Report on Responsibility & Sustainability

2012Editorial Policy
The Sumitomo Corporation Group aims to “Be the Best, Be the One” by implementing its Management
Principles. This means that we aspire to become an organization that earns society’s recognition by creating
value that no other company can match. Serving as the universal and unchanging value and foundation for suchendeavor is Sumitomo’s business philosophy, which teaches us to place prime importance on integrity andsound management, and not to pursue easy gains.
In this Sumitomo Corporation Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012, we report on our ideas andprinciples related to CSR, and specific activities carried out in the course of our business activities, taking as
examples our steel service center business, mining equipment business in Mongolia, and plastic bottle collection
and recycling business. The reporting on these specific projects also includes a summary of our goals forcreating social value through the projects and distinctive strengths we exploit there.
You will also find in the report some examples of how we engaged various stakeholder groups and fulfilled
our social responsibility to them.
In addition to this report, please visit our website to learn more about our CSR initiatives, including ourmanagement systems, and detailed or additional data on our CSR achievements and progress.
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/index.html

The Sumitomo Corporation Group regards this report as an important communication tool to connect uswith our stakeholders. We always appreciate feedback from our readers.

Scope of the Report
Period covered: April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012
(Some activities starting on or after April 1, 2012 are included.)● Organizations covered: Sumitomo Corporation and the Sumitomo Corporation GroupIn this report, “Sumitomo Corporation” and “the Company” refer to the non-consolidated organization of Sumitomo Corporation.
“The Sumitomo Corporation Group” and “the Group” refer to the entire organization of Sumitomo Corporation Group.
● Publication schedule: Reports on environmental issues have been published annually since 1999, when the first Environmental
Report was published. The title of the report was changed in 2003 to Social and Environmental Report, which started to include
social issues, in 2007 to Sustainability Report, and in 2010 to Report on Responsibility & Sustainability.
● The previous issue was published in October 2011.
● The next issue is scheduled for publication in the fall of 2013.
●

Referenced Guidelines
ISO26000 (Guidance on Social Responsibility)
Charter of Corporate Behavior (September 14, 2010),
Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation)● GRI Sustainability Report Guidelines 2006, Global
Reporting Initiative●●

Please refer to the following website for the content index.
*http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/report.html“Environmental Reporting Guidelines 2007 — Towards a
Sustainable Society—” issued by Ministry of theEnvironment, Government of Japan● “Environmental Accounting Guidelines 2005” issued by
Ministry of the Environment, Government of Japan●

1 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Disclaimer
This report describes activities of Sumitomo Corporation andits subsidiaries and associated companies (i.e., theSumitomo Corporation Group) at the current time andin the past, as well as predictions, forecasts and plans for the
future. These predictions, forecasts and plans arehypotheses or decisions made based on the information
available when the report was written, and therefore may
include some level of uncertainty. The results of businessactivities or occurrences in the future may differ fromthe predictions, forecasts and plans described in this report.
Hence, readers should recognize that the Sumitomo
Corporation Group is not responsible for such events.

CONTENTS
Message from the President and CEO

3

Message from the Chair of the
CSR Committee

5

Sumitomo’s Business Philosophy / Sumitomo Corporation
Group’s Corporate Mission Statement

7

Core Competence and the Medium-termManagement Plan

9
10

Company Information

Creating Social Value

11

Report 1

Expanding from Japan to Asia and to therest of the world: Our steel service center
business’s journey of evolution as a key
supporter of industrial development

13

Report 2

Contributing to the development ofMongolia through our mining
equipment business

17

Report 3

Promoting an efficient collection andrecycling system for used plastic bottles
that helps to build
a recycling-oriented society

21

Project Report

Report on
Responsibility & Sustainability

2012

Together with Stakeholders

24

Together with Customers

25

Together with Business Partners

26

Together with Employees

27

Together with Society

29

Together with the Global Environment

33

Providing long-term assistance for recovery
from the Great East Japan Earthquake

35

Third-Party Review

39

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 20122

Message from the President and CEO“Be the Best, Be the One”
We aspire to become an organization that
contributes broadly to society
I am delighted to present to you with the Sumitomo
Corporation Report on Responsibility &Sustainability 2012.

