The Japanese government urged steelmaker Kobe Steel on Wednesday to clarify the extent of manipulation of inspection data on steel, aluminum and other metals used in a wide range of products, reportedly including rockets, aircraft and cars, in the latest quality scandal to rock Japanese manufacturing…
The Japanese government urged steelmaker Kobe Steel on Wednesday to clarify the extent of manipulation of inspection data on steel, aluminum and other metals used in a wide range of products, reportedly including rockets, aircraft and cars, in the latest quality scandal to rock Japanese manufacturing.
Kobe Steel, Japan’s third-largest steel maker, has announced that between Sept 1,2016 and Aug 31 of this year it sold aluminum and copper materials using falsified data on such things as the products’ strength.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kotaro Nogami told reporters the government was seeking more information about the problem and trying to determine its possible impact on product safety. He criticized the apparently widespread falsification of data as «inappropriate.»
About 200 of Kobe Steel’s customers, including some makers of defense equipment, were affected, Nogami said. He would not identify the companies by name but several automakers on Wednesday said they have been made aware of the problem and are investigating.
«We have confirmed that aluminum from Kobe Steel is used in the hoods and doors of some of our vehicles,» Nissan said in an email. «As hoods are related to pedestrian safety, we are working to quickly assess any potential impact on vehicle functionality.»
Toyota also confirmed that the material has been used in hoods and rear doors of some of its vehicles.
«Putting the utmost priority on the safety of our customers, we are rapidly working to identify which vehicle models might be subject to this situation and what components were used, as well as what effect there might be on individual vehicles,» Toyota said in a statement.
