at 48 business sites nationwide. By fiscal 2019, 4,072 risks were identified, and 1,858 (90%) of 2,069 risks requiring improvement were mitigated as of the end of fiscal 2019.
- 6-034

Type of audit | Target / aim of audit |
---|---|
Safety audit |
|
Disaster-preparedness audit | Primarily consists of audits for accident-prevention measures relating to business continuity
|
Emergency Response MeasuresFor the Purpose of Fine-tuning Unexpected Situation Response Skills in the Event of a Disaster
We have established getting caught or entangled in machinery at a production facility, falling off equipment or falling over at a business site, and a fire or explosion in a chemical process as high-risk scenarios on which Sekisui Chemical Group should place a particular focus on preventing. The Company conducts “Heads-up Training” where chemical processes are integral to production.
At Sekisui Chemical Group, we conduct “Heads-up training” to fortify the decision-making abilities of all our employees in the event that they encounter an emergency situation. More specifically, supervisors with years of experience will ask trainees what they would do if equipment designed to prevent danger fails and the trainees will be tasked with providing responses off the top of their heads. This training improves the skills needed to respond to unexpected situations in the event of a disaster by passing down to younger employees the on-site safety know-how accumulated over many years by senior employees. Through this training, we were able to improve equipment countermeasures and revise operating procedures. In addition to teaching trainees how to handle potential problems, the training has been applied on various occasions, including evacuation drills and disaster prevention drills.
Deployment of Basic Safety PrinciplesPreparation of Basic Safety Principles Poster
We are working to prevent occupational injuries caused by machines and equipment by making the equipment itself intrinsically safer while also preventing occupational accidents caused by worker operations. Based on the lessons learned from past occupational accidents that actually occurred on Group business sites, the “Six Basic Safety Principles,” which summarize compliance matters and matters prohibited during operations for each operational process, were established in fiscal 2017. In order to promptly disseminate these principles within the Company, we created and distributed to each workplace a poster that showed them in an easy to understand, illustrated format.
We confirmed that these posters are being utilized at each business site through corporate audit inspection tours conducted in fiscal 2019. In addition, similar details have been processed into a simple animation format. A mechanism is now in place to view this animation on personal smartphones and replayed on workplace monitors.
Overseas Business Site Safety AuditsVisualizing the Status of Safety Management Activities at Overseas Business Sites
At our overseas production sites, which operate under the varying laws and regulations as well as differing cultural awareness of safety issues in each region, Sekisui Chemical Group has, since fiscal 2013, been deploying safety global standards to raise the level of safety activities. Having commenced safety audits based on these global standards in earnest in fiscal 2014, we implemented audits at seven business sites in fiscal 2019. We are also holding regional safety brainstorming sessions in North America and China to share regional issues and discuss countermeasures. Planning and implementation, which had been previously spearheaded in Japan, have been shifted to regional head office staff. The program is undertaken each fiscal year based on such themes as policy development, sharing workplace initiatives, lectures by experts, and methods to investigate the causes of accidents.
Safety & Environment Conference and Safety AwardsPresidential Award Given to the Business Site with the Best Safety Record for the Fiscal Year
Sekisui Chemical Group Safety & Environment Conference is usually held to coincide with National Safety Week in July of each year. In fiscal 2019, the president was among the total of 250 people, who also included other directors, business heads from domestic production business sites and laboratories, construction companies as well as those in charge of safety, etc. who attended the conference on July 12, 2019. The fiscal 2018 presidential award was given to the business site with the best safety record for the fiscal year at the conference.
Safety Management Along Supply ChainsSharing Safety Policies While Providing Training Opportunities
Based on the idea of securing the safety of employees from partner companies (contractors) involved in the on-site construction of housing, the Housing Company organizes the Sekisui Heim Cooperation Association with its partner companies (contractors) and holds periodic meetings while utilizing other methods to share the Group’s safety policy. We also provide a variety of training opportunities related to occupational safety, such as safety education sessions.
Safety Performance
Japan
Aggregate scope: 48 production sites and 5 research institutes in Japan
- 6-008
- 6-009
- 6-010
- 6-011
- 6-012
- 6-013
- 6-014
- 6-015
- 6-016
- 6-017
-
Number of Occupational Accidents
Indicator Calculation Method Number of occupational accidents The number of occupational
accidents (both those resulting in lost
time and those not) occurring during
a given fiscal year (April through the
following March) -
Number of Facility Accidents
Indicator Calculation Method Number
of Facility
AccidentsThe number of incidents of
malfunctioning (fi res, leaks, etc.) at
facilities that fulfi ll at least one of the
following criteria (Sekisui Chemical
Group criteria), from (1) to (3),
occurring during a given fi scal year
(April through the following March)
(1) Human harm: An accident causing
at least 30 days’ lost work
(2) Material harm: 10,000,000 yen or
greater
(3) Opportunity loss: 20,000,000 yen
or greater
-
Number of Long-term Sick Leave
Indicator Calculation Method Number of
Cases of
Long-Term
Sick LeaveDescribes leave of 30 days or more
consecutively for sickness or injury
occurring in a Japanese production
site or research institute during the
given fi scal year (April to the following
March), and which is newly-occurring.