Global challenges
The globalization of the world economy, which has
accelerated over the last quarter of a century, hasbrought social and economic advancement to theglobal community. At the same time, this “light” on
globalization has a dark side that includes climatechange and other global environmental problems;
the tight supply of resources, energy, food, water,and other necessities spurred on by the rapid growthof emerging economies; and the widening gap
between the haves and have-nots. These global
issues have escalated to a level where they arethreatening the sustainable development of international society.
I recognize that these global issues should not andcannot be tackled by national governments orinternational organizations alone. Rather, all organizations including businesses must face them as
humanity’s common problems and play their part infinding solutions..

CSR at the Sumitomo Corporation GroupThe Sumitomo Group, which includes Sumitomo
Corporation, has embraced and practiced
Sumitomo’s Business Philosophy for the more than
400 years of its history. One of the credos of thisphilosophy says: “Benefit for self and others, private
and public interests are one and the same.” Thismeans that “Sumitomo’s business activities must
benefit not only Sumitomo’s own businesses, butalso society and the nation.”

3 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

The idea behind this credo—i.e., we must always
view our business activities from the perspective ofsociety—constitutes the essence of corporate social
responsibility (CSR). It also provides the foundation
for the Sumitomo Corporation Group’s Management
Principles, which include “We aim to be a globalorganization that constantly stays a step ahead in
dealing with change, creates new value, and contributes broadly to society,” and “To achieve prosperity
and realize dreams through sound business activities.” Therefore, in the Sumitomo Corporation Group,
CSR is embedded in our longstanding practice offollowing our Management Principles. In other words,
our social responsibilities as a corporation are fulfilledin the course of our sound business activities, and
our CSR activities are planned and implemented asbusiness strategies after consulting with various
stakeholders and considering what we can andshould do as a corporation to help solve social
issues.
In March 2009, the Sumitomo Corporation Groupsigned the UN Global Compact and declared its
support for the 10 principles on human rights, labour
standards, environment, and anti-corruption. In
conducting our CSR activities as a global businessgroup, we will respect these 10 principles, whichshare similar values with our Management Principles.
We also refer to ISO 26000, the international
standard on social responsibility, in designing andimplementing specific activities.

“Be the Best, Be the One”
We aim to create a virtuous cycle where we deliver
value to society at large through our sound businessactivities, and build and strengthen the relationships

of trust with various stakeholders and thereby
create new value and achieve mutual growth forourselves, customers, and society.
I believe that making constant efforts toward this goal
will allow us to create unique value that is unmatchedand become a company that earns society’s recognition. This will ultimately lead to achieving prosperity
and realizing the dreams of our stakeholders.
To create and maintain such a virtuous cycle, we in
the Sumitomo Corporation Group must endeavor to
improve ourselves and consistently enhance ourcorporate value. What I mean by corporate value here
is not limited to quantitative financial value. It also
includes approval by various stakeholders (“We areglad Sumitomo Corporation is there”), their trust (“Wewill leave the matter to Sumitomo Corporation”), andtheir expectations (“Sumitomo Corporation will do it
well for us”). All of them collectively add up to the true
value of the company.

To this end, we will work to be an organization
recognized by all stakeholders for its unmatched
excellence, by having every employee work with spirit
and pride, while demonstrating distinctive strengths
befitting Sumitomo Corporation’s identity and uniqueness. That is to “Be the Best, Be the One.”
Moving forward, the Sumitomo Corporation Groupwill continue its constant efforts to achieve prosperity
and realize the dreams of our stakeholders. We lookforward to continuing our relationship with you.
October 2012

Kuniharu Nakamura
President and CEO
Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 20124

Message from the Chair of the CSR Committee

CSR in the Sumitomo Corporation Group

Masayuki Doi
Director
Senior Managing Executive Officer
General Manger
Corporate Planning &Coordination Group

Sumitomo Corporation’s distinctive
CSR activities
At the preamble to the Management Principles, theSumitomo Corporation Group states its corporate vision,“We aim to be a global organization that constantly stays
a step ahead in dealing with change, creates new value,and contributes broadly to society.”
For the Sumitomo Corporation Group, CSR means
promoting responsible corporate activities by placing
prime importance on integrity and sound management
based on Sumitomo’s Business Philosophy with utmost
respect for the individual and fulfilling our corporate
mission to become the ideal organization set out in thevision; in other words, translating our Management
Principles into specific actions and outcomes through ourbusiness activities and social contribution activities. We
therefore work to build closer relationships with various
stakeholders, through which we can obtain a goodunderstanding of the issues society is facing, and makesincere efforts to help solve those issues. And all these
activities we implement in accordance with the Management Principles constitute our distinctive CSR activities.
Maintaining the approach to CSR described above,
we will continue to operate our businesses in a responsible manner and thereby pursue sustainable growth forsociety and our Group.

