Product-related Initiatives for the Environment Back Number (2013)
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Basic Approach
The majority of products manufactured by the Minebea Group, such as bearings and motors, are components in products sold by our customers, and are not immediately visible. But precisely because our components are incorporated into such a wide variety of products, the Minebea Group believes it is important to offer products that are safe and free from harmful substances that might damage the environment, while contributing to the overall product life cycle by being energy-and resource-efficient as well as long-lasting.
Minebea Green Products
What are Minebea Green Products?
From the development and design stages, the products that the Minebea Group manufacturers and sells are environmentally conscious products. This means that they satisfy various countries' environmental laws and customers' environmental requirements as well as undergo voluntary product chemical substance evaluations and product assessments.
The Minebea Group carries out investigations to certify Minebea Green Products as products with particularly superior environmental performance and characteristics in terms of their energy efficiency, contribution to the prevention of global warming, resource efficiency, and contribution to a recycling-oriented society.
Product Example: High-torque Hybrid Stepping Motor with Rare Earth-free Magnet
High-torque 42mm hybrid stepping motor
In FY2012, the Minebea Group developed a high-torque hybrid stepping motor with a powerful magnet delivering high magnetic force which is free of rare earth minerals, such as neodymium and dysprosium, and also features a resource-efficient design.
The switch to rare earth-free magnets will help to stabilize raw materials procurement, lower costs, and stabilize product supply. The resource-efficient design approach enabled us to halve the number of magnets compared which previous products, while reducing the amount of copper wire by 25% compared with our previous products.
Development of High-performance VR Resolver for EV Drive Motors
VR resolver
The Minebea Group has developed and begun delivering a high-performance VR resolver for electric vehicle (EV) drive motors. As a core part of the drive motor, the VR resolver is an angle sensor critical to accurately controlling motor rotation. The resolver has a major impact on the electric power consumption rate and drive performance of electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV).
During the development process, we ran simulations leveraging various magnetic field analysis technologies and made continual design improvements, resulting in the successful development of a high-performance VR resolver featuring an ideal winding specification for raising drive motor performance and a rotor stator configuration.
Management of Environment-affecting Substances Incorporated in Products
The Minebea Group publishes the Minebea Group Green Procurement Standard and requests that suppliers provide products (raw materials and components) that are free from harmful substances, as well as data and documentation verifying their adherence to the standard. Furthermore, XRF (X-ray fluorescence spectrometers) are used in the Minebea Group's inspections of goods received to confirm that they do not contain any substances subject to the RoHS directive.
38 Management methods for chemical substances contained in products
- Note 1. (M)SDS ((Material) Safety Data Sheet): A data sheet covering information required for safe handling of chemical substances (ingredients, characteristics, handling methods, and emergency coping methods).
- Note 2. MSDSplus: A data sheet recommended by the Joint Article Management Promotion Consortium (JAMP) to communicate basic information regarding chemical substances and compounds. Contains information not included in the (M)SDS that is required for management of toxic chemicals incorporated in products.
- Note 3. AIS (Article Information Sheet): A basic sheet recommended by JAMP for communicating information on toxic chemicals incorporated in product molds. Compiled based on (M)SDS, MSDSplus, etc.
- Note 4. JGP File: A standard format file stipulated for Green Procurement inspection by the Japan Green Procurement Survey Standardization Initiative (JGPSSI).
Future Issues and Goals
The Minebea Group will continue to accurately grasp the needs of society to make contributions to the development of products which are safe, energy-efficient, and resource efficient.
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