Recurrences within 6 months of the
start of work attendance are not
counted. However, leave attributable to
an occupational injury is counted as an
occupational accident and not classifi ed
as long-term sick leave -
Number of Commuting Accidents
Indicator Calculation Method Number of
commuting
accidentsThe number of accidents occurring during commutes to Japanese
production sites and research institutes
during a given fi scal year (April to the
following March); counting injury to
others, injury to the commuter, selfinfl
icted damage and accidents; includes
accidents while walking -
Frequency Rate Over Time
Indicator Calculation Method Frequency
rateThe total number of injuries, illness
The total number of injuries, illness
and fatalities in occupational accidents
with lost time per 1,000,000 hours
of total time worked during a given
fi scal year (April through the following
March)
Formula for calculation: (Number
of injuries, illness and fatalities in
occupational accidents with lost time /
total number of man-hours worked) ×
1,000,000 -
Severity Rate Over Time
Indicator Calculation Method Severity rate The total number of days of work
lost per 1,000 hours of total time
worked during a given fi scal year (April
through the following March)
Formula for calculation: (Number of
days of work lost / total number of
man-hours worked) × 1,000 -
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR)
Indicator Calculation Method Lost Time
Injury
Frequency
Rate(Number of accidents causing sick
leave / total number of man-hours
worked) × 1,000,000 -
Occupational Illness Frequency Rate (OIFR)
Indicator Calculation Method Occupational
Illness
Frequency
Rate(Occupational illnesses / total number
of man-hours worked) x 1,000,000
Occupational illnesses as defi ned
by the Ministry of Health, Labour
and Welfare, including heat stroke,
lower back pain, and intoxication by
chemical substances
-
Safety Performance In the Housing Company’s
Construction SitesIndicator Calculation Method Safety
performance
on the Housing
Company’s
construction sitesThe number of occupational
accidents (both those resulting
in lost time and those not)
occurring on construction sites
under the jurisdiction of the
Housing Company during a
given fi scal year (April through
the following March) -
Safety Performance with Respect to Construction Sites
in the Urban Infrastructure & Environmental Products
CompanyIndicator Calculation Method Safety
Performance
with Respect to
Construction
Sites in the Urban
Infrastructure &
Environmental
Products
CompanyThe number of occupational
accidents (both those resulting in
lost time and those not) occurring
on construction sites under
the jurisdiction of the Urban
Infrastructure & Environmental
Products Company or the Sekisui
Chemical company headquarters
during a given fi scal year (April
through the following March)
Overseas
Aggregate scope: 46 production sites and 1 research institute overseas
- 6-018
-
Number of Occupational Accidents
Indicator Calculation Method Occurrence of
occupational
accidents
at overseas
production sites
and research
institutesThe number of occupational
accidents (both requiring and not
requiring time off from work)
occurring at overseas production
sites and research institutes during
a given fi scal year (April through
the following March)
Japan and Overseas
Aggregate scope:
48 production sites , 5 research institutes and 34 constraction offi ces in Japan
46 production sites and 1 research institute overseas
Occurrence of fatalities due to occupational accidents
FY 2015 | FY 2016 | FY 2017 | FY 2018 | 2018 FY 2019 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Employees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Japan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Overseas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Partner Companies (contractors) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Japan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Overseas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Health and Safety / Accident Prevention Costs
Aggregate Scope: 48 Domestic Japanese Production Sites and 5 Research Institutes,
Headquarters, Back Offi ces of Division Companies
Health and Safety / Accident Prevention Costs
- 6-019
Item | Sekisui Chemical Group | ||
---|---|---|---|
Classication | Details | Expense amount | Investment amount |
1) Costs within business site areas | Health and safety measures, rescue and protective equipment, measurement of work environment, health management, workers’ accident compensation insurance, etc. |
954 | 2,974 |
2) Administrative costs | Establishment and implementation of OHSMS, safety education, personnel costs, etc. | 1,829 | − |
3) Other | Safety awards, etc. | 3 | − |
Total | 2,786 | 2,974 |
- 6-020
- 6-021
-
Costs and Investments Over Time
Indicator Calculation Method Costs Costs associated with health and
safety as well as accident prevention
activities during a given fi scal year
(April through the following March)Investment
amountsThe amount invested in health
and safety as well as and accident
prevention-related measures
authorized during a given fi scal year
(April through the following March) -
Loss Costs Over Time
Indicator Calculation Method Loss costs The costs of responding to, and
the labor costs incurred due to,
occupational accidents, facility
accidents, commuting accidents, and
long-term sick leave due to illness
occurring within a given fi scal year
(April through the following March)