Progress and achievements of
our CSR efforts
In recent years, there have been a lot of changes in the
global CSR landscape. For instance, ISO 26000, aninternational standard on social responsibility published in
2010, has been adopted by a great number of organizations around the world. Currently, it has substantiallybecome a generally accepted international social
responsibility guideline. Another major development isthat the European Commission announced its renewed
strategy for CSR in 2011. With the aim of promoting CSR

5 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

initiatives to help sustainable growth in the region, thestrategy encourages European companies to adopt
ISO 26000 and other internationally recognized
standards and principles.
As these changes have urged corporations to meethigher standards on CSR, the Sumitomo Corporation
Group is also expected to play a larger and stronger rolein fulfilling such higher expectations and greater responsibilities to global society.
Given this, we will continue active engagement andinteraction with external stakeholders to keep our CSR
activities relevant to the changing social environment.
When it comes to our progress and achievements in
CSR efforts during the last year, we took a wide variety ofmeasures worldwide to promote among our employees adeeper understanding of our Management Principles, which
provide the foundation of the CSR activities of our Group.
As an active participant in the Global Compact
Japan Network, which we joined after signing the UN
Global Compact in March 2009, we also worked withother corporate members from various industries lastyear to develop a recommendation on CSR managementin the supply chain.
Last year, we also started to review the CSR-related
systems and practices of our Group and supply chain
partners to identify priority issues for our CSR initiatives,
referring to ISO 26000 and other international standards.
To further improve the quality of our CSR activities, weare planning to expand these efforts in the future.

Report on Responsibility &Sustainability 2012
The Report focuses on reporting how the Sumitomo
Corporation Group is practicing its Management
Principles and how it is striving to create new value. We
worked particularly hard to present the Social Value
Creation Chart,* which we introduced in last year’s
report, in an easy-to-understand manner in the Project
Report section of the Report.
With the spirit and pride of each of our employees,
the Sumitomo Corporation Group will aim to create newvalue and become an organization recognized bysociety. We will continue to strive to create value befitting
Sumitomo Corporation’s identity and uniqueness.
October 2012

*Please refer to page 12 of the Report.

Major CSR Promotion Activities
Promoting deeper understanding of
our Management Principles throughout the Group worldwide
We promote employee awareness of our Management
Principles across the entire Group worldwide, recognizingthat putting them into practice is the source of our value
creation. To ensure all our employees regardless of their job
titles or career levels and including locally hired employees
working at our overseas offices and group companies, fully
understand and follow the Management Principles in theirwork, we provide our employees many and repeated
opportunities, including training programs, to learn, improve,and reaffirm their understanding. In addition, e-learningmaterials for all employees are available to facilitate theirunderstanding of the Management Principles, including its
history and the background behind its formulation.
With the advancement of our global operations inrecent years, our overseas group companies have also

started to take their own initiatives to raise employee
awareness. Such efforts will help each and every employeeof the Sumitomo Corporation Group to gain a full understanding of the Management Principles and put them into
practice in their daily business activities, which will put ourcore competence, integrated corporate strengths, into action
on a global scale. In addition, we also believe that by sharing
the values of theManagement Principles
with our business
partners around theworld, we will be able tobuild a stronger andmore sustainable
Training for locally hired employees
business foundation.

Support for the UN Global Compact
The Sumitomo Corporation Group declared its support forthe 10 principles of the UN Global Compact, as thisinternational CSR-related initiative and our Management
Principles share similar values. With our participation in the
Global Compact, we committed ourselves to making further
improvements by constantly considering enhancements toour business activities in light of the values advocated by the
10 principles.
We are also an active participant in the Global
Compact Japan Network (GC-JN). As a member of the
Supply Chain Subcommittee of the GC-JN since 2009, we
discuss with other subcommittee members from various
sectors the latest developments and effective practices andmethodologies regarding
CSR management in the
supply chain. In fiscal
2012, the subcommittee
published its recommendations on how companies
should conduct their CSR
activities across their
GC-JN Supply Chain Working Groupsupply chains.

