Konica Minolta, Inc. (Konica Minolta) is pleased to announce that it was ranked first place in the overall manufacturing sector at the 22nd Environmental Management Survey by Nikkei Inc.
The annual survey assesses environmental management of Japanese companies and recognises initiatives toward sustainability in terms of both environment and business management. The assessment is based on five criteria: environmental management promotion system; pollution and bio-diversity; resource circulation; products; and climate change. In the survey Konica Minolta earned full score (100) in environmental management promotion system, resource circulation and climate change, as well as 98 score both in pollution and bio-diversity and products.
For decades, Konica Minolta has been developing and implementing environmental management policies and initiatives that integrate reduction in environmental impact and growth in its businesses. The company has also played an active role in providing its own know-how to companies beyond its Group and assisting their initiatives to address environmental challenges. In addition, Konica Minolta’s mid-term carbon reduction goal was approved by the international SBT Initiative, while it joined RE100 and the Japan Climate Initiative and supports the final recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). On top of that, Konica Minolta analyses risk of increasing global warming and opportunities of creating new businesses based on the in-house technologies and know-how. Furthermore, the company has been considering information disclosure in its integrated report, among others, aligned with the TCFD.
Accelerate climate change initiatives based on Paris agreement Already in January 2009 Konica Minolta formulated the Eco Vision 2050 as its long-term environmental vision. This vision guides Konica Minolta in the right direction to achieve its future objectives and fulfill its responsibility as a global corporation by contributing to a sustainable earth and society. With its Eco Vision 2050, Konica Minolta aims to reduce the CO2 emissions from its products throughout their entire life cycle by 80% compared to fiscal 2005 levels by 2050. By 2016 Konica Minolta had successfully reached its medium term goal to cut emissions by 40 % vs. 2005.
In the beginning of 2019 Konica Minolta has additionally committed to the goal of sourcing 100% of its electricity from renewable power by 2050 and joining the RE100, a global leadership initiative bringing together influential businesses committed to source 100% renewable power for their global operations.
Recognise environmental management as business strategy Konica Minolta has been transforming itself to a digital company with insight into implicit challenges, by aggressively integrating cutting-edge technologies with its strengths of input-and-output technologies and creating solutions that contribute to resolving social challenges. For the environment, the company has made progress in integrating environmental activities, in terms of climate change, resource exhaustion and waste, with its mid- and long-term business strategies.
For instance, extreme minimization in production, transportation, inventory and waste in the manufacturing sector could reduce environmental impact. Konica Minolta has been making contribution in that direction by providing on-demand printing machines to the industrial printing field such as package, label and textile printing. Paper consumption is a challenge in offices around the world. Konica Minolta’s digital workplace will help customers improve efficiency and productivity in their workflow, while accelerating paper-less work. Big data analysis today consumes a lot of energy. Konica Minolta has been working on solutions where data analysis is done on site, as much as possible, as edge computing so that energy consumption will be reduced.
For Konica Minolta, business expansion and environmental improvement go in tandem, as the environmental management must work as business strategy.
About Environmental Management Survey Since 1997 Nikkei Inc. has conducted Environmental Management Survey in cooperation with Nikkei Research Inc. The survey makes a comprehensive assessment on Japanese companies’ environmental management in terms of environmental improvement and management efficiency. The 22nd survey invited listed and unlisted companies, including 1,731 manufacturers and 1,318 non-manufacturing corporations in retail, restaurants, electric and gas power, and construction, among others, between December 2018 and March 2019. 599 manufacturing companies responded to the survey.