TOKYO, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Around 1,000 buildings in Japan, including Tokyo Skytree tower, a popular tourist attraction, and a number of government offices have been built using earthquake shock absorbers made by KYB Corp. who admitted falsifying quality control data, local media said Wednesday.
According to Kyodo News citing property representatives and sources close to the matter, KYB Corp., a Tokyo-based firm operating in 24 countries, who manufacture shock absorbers which are also used in cars and trains, has been falsifying quality control data for more than a decade.
At least eight KYB Corp. inspectors have been found to have been involved in the data fabrication scandal involving the firm's earthquake shock absorbers and along with a subsidiary, KYB is believed to have manipulated data on two types of oil dampeners produced at two of its plants in Japan.
The data falsification on the shock absorbers is believed to date back to January 2003 and has been carried out until September this year by the inspectors, who are alleged to have collaborated with each other and made sure the dodgy practice continued.
Records with falsified inspection data carrying the signatures of the eight inspectors involved have been found that may well have adversely affected government buildings, residential apartments and hospitals across Japan, sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, Japan's top government spokesperson, told a press conference on the matter a day earlier that the ministry will thoroughly implement measures to ensure safety at the affected buildings and prevent similar cases from occurring.
Meanwhile, Osaka Gov. Ichiro Matsui has demanded compensation from KYB for installing "defective products" at the prefectural building and took aim at the firm for putting lives at risk.
"It shows a decline in corporate ethics. I want the company to recognize that data falsification could put people's lives at risk," Matsui was quoted as saying.
KYB President Yasusuke Nakajima said that following an external probe he will decide where the blame lies within the firm's management.
The operator of Tokyo Skytree said it is currently checking whether, along with the KYB shock absorption system it is using to protect against earthquakes, the 634-meter landmark tower uses any more of the firm's devices whose quality cannot be assured due to the malpractice.