The UN Global Compact's 10 Principles
Human Rights
1. Businesses should support and respect theprotection of internationally proclaimed
human rights; and2. make sure that they are not complicit in humanrights abuses.

Labour Standards
3. Businesses should uphold the freedom of

association and the effective recognition of the rightto collective bargaining;
4. the elimination of all forms of forced andcompulsory labour;

5. the effective abolition of child labour; and6. the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment
and occupation.

Environment
7. Businesses should support a precautionary approachto environmental challenges;

8. undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental
responsibility; and9. encourage the development and diffusion ofenvironmentally friendly technologies.

Anti-Corruption
10. Businesses should work against corruption in all its
forms, including extortion and bribery.

Supply Chain CSR management
To learn more about our supply chain CSR management, please refer to the following website.
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/sccsr/index.html

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 20126

Sumitomo’s Business Philosophy / Sumitomo Corporation Group’s Corporate Mission Statement

Sumitomo Corporation Group’s Corporate Mission Statement
Founded on the Sumitomo’s Business Philosophy
Sumitomo has always been sincere in conducting its business, contributing to achieving prosperity and realizing the dreams ofour business partners, our society and all other stakeholders. As a result, we have built up trust, and this has helped us to develop
new businesses and create a cycle of positive growth. The Management Principles and Activity Guidelines of the Sumitomo
Corporation Group are founded on Sumitomo’s business philosophy that has been passed on for 400 years.

The Founder’s Precepts“Monjuin Shiigaki”
The Founder’s Precepts “Monjuin Shiigaki”
is a letter sent by Masatomo Sumitomo(1585–1652), the founder of Sumitomo
and a religious man, to his family
members in his old age. It succinctly
describes the guiding principles of his
business operations.
At the beginning, it urges the reader“Not only in matters of business but in all
situations, make efforts with deepest
gratitude in every aspect.”
The precepts also include suchteachings as “When goods are offered to
you below the normal market price, underno circumstances should you everpurchase such goods, for their origins are
unknown and they are probably stolen
property,” “Never give shelter to a stranger,
no matter who it might be; also, never takea stranger’s goods into your custody, nomatter how innocent they might appear”(these acts were prohibited by thegovernment), and “No matter whatsomeone might say to you, never lose yourtemper or speak harsh words; politely
explain your position until an understanding
can be reached.” These teachings havebeen handed down and form the base of
Sumitomo’s business philosophy. They arestill seen in today’s principles, such as “nopursuing easy gains” (i.e., only making a
profit on a fairly priced transaction that canbe explained with confidence), “compliance”
and “integrity and sound management.”

Monjuin Shiigaki(Source: Sumitomo Historical Archives)

7 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Business Principles

Saihei Hirose, Sumitomo’s
first Director-General (Source:
Sumitomo Historical Archives)

Rules Governing the Houseof Sumitomo
The Besshi Copper Mine (opened in 1691)
encountered many adverse conditions
during the Meiji Restoration (in the late1860s), when the price of copper fell,
operating costs increased sharply due torising prices of rice and other items, andloans to the feudal lords wereuncollectable. At one point, it was almost
forced to sell out. Saihei Hirose(1828–1914), manager of the mine wholater became Sumitomo’s first DirectorGeneral, acted boldly and modernized theoperation with Western style technologies.
Hirose’s operational reforms saved themine and its community.
In 1882, when serving as DirectorGeneral, Hirose formulated the Rules
Governing the House of Sumitomo, which
consisted of 19 sections and 196 articles,
to reflect the business philosophy thefamily had followed over its 250- year
history. The Rules clearly illustrate
Sumitomo’s corporate philosophy in Article
3 in Section I: “We shall practice soundmanagement in order to cope effectively
with the changing times. Under nocircumstances, however, shall we pursue
easy gains or act imprudently.”

