Tosoh Report 2019

Quality Management System (QMS)

The Tosoh Group has established a quality management system appropriate to its products and organizational structure and has acquired globally recognized certification attesting to its efforts, including ISO 9001 and ISO 13485. We have also completed the transition to the ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 13485:2016 standards and are working to improve product quality and customer satisfaction.

Since fiscal 2018, we have conducted risk assessments to bolster our prevention of product contamination by foreign objects. Based on the assessments, we have heightened our measures to review and replace the materials and filters in our equipment and to review our work procedures.

Quality Audit

Tosoh conducts an internal audit every year to ensure the proper functioning of its QMS.

It reviews its quality assurance systems, quality management conditions, complaint recurrence prevention methods, and related aspects.

The company also performs audits at its main raw material producers and manufacturing subcontractors to verify a consistent level of product quality from them. In fiscal 2018, Tosoh conducted audits at 48 raw material producers and manufacturing subcontractors.

Supply Chain Initiatives

To ensure that its products and services satisfy customers, the Tosoh Group engages in myriad initiatives to maintain and improve quality and to guarantee safety, security, and stability at all stages from research and development to product shipping.

In fiscal 2019, we continued to comply with a request from the Japan Business Federation in December 2017 for voluntary investigation by businesses of their quality management systems. We found no legal violations and no incidents that would adversely affect the environment or the safety of customers at the time of product use. 

Quality Audits

Tosoh conducts annual audits of its complexes to verify that its quality management system is operating properly and to ensure the continuous improvement of its quality management. Guided by headquarters, we also conduct annual Responsible Care (RC) audits at each complex. In fiscal 2019, our audits focused on the themes of reducing product-related complaints, improving product quality, and enhancing supplier management.

In fiscal 2019, we also audited 72 of our supplier and manufacturing contractors.

Improving Product Quality

We have established chemical product quality policies for each complex and are working to improve quality, to reduce product-related complaints, and to increase customer satisfaction. In fiscal 2019, we received 50 product-related complaints but experienced no product liability incidents or quality-related legal violations.

Fiscal 2019 saw us audit six manufacturers with the objective of enhancing their quality assurance for pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

Improving Quality in Logistics

Tosoh transports its products to customers mainly by truck or ship. Because some of our products contain substances classified under Japan’s Fire Service Act and the Poisonous and Deleterious Substances Control Act, their management during transport is critical. We are improving our transport oversight—primarily through our logistics division—to reduce our annual incidence rate for logistics-related accidents, complaints, and problems to 50 ppm or less.* 

We experienced only one logistics-related incident in fiscal 2019, but it was major.

* The incidence rate = the number of logistics accidents, complaints, and problems / the number of products transported × 1 million.

Copyright © 2024 Tosoh Corporation