TOKYO, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- Mitsubishi Materials Corp. submitted a report to the transport ministry on Friday regarding its subsidiaries falsifying quality data for products in a latest scandal to tarnish Japan's manufacturing industry.
The submission of the report follows the company admitting Thursday that three of its subsidiaries, Mitsubishi Cable Industries Ltd., Mitsubishi Shindoh Co. and Mitsubishi Aluminum Co., had falsified specification data on products used in the aerospace, automotive, electric power and defense industries.
Japan's Transport Minister Keiichi Ishii said the latest scandal to rock Japan's manufacturing industry was highly regrettable and after reviewing the report ministry-led probes would be conducted to ensure product safety.
"It is very regrettable that another data tampering case has occurred following the scandal at Kobe Steel," Ishii told a press conference on Friday.
Japan's Industry Minister Hiroshige Seko, meanwhile, said Friday that the scandal has "rocked the very foundation of fair trade," and the embattled firm must account for why it took more than half a year for it to disclose the improprieties once they were first discovered.
Seko added that the entire manufacturing sector in Japan must share the problems and institute measures to prevent their recurrence.
Mitsubishi Materials said a day earlier that specification data was falsified on sealing materials used for joining metal pipes which were supplied to 229 companies. The subsidiaries were also found to have used false data on copper products which have been shipped to 29 companies.
Specification data for O-ring sealing products made by Mitsubishi Cable Industries Ltd. were changed to meet client specifications, the company said, with the products shipped between April 2015 and September this year.
The products, with altered specification data were sent to, among others, 70 firms involved in the aerospace industry and seven in the automotive industry, it was revealed.
A copper production unit of Mitsubishi Materials, Mitsubishi Shindoh Co., was also found to have falsified inspection data on products including brass strips used for components in the automotive industry.
Mitsubishi Shindoh Co. said its products with falsified inspection data were sent to 29 firms between October 2016 and October this year.
Mitsubishi Aluminum Co., meanwhile, also supplied products with falsified specification data, it was revealed.
Officials at the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency, under the auspices of Japan's Defense Ministry, said products including rubber seals installed in components related to hydraulic systems used on Japanese Self-Defense Forces' aircraft and ship engines, did not meet the requested specifications.
The latest scandal to cast serious aspersions on quality control protocols and overall corporate governance in Japan Inc.'s manufacturing sector, comes on the heels of data falsification improprieties at Kobe Steel Ltd., and uncertified safety checks carried out by Nissan Motor Co. and Subaru Corp., which led to extensive recalls.