In 1891, the Rules Governing the House of
Sumitomo were separated into two parts,
the family code (corporate rules) and thefamily constitutions (the principles of thefamily head), to distinguish ownership frombusiness operations. On that occasion, theprinciple of “integrity” was introduced andplaced at the beginning of the Rules
Governing the House of Sumitomo with theprinciple in Article 3, which then together
became the Business Principles. In 1928,
while Sumitomo’s business expanded intoa variety of areas, including the steel,machinery and chemical industries,
Sumitomo’s Business Rules were
established. The two articles of theBusiness Principles have been passed on
for generations and still serve as thecorporate rules of all group companies.
Article 1. Sumitomo shall achievestrength and prosperity by placing prime
importance on integrity and soundmanagement in the conduct of its business.
Article 2. Sumitomo shall manage its
activities with foresight and flexibility in order
to cope effectively with the changing times.
Under no circumstances, however, shall it
pursue easy gains or act imprudently.

Business Principles

Sumitomo Corporation Group’s Corporate Mission Statement

Sumitomo Building Annex, where Nippon
Kensetsu Sangyo’s head office was located

Sumitomo Corporation
Management Charter
Osaka North Harbour Co, Ltd., thepredecessor of Sumitomo Corporation,
was founded in 1919. Later, after WorldWar II, the company changed its name to
Nippon Kensetsu Sangyo Co, Ltd., startinga new life as a general trading firm. In 1952,
when the company was incorporated withthe current name, the Business Principles
were chosen as the management
philosophy for all corporate operations andthe foundation to sustained growth.
While Japan’s economy was growing
rapidly after the war, environmental
pollution, inflation and other public issues
started to arise. Business corporations
and their codes of conduct werechallenged to make clear the relationshipbetween the national government andcorporations, as well as between citizens
and corporations. To respond to this, in
1973, Sumitomo Corporation laid down
the Sumitomo Corporation Management
Charter, an original charter that consists of
the Basic Principles of Management andthe Operational Guidelines.

“To achieve prosperity and realize dreams
In the early 1990s, the bubble burst,
through sound business activities”
drastic appreciation of the yen continued,
describes our corporate mission, while theand the Japanese economy entered a longsecond item, “To place prime importanceperiod of low growth. Sumitomo
on integrity and sound management with
Corporation had no choice but toutmost respect for the individual” shows
re-examine the status quo of its businessour management style, and the third item,
transactions and risk management“To foster a corporate culture full of vitality
methods. Against this background, there
and conducive to innovation” portrays ourwas growing management recognition that
corporate culture.
the company needed to revert to
The Activity Guidelines were generated
Sumitomo’s business philosophy, whichbased on these principles to guide
had served as the base of Sumitomo’s
employees in their daily business operations.
business operations and the driving force
in overcoming many crises
through the last 400 years.
This recognition further
heightened in 1996, when
the copper incident
Corporate Visionoccurred, leading to the1998 establishment of
We aim to be a global organization that constantly stays astep ahead in dealing with change, creates new value, andSumitomo Corporation
contributes broadly to society.
Group’s Corporate
Mission Statement.
Management Principles
The Corporate
Mission Statement,<Corporate Mission>consisting of Management• To achieve prosperity and realize dreams through soundbusiness activities
Principles and Activity<Management Style>
Guidelines, was compiled• To place prime importance on integrity and soundbased on Sumitomo’s
management with utmost respect for the individual
business philosophy,<Corporate
Culture>which has been nurtured• To foster a corporate culture full of vitality and conducive
throughout the 400 years
to innovationof Sumitomo’s history,
and today’s global
Activity Guidelines
perspective, in a simple· To act with honesty and sincerity on the basis ofand systematic way.
Sumitomo’s business philosophy and in keeping with
The preamble to thethe Management Principles
Management Principles· To comply with laws and regulations while maintaining theshows the corporate
highest ethical standards
vision: “We aim to be a·
To set high value on transparency and openness
global organization that· To attach great importance to protecting the global environment
constantly stays a stepahead in dealing with· To contribute to society as a good corporate citizenchange, creates new· To achieve teamwork and integrated corporate strength
value, and contributes
through active communication
broadly to society.”· To set clear objectives and achieve them with enthusiasm
The first item in theManagement Principles,

Corporate Mission Statement

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 20128

Core Competence and the Medium-term Management Plan

Leveraging our integrated corporate strengths, we aim to achieve cross-boundary growth
together with all our partners across regional, generational, and organizational boundaries.
Based on the Medium-term Management Plan “f(x)”(f-cross), the Sumitomo Corporation Group is striving to create new value as
set forth in its Corporate Mission Statement, leveraging its core competence, integrated corporate strengths.

