For Customers and Users

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Initiatives to Ensure Security

The handling of industrial gases by the Group is regulated by the High Pressure Gas Safety Act. Incorrect handling can result in serious accidents. We are promoting various initiatives to ensure the safe and secure use of industrial gases. In the medical field, we also provide support to users so that they can go about their daily lives with peace of mind.

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"Minna Gas Shiru" Service for the Safe Use of Industrial Gases

In order to ensure that our customers can use industrial gases safely, we are promoting the "Minna Gas Shiru" program, in which they can learn how to handle industrial gases in accordance with the High Pressure Gas Safety Act. Minna Gas Shiru is a packaged service consisting of Gas Shiru Learning, which enables customers to learn about the High Pressure Gas Safety Act through videos, as well as the Gas Shiru Academy, which offers hazard simulation training. We also promote activities to ensure the safety of our customers.
* For more information on Minna Gas Shiru, please visit this page.

Independent Analysis of High-Pressure Gas-related Accidents

Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation has developed its own accident classification standards, based on the Center for Chemical Process Safety's (CCPS) evaluation method* and in consideration of the potential impact of high-pressure gases. The company evaluates accidents in Japan based on a five-level scale and five characteristics: physical injuries, property damage, potential impact of high-pressure gases, environmental impact, and social impact and media coverage. The evaluation results in an overall number of points by which the company quantifies the seriousness of an accident.
* This is a method proposed by the U.S. Center for Chemical Process Safety to prevent process-related accidents and disasters.

Table 1 Characteristics and levels of CCPS evaluation (high-pressure gas version)

Intensity Characteristics
Level Points Physical injuries Property damage Potential impact of high-pressure gases Environmental impact Social impact and media coverage
Discharging and leakage
Inert gases, flammable gases		 Discharging and leakage
Flammable gases, toxic gases		 Discharging and leakage
Specialty high-pressure gases		 Explosion/fire, rupture/breakage, other
1 27 Multiple job site deaths
Death of one or more persons off-site		 Internal damages of JPY 1 billion or more Potentially fatal leakage
Impact over wide area off-site 		Potentially fatal leakage
Impact over wide area off-site 		Potentially fatal leakage
Impact over wide area off-site 		Potentially fatal
Impact over wide area off-site 		Environmental response costing JPY 250 million or more Significant impact on local community
Large-scale investigation and monitoring by government, etc.
National media coverage lasting several news cycles
2 9 Single job-site death Multiple lost-time on-site injuries
Lost-time injury affecting one or more persons off-site 		Internal damages of between JPY 100 million and JPY 1 billion Leakage with the potential for serious injuries
Impact off-site 		Leakage with the potential for serious injuries
Impact off-site 		Leakage with the potential for injuries
Impact off-site 		Potential for serious injuries
Impact off-site 		Environmental response cost of between JPY 100 million and JPY 250 million Local evacuation required
Investigations and monitoring conducted by prefectural governments and police
Brief coverage by national media
3 3 Lost-time injury affecting one person on-site
Non-lost-time injuries affecting one or more persons off-site 		Internal damages of between JPY 10 million and JPY 100 million Leakage with the potential for minor injuries
Leakage with the potential to cause site-wide damage 		Leakage with the potential for minor injuries
Leakage with the potential to cause damage within the facility 		Leakage with no physical injury or property damage (including minor leakage) Potential for minor injuries
Site-wide impact 		Environmental response cost of less than JPY 100 million Request to evacuate residents living around the plant as a precautionary measure
Investigations and monitoring conducted by the company
Local media coverage
4 1 Non-lost-time injuries affecting one or more persons on-site Internal damages of between JPY 2.5 million and JPY 10 million Leakage with no physical injury but potential for property damage or other impact inside the facility Minor leakage with no physical injuries or property damage － No physical injury but impact inside the facility Short-term remedial action required Long-term investigations or monitoring by the company not needed
Brief coverage by local media
5 0.3 First aid required for one or more persons on-site Internal damages of between JPY 250,000 and JPY 2.5 million Minor leakage with no physical injuries or property damage － － Incident with no physical injuries or property damage
Explosion or fire: Sound of explosion and/or small fire
Rupture or destruction: Sound of rupture and/or deformation 		－ －

Initiatives to Ensure Stable Supplies

Industrial gases produced by the Taiyo Nippon Sanso Group are used in a wide range of industrial fields. To ensure safe and stable supplies, we are stepping up efforts at all Taiyo Nippon Sanso Group production and supply facilities, as well as the facilities of our sales partners, and at our customers' premises, to strengthen our capabilities at the production, supply, and usage stages. The Group is promoting initiatives in cooperation with our sales partners and customers based on three key points: "Scrupulous maintenance of facilities and equipment," "Safe and secure operations," and "Awareness of safety."

Production Supply Use
Scrupulous maintenance of facilities and equipment
  • Implement legally mandated facility inspections
  • Implement periodic voluntary safety inspections
  • Update superannuated facilities and equipment
  • Investigate the properties of gases
  • Implement periodic inspections of pipelines and backup facilities
  • Transport specialty gases using trucks equipped with pertinent safety features
  • Implement periodic voluntary safety inspections and ensure regular maintenance of high-pressure gas facilities in use
  • Support the efforts of customers to implement regular voluntary safety inspections, conduct safety workshops, and provide advanced safety management technologies
Safe and secure operations
  • Adopt a centralized monitoring system that employs a comprehensive monitoring center for nitrogen production facilities
  • Promote the automation and remote monitoring of operations at specialty gas production facilities and introduce equipment control systems
  • Ensure the safe shutdown of facilities and equipment in the event of an earthquake and prepare an earthquake response manual
  • Hold a technical skills competition using an Air Separation Plant (ASP) simulator
  • Establish a system for preventing disasters involving specialty gases by providing training for dedicated emergency response personnel
  • Ensure drivers of trucks transporting high-pressure gases carry Yellow Cards
  • Make use of the SLASH remote management system for tanks containing liquid gases
  • Provide the TELEOS® centralized monitoring system as a comprehensive safety service for semiconductor fabrication facilities
  • Establish a system for assessing production safety
Awareness of safety
  • Conduct disaster and high-pressure gas leak response drills
  • Introduce a commendation system to recognize the results of independent safety initiatives
  • Develop a database to facilitate the sharing of information pertaining to accidents and safety issues
  • Provide periodic workshops aimed at personnel involved in the transport of specialty gases
  • Encourage the acquisition of Japan's high-pressure gas transport monitor qualification and completion of training for transport personnel offered by the High-Pressure Gas Safety Institute of Japan
  • Hold quality and safety promotion conferences for tanker truck transport companies across Japan and traffic safety training
  • Conduct high-pressure gas safety workshops
  • Provide product safety data sheets and information pertaining to product safety and security

Total Support System for Home-Based Care

Taiyo Nippon Sanso offers an extensive range of diverse equipment for home-based care. With a full service system based on a nationwide network, we provide total support for home-based care, aiming to improve the quality of life of all patients, along with safety, security, and reliability. Our network's mission is to always be there for our patients, and we have established a product range and systems that can provide total support for home-based care, "home oxygen therapy," in which patients with chronic respiratory failure, pulmonary hypertension, or chronic heart failure receive oxygen inhalation at home, as well as "CPAP therapy," which treats patients with sleep apnea, and home infusion pumps for "palliative therapy" and "home infusion therapy."
* For more information, please visit this page.

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