Environmental Conservation at Domestic Locations

Comments from general manager/environmental officer

We are reinforcing the foundations of production—safety, environmental friendliness, and disaster prevention—adapting to changes in the social and business environments, and making efforts to save energy and reduce waste. We will contribute to society by providing distinctive, quality products and promote harmony with community residents by reducing our environmental impact and communicating with the public in various ways.

As an urban steelworks established in Kobe, we make every effort to preserve the environment while staying in close communication with members of the local community. Aiming to become the world's top steelworks for special steel, we will continue striving to maintain and improve the awareness of our entire staff in terms of safety, the environment, and disaster prevention.

Takasago Works contributes to society through the provision of distinctive "Only One" products worldwide, ranging from steel castings and forgings, titanium and steel powder to industrial machinery and equipment for the energy and nuclear sectors. In light of the recent state of the power supply, we are making every effort to continually reduce our environmental impact, including promoting on-site energy savings.

Starting in fiscal 2012, we expanded Eco-Action 21 activities, which entered their sixth year in 2013, to all of our branches and sales offices. In fiscal 2013, we will reduce our environmental impact further, including shifting to alternative modes of transport through integrated manufacturing and sales efforts and using eco-cars in our operations. We will also roll out environmental activities focusing on sales promotion of environmentally friendly products.

In the midst of the recent strained electric power supply and demand, the Onoe Works has carried out various activities based on our environmental policy of saving energy and resources. In fiscal 2013, we will push forward our aim of becoming a manufacturing facility that can make greater contributions to preservation of the global and local environments.

We are working on reducing our environmental impact with a view toward sustainable development. In fiscal 2012, we achieved results in improving the acid consumption rate and in saving energy. We also worked aggressively on preventive measures for responding to emergencies. From here on we will keep striving to continually make improvements.

In 2012 we brought new equipment on-line and started in-house surface treatment of wire rod, eliminating the need for transportation to and from a subcontractor located about 150 km away. This year we plan to treat about 1,000 tons per month, and so anticipate achieving a very large energy reduction.

We are implementing Eco-Action 21 activities at each workplace, focusing on saving energy as well as reducing waste and the usage of hazardous substances. In particular, we have been actively working to save power and reduce peak power consumption, in line with power saving guidelines. We will continue to make improvements in the future, in order to reduce our environmental impact and preserve the environment for the local community.

It has been five years since we obtained Eco-Action 21 certification. During that time we have made every effort to reduce our impact on the environment, working actively to save energy, conserve water, and reduce industrial waste and hazardous substances. Our employees are committed to working together on making continual improvements, in order to preserve the living environment.

As our plant is located next to a beach, we take the utmost care to control the quality of our wastewater. In fiscal 2012, we disposed of all our PCB waste. Also, we recycled industrial waste sludge as a roadbed material. In fiscal 2013 we will focus especially on saving energy, including switching to LED lighting in the plant.

As our works is located near the sea, we are especially committed to improving the quality of our wastewater, in order to protect the natural environment we have been blessed with. We also make efforts to gain the understanding of people in the area by deepening communication through activities such as meetings with the local community and participation in environmental beautification campaigns.

As a company that is trusted by the local community, the Kakogawa Factory makes every effort to reduce its environmental impact, working with steel works to save energy and recycle waste in addition to preventing air and water pollution under our slogan of, "Building a Safe and Reliable Factory."

At our urban coal-fired power station surrounded by a beautiful mountain range and harbor in the city of Kobe, all employees are dedicated to preserving the environment and ensuring that our facilities operate reliably. Our goal is to earn public trust in our power station through the stable supply of energy.

Following on from fiscal 2012, we will continue to focus on priority areas such as saving energy, reducing the amount of industrial waste sent to landfill, and ensuring appropriate management of chemical substances. We also aim to increase awareness of our environmental management system (EMS) by coexisting and working in harmony with the local community, such as through all-hands participation in community cleanups around the plant.

We are continuing to work on environmental measures to minimize and recycle waste as well as reduce levels of dust. In fiscal 2013, we will make efforts to improve the plant's wastewater management and carry out activities to reduce risks. We will also take action aimed at proper management of chemical substances.

We practice environmental management in line with Eco-Action 21 in an effort to reduce the environmental impact of our business activities. In fiscal 2013, we will focus on strengthening internal audits and developing human resources, in order to establish an independent environmental management system.

In fiscal 2012, we made efforts to reduce our environmental impact, including cutting summertime electricity use by more than 10% compared to fiscal 2010 and implementing stronger measures to prevent the leakage of chemical substances offsite. We are committed to reducing our environmental impact further in the future through a wide range of measures to reduce waste, recycle resources, and increase the environmental awareness of employees through repeated training.

All employees at the plant were already making efforts to reduce CO₂ emissions, water use, and waste in line with Eco-Action 21 when, from the second half of fiscal 2012, the head office and sales department staffs joined us. Now, all company employees are engaged in environmental activities.

Our goal is to achieve "zero waste" by the end of fiscal 2015. The recycling of waste is steadily moving ahead through the implementation of detailed measures to control waste sources and by ensuring waste separation within departments that generate waste. We are now in the midst of companywide efforts aimed at attaining "zero waste."

