Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE)

Placing top priority on health, safety, and environment (HSE) in its business activities, the JAPEX Group has formulated and is implementing policies and plans related to HSE.

We are also working to foster an HSE culture where each employee recognizes and acts on the principle of "safety first."

HSE Policy

The JAPEX HSE Policy is established to ensure HSE, which is the top priority of our business activities.

JAPEX HSE Policy: PDF Version (544KB)

HSE Management System

To realize the JAPEX HSE Policy, our own HSE Management System (HSE-MS) has been developed and applied it to the JAPEX Group's operations in Japan and overseas. The HSE-MS specifies the HSE-MS system, risk assessment methods, objectives and targets, education, operational management of work and activities, HSE-MS audits, and methods of review by management.

Based on the HSE-MS, we promote the cycle of planning (P), implementation and operation (D), inspection and corrective measures (C), and management review (A), while aiming to enhance the HSE-MS.

Adoption of international standards

Since 2019, JAPEX has adopted the classification and aggregation of accidents and disasters in domestic operations based on international standards. We have compiled working hour data for all employees and related parties, and changed our standards of accident and disaster classification to international standards.

By clarifying the target HSE level through comparison with international industry standards, we have established new targets for reducing the incidence of disasters to strengthen our HSE activities.

Efforts toward HSSE

We are also working on to ensure the safety of business sites and employees and to manage crisis under a policy for health, safety, security, and environment (HSSE).

Related

• Risk Management

HSE-MS System

officer in charge of the HSE Department as the chairperson and other relevant officers as well as the trade union chairperson representing the workers. The HSSE Committee also reviews the entire HSE-MS. The committee also reports to the Board of Directors once a year on the status of HSE activities.

At our head office and major offices in Japan, managers responsible for promoting HSE activities are assigned to each office to check the operational status of HSE-MS at the HSE Review Committee and the HSE Committee meetings. For overseas offices, we have organized the Head Office HSSE Subcommittee (Overseas HSE) the Overseas Security Measures Subcommittee to carry out HSSE activities.

The HSE-MS system including the holding of the HSSE Committee meetings, is handled by the HSE Department and the Human Resources Department as the HSE secretariat under the chairmanship of the HSSE Committee.

HSE-MS System

HSE-MS Audits

The HSE-MS-based internal audits are conducted at each office. This audits check the implementation status of a wide range of HSE activities, including compliance with HSE-related laws and regulations, HSE-MS operations, risk assessment, and HSE education. In addition to checking the operation records of the HSE-MS, the audits also encourage employees to be more motivated to engage in HSE activities by, for example, showing what was effective in the actual measures during the conversation with the employees in the fields. We also promote specialized education and provide on-site guidance in order to develop personnel capable of responding to HSE-MS audits.

Process Safety (Safety of Facilities)

To prevent serious accidents and disasters that could result in the loss of many lives, the destruction and disappearance of facilities, and serious environmental pollution, the JAPEX Group is comprehensively and systematically engaged in process safety in its business operations.

In addition, our process safety initiatives not only prevent serious accidents and disasters, but also contribute to improving productivity and occupational safety by ensuring safety in the design, construction, operations, and maintenance of facilities.

Medium-term HSE Plan

JAPEX has formulated the Mid-term HSE Plan, which is the medium-term direction of the HSE, and shares it in the entire company. In the plan, we have set priority targets for each office to promote HSE activities.

Medium-term HSE Plan (2021-2023)

The Mid-term HSE Plan covers the three years from fiscal 2021 to 2023 and includes the following eight items.

Setting Items

• Reduction of the incidence of accidents: Strengthen the analysis of the causes of accidents and disasters, improve workplace hygiene, and shift to new lifestyle.
• Legal compliance and HSE-MS optimization: Continue to revise HSE documents and strengthen the contractor management system.
• Awareness and behavioral reform: Clarify HSE education and qualification requirements, develop human resource development programs, and optimize HSE staffing.
• Promotion of process safety and establishment of the management system: Promote the visualization of HSE risks.
• Enhancement of emergency response capabilities: Improve employees' disaster prevention capabilities, build a company-wide disaster prevention system, and continue regular training.
• Strengthening of measures against climate change: Strengthen energy conservation activities to reduce greenhouse gases.
• Enhancement of environmental risk management: Establish a support system for environmental risk assessment such as biodiversity in business departments.
• Strengthening of overseas HSE governance: Strengthen overseas business HSE audits and overseas security measures.
  

HSE Education and Cultural Enhancement

JAPEX provides systematic HSE training to ensure that our employees work in a health and safe manner. We are also implementing measures to make the concept of "safety first" take root as part of our corporate culture, given that HSE is the top priority of the JAPEX Group.

HSE Education

In addition to HSE education for all employees, we are striving to develop and secure employees who play an important role in HSE operations, including those engaged in on-site work.

Voluntary qualification requirements are established for positions such as security managers, work supervisors, and miners as well as legal requirements. We encourage participation in internal and external training and acquisition of specific qualifications in line with these requirements. We also aim to secure a stable supply of qualified employees by developing a reward system.

HSE Cultural Enhancement

JAPEX is engaged in a variety of activities to establish and improve our corporate culture to be aware of HSE as the top priority on a daily basis.

• Send messages on HSE from the officer in charge of the HSE Department to employees.
• Issue weekly e-mail magazine, "HSE Kawaraban," for all employees
• Post HSE information such as health, accidents and disasters, activities of each office, and legal education materials on the intranet.
• Call for applications for the HSE Smile Award, which recognizes outstanding HSE activities throughout the company, and present the Excellence Award.
• Make time for "HSE/Value Moment," a few minutes of remarks on HSE and company values, at the beginning of each meeting.
• Set up refresh time for easy exercise at each one's seat to prevent posture from being fixed during long hours of desk work.
• Raise awareness of HSE by soliciting HSE slogans for each fiscal year from all employees, including those of the JAPEX Group companies.
• Prevent lifestyle-related diseases and improve health awareness by establishing an exercise habit using a smartphone app.