“Integrated Corporate Strength,” the corecompetence of the Sumitomo Corporation Group
Our Integrated Corporate Strength is the source of the competitive
advantage (core competence) of the Sumitomo Corporation Group as we
pursue our businesses in a wide variety of fields. Our strategic andorganic integration of the robust “business foundation” and diverse,
high-level “functions” of Group companies, combined with the efforts ofeach and every Group employee, helps us respond to the various needsof our customers. At the same time, we create new value by always
thinking one step ahead of global change. This capacity is what we callour “Integrated Corporate Strength”.
Bringing our Integrated Corporate Strength to bear and actively
building businesses that truly contribute to the growth and progress of awide range of industries in different regions, the Sumitomo Corporation
Group will continue to make even greater contributions to the stable andcontinued growth of the world economy and global society.

Creation and Provision of Diversified
Values to Meet Social Need
Strategic and Organic
Integration
Logistics
SolutionsMarket Intelligence &Information Gathering
Businessand Analysis
Development

Cont
inual

IT Solutions
Financial
Services
RiskManagementns
Enhancement of Functio

Integrity
Global NetworkIntellectual Capital
Global Relations

Co
ntin
ion
dat
ual S
Foun
trengthening of the BusinessMedium-term Management Plan: f(x)Under our Medium-term Management Plan “f(x)” effective from fiscal
2011, we are carrying on with the basic policies and measures adopted
under our previous plan with a view to the next 10 years,
FOCUS’10—whence the f—and at the same time undertake theexecution—whence the x—of our business model innovation. We aredoing this to meet the demands of the times based on our Corporate
Mission Statement, which defines value creation as our corporate
vision, with the aim of achieving growth together with all our partners
across regional, generational, and organizational boundaries.
Progress quantitative targets to Medium-term Management Plan: f(x)Medium-term Management Plan:f(x) at onset
Fiscal 2011 plan Fiscal 2012 plan
Net Income(billions of yen)
Risk-adjusted
Return Ratio*

As of start of Fiscal 2012

Reference

Fiscal 2011
results

Fiscal 2012 plan
(revised)

Fiscal 2010
results

220.0

260.0

250.7

260.0

200.2

−

15% or more

16.5%

15% or more

13.9%

*

Risk-adjusted Return Ratio = net income/risk-adjusted assets (maximum possible losses).
It is an indicator of profitability against quantified risk.

Two-year progress in B/S reforms to Medium-term Management Plan: f(x)Medium-term Management Plan:f(x) at onset

As of start of Fiscal 20122012 plan
Fiscal 2011 results Fiscal(revised)Two-year total(forecast)(Billions of yen)

Two-year total

Acquisition &Enhancement(new investments
included)+1,150.0(+580.0)(+220.0)(+360.0)+430.0+1,000.0

Divestiture & Reduction−1,150.0−570.0−580.0−1,150.0

9 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

+570.0(+580.0)

Four key actions❶ Make visible and share long-term

ideal images on the front lines.

❷ Accelerate strategic

resource management.

❸ Enhance our integrated corporate

strength on a global basis.

❹ Strengthen human resourcesmanagement on acompany-wide level.

http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/company/mid̲term/index.html

Company Information
Company Profile (As of March 31, 2012)
Company Name:
Sumitomo Corporation

Consolidated Shareholders’ Equity:
1,689.1 billion yen

Establishment:
December 24, 1919

Fiscal Year End:March 31

Number of Employees:
5,185 (72,087 including consolidated subsidiaries)

Number of Consolidated Subsidiaries:
560 (overseas: 421, domestic: 139)

Headquarters:
1-8-11 Harumi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-8610, Japan

Associated Companies (Equity Method):230 (overseas: 176, domestic: 54)
Total: 790 companies

URL:
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/

Organization
General Meeting of Shareholders
Board of Corporate Auditors
Board of Directors

Business Units

Corporate Auditor's
Administration Dept.

Internal Auditing Dept.