In fiscal 2012, we reduced CO₂ emissions by continuing to switch to alternative energy sources through equipment improvements and achieved our best recycling rate to date for industrial waste. In fiscal 2013, we will pursue further energy savings through optimization of equipment operation. We will also continue efforts to coexist and work in harmony with the environment as well as make contributions to society.

Having obtained certification under the Yamaguchi Prefectural Government's Eco-Factory scheme, we make efforts to ensure compliance and reduce our environmental impact in accordance with ISO 14001. We are also committed to coexisting and working in harmony with the local community. In fiscal 2013, we will focus on saving energy and reducing industrial waste.

We achieved effective utilization of industrial waste such as waste oil at the Daian Plant through our commitment to reducing waste and bringing costs down. Through our products, one example being aluminum suspension parts that reduce the weight of automobiles, we are helping to reduce CO₂ emissions. We are committed to continuing environmentally friendly production operations in accordance with our basic philosophy of "harmony with the environment."

In fiscal 2012, we made steady efforts to save energy, including switching to LED lighting and insulating hot washing baths. We also worked to set aside more days for adjusted operations, in order to reduce peak power consumption during the summer months. In fiscal 2013, we will focus on reducing waste, including plating waste liquids.

In fiscal 2012, we took noise control measures, including for hot rolling motors, in addition to energy-saving efforts such as switching to LED lighting. We also joined efforts to reduce peak energy demand by changing days off during the summer months. In fiscal 2013, we will continue to actively work at reducing our environmental impact, in order to win the approval of customers and the local community.

We have been carrying out the following environment-related activities on a proactive and continuous basis since fiscal 2011: (1) saving energy, (2) conserving resources, (3) harnessing human resources, (4) increasing quality and yield, and (5) reducing inventory. In fiscal 2013, we will step up these activities, expanding them into cross-department team efforts.

In fiscal 2012, we made efforts to save energy and conserve resources, and we achieved major results in reducing power consumption and recycling the plant's wastewater. In fiscal 2013, we will focus on companywide efforts to save energy and reduce industrial waste subject to special control in accordance with our basic philosophy of being "a company that is gentle on the Earth."

As a top manufacturer of copper tube, we make efforts to save energy as a priority issue. In fiscal 2013, we will try to improve our production per unit of energy consumption and reduce industrial waste through further yield improvements. We will also contribute to society through the development of small-diameter heat transfer tube suitable for new refrigerants.

As an environmentally advanced company, we are committed to fulfilling our social responsibility—by practicing environmentally friendly production, contributing to the environment through our products, technologies and services, and coexisting and working in harmony with society—while maximizing business income, all in a bid to become a world-class compressor manufacturer.

We contribute to society as a global company working in partnership with people, the environment, and the world by carrying out environmentally friendly production and by meeting global trends in demand through highly original technology and integrated manufacturing capabilities, in order to become a plant with world-class quality, cost, and delivery (QCD).

We are making all-hands efforts to reduce CO₂, water usage, and waste emissions while making the most of Eco-Action 21 as a tool for compliance with environmental laws in our R&D activities. Kobe Corporate Research Laboratories will continue to contribute to society through the research and development of new environmentally friendly products and technologies that help save energy and resources.

The Sputtering Target Division provides original products in fields such as flat panel displays, optical recording media, and thin-film secondary batteries. Not only are we committed to environmentally friendly manufacturing during the production of our own products, but we are also determined to contribute to improvement of the environment by helping customers shorten processes and reduce material usage through the use of our materials.

After moving to our new factory, the prospects look brighter that we can improve productivity and increase efficiency in logistics, which we had been working on before. We also were able to halve our usage of organic solvents. In terms of products, we put a 20-ton hybrid shovel on the market. In fiscal 2013, we will make further reductions in organic solvents and continue working at improving products for the recycling sector.

As well as improving production efficiency to reduce power consumption and CO₂ emissions and improving coating efficiency in an effort to reduce waste paint as part of an ongoing project to increase our competitiveness, we also make every effort to preserve the environment and prevent pollution so that we can exist in harmony with the local community.

We are committed to improving productivity in order to use power and fuel efficiently and reduce waste generation. We are also making efforts to reduce our environmental impact through green procurement under the slogan of, "Those who build the environment must not damage the environment." We will continue contributing to the building of green and comfortable social infrastructure in the future through the production of cranes that use fuel-efficient, low-noise, and lightweight technologies to limit emissions and save energy.

We expect the superconducting wire rod that we produce will be used in next-generation power generation applications, as it has zero electrical resistance. Also, our entire staff is committed to reducing CO₂ emissions, water usage, and waste emissions through Eco-Action 21 activities.

Having taken over the reins as General Manager of the Harima Plant in fiscal 2013, I am determined to continue ensuring thorough compliance again this year and to working with the entire staff to create a safe, pleasant working environment. We will also promote power, fuel, and other energy savings through steady efforts.

At the Technical Research Center we are committed to reducing the generation of waste and increasing the volume of materials recycled. We also organized initiatives such as walk-around checks to ensure that wastewater is appropriately managed, and emergency drills to ensure that all employees comply with wastewater standards. As an environment-related company, we take preserving the local environment into consideration in all of our operations.

Located between the sea and the mountains, Shinko Industrial is determined to operate in harmony with the natural environment in Kurayoshi. We pay special attention to wastewater and always try to take nearby residents in the local community into consideration. In fiscal 2012, we made an effort to raise employees' awareness of the environment by having each workplace establish environmental initiatives.