NTN Works to Eliminate EU Directive Hazardous Substances(pic)

NTN Corporation, in targeting protection of the global environment as one of its top-priority management themes, is advancing positive steps to eliminate the use of hazardous substances from its bearings, constant velocity universal joints and other mainstay products. NTN has largely completed its response to the ELV Directive*1 a legislation to prevent waste from vehicles and the RoHS Directive*2 banning the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. For bearings it has completely shifted to use no hazardous substances in its procurement of parts for bearing products, while for automobile-use constant velocity joints it has proposed substitute materials to users since March 2002. In this way, the company has achieved the total elimination of hazardous materials from those products. As a new approach, NTN is presently advancing full elimination by the end of 2007 of phthalate ester, a member of the CMR substances (said to have "C" for carcinogenicity, "M" for mutagenicity and "R" for reprotoxicity) newly added to the EU regulatory target*3 list in 2003. This substance is added as a rubber plasticizing agent and for other uses in certain bearing seals, boots for constant velocity joints and other components, and a wide range of evaluation testing and other measures are now under way to engineer a shift to substitute materials. Specifically, studies and assessments are being implemented on substitute materials and evaluation test methods, while enlisting the cooperation of affiliated parts makers to help totally eliminate phthalate ester. NTN will continue to target the goal of abolishing environmentally regulated substances from here on as well. A major vehicle in this push is the "Environmental Impact Substance Management Subcommittee," a body that includes not only the NTN in-house technical division and affiliated companies, but its production planning and materials divisions as well. This subcommittee is spearheading efforts to mount swift and precision responses to the new regulations arising over the years to come as well. (*1):ELV Directive (End of Life Vehicles) regulation targets: Lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium. (*2):RoHS Directive (Restrictions of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) regulation targets: Substances in "(*1)" + polybrominated flame retardants (two kinds). (*3):Phthalate ester has been reported to possess "teratogenicity" and present other dangers to organic life, with partial regulation having commenced through an EU Directive (2003/36/EC): "Within the EU, sales to general consumers of either dibutyl phthalate (DBP) or diethylhexy phthalate (DEHP), as well as their compounds, were banned from December 2004 (sales of products containing those substances may be made to general consumers)." Certain automakers have set voluntary deadlines for totally eliminating these substances. While other manufacturers have not gone so far as to designate timetables for such complete elimination, moves are afoot to regulate these substances as "substances demanding attention from here on" or as "use-restricted substances." To totally eliminate phthalate ester, studies and assessments are being implemented on substitute materials in these bearing seals and CVJ boots.