Corporate Planning &Coordination Group

Human Resources,
General Affairs & Legal Group

Corporate Auditors

Financial Resources
Management Group

Metal Products Business Unit

Transportation & Construction
Systems Business Unit

Company-wide Committees*

Infrastructure Business UnitMedia, Network & Lifestyle
Retail Business Unit

Mineral Resources, Energy,
Chemical & Electronics
Business Unit

General Products &Real Estate Business Unit

New Industry Development &Cross-function Business Unit

Domestic Subsidiaries andOffices

Overseas Subsidiaries andOfficesPresident and CEO,
Executive Officers

Corporate Group*

Company-wide Committees: CSR Committee, Internal Control Committee, Compliance Committee, IR Committee, Human Resources Development Promotion Committee,
Work-Life Balance Promotion Project Team, Value Integration Committee, Loan and Investment Committee, Medium-term Management Plan Promotion Support Committee,
ICT Committee, and others.

Consolidated Financial Highlights(Billions of yen)

Results ofOperations

Financial Positionat Year End

RatiosFiscal 2007
U.S. GAAP

Fiscal 2008
U.S. GAAP

Fiscal 2009
U.S. GAAP

Fiscal 2010
IFRS

Fiscal 2011
IFRS
918.8

Gross Profit

934.5

935.2

779.5

864.0

Net Financial Income(27.6)(21.5)(12.8)

(8.1)

(3.9)

Equity in Earnings of Associated Companies, net

56.9

90.0

76.1

95.6

110.6

Net Income

238.9

215.1

155.2

200.2

250.7

Total Assets

7,571.4

7,018.2

7,137.8

7,230.5

7,226.8

Shareholders’ Equity

1,492.7

1,353.1

1,583.7

1,570.5

1,689.1

Interest-Bearing Liabilities (net)3,247.6

3,186.8

2,781.8

3,056.3

2,786.7

Shareholders’ Equity Ratio (%)

19.7

19.3

22.2

21.7

23.4

ROE (%)

16.1

15.1

10.6

12.9

15.4

ROA (%)

3.0

2.9

2.2

2.8

3.5

Debt-Equity Ratio (net) (times)

2.2

2.4

1.8

1.9

1.6

Note: For more detailed information on financial issues, please refer to our Annual Report.

http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/ir/index.html

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201210

Project ReportCreating Social Value
Creating new value and contributing broadly to society—this is the vision of the business activities of the Sumitomo Corporation
Group and this is what they achieve.
The basic concept behind our various CSR activities, as the Chair of the CSR Committee stated onan earlier page of this report, is this: Our mission is to create new value and achieve sustainablegrowth together with society by operating sound business activities; and for that we need to obtainan accurate understanding of today’s social issues, set relevant goals, and engage appropriately withstakeholders to fulfill our mission.
Given the roles that our business activities play in society, it would be fair to say that our newvalue creation can be defined from a CSR perspective as the creation of social value. In this section,
we illustrate through the stories of three projects how we in the Sumitomo Corporation Group strive
to create social value through our business activities based on the ideas and principles, and distinctive strengths and capabilities we use in our efforts.

CONTENTS
Report 1

Report 2

Report 3

Expanding from Japan to Asia and to
the rest of the world:
Our steel service center business’s
journey of evolution as a key supporterof industrial development

Contributing to the development ofMongolia through our mining
equipment business

Promoting an efficient collection
and recycling system for usedplastic bottles that helps to build
a recycling-oriented society

▶p.17

▶p.21

▶p.13

2

11 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012Social Value Creation Chart
unit’s distinctive strengths which can be drawn on in its
Last year, we examined our business activities from a CSR
collaborative efforts with business partners to achieve its
point of view to identify the directions in which the efforts by
mission in society and the medium- and long-term goals set out.
each of our seven business units to create distinctive social
value should be heading and what capabilities those businessIn the report this year, each project report contains a similar
units can use to create the intended value. The results of theseSocial Value Creation Chart to present in a visually
analyses are visually summarized in Social Value Creation Chart
understandable way how we strive to create social value
for each business unit.*
through the featured project.
The chart consists of three parts:
Social Value Creation Chart(i) Social & Environmental Context, our in-depthSocial & Environmental
Capabilities toGoals for Social
analysis of social issues related to a business
Context
Provide Solutions
Value Creation
unit’s operational areas from a CSR perspective,(ii) Goals for Social Value Creation, medium andlong term goals we aim to achieve through ourbusiness activities, taking into account thesocial and environmental context identified,(iii) Capabilities to Provide Solutions, a business
Please refer to page 26 in our Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2011.
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/doc/env2011e.pdf

Sumitomo Corporation continues to provide solutions to the long-term
and fundamental problems society faces
The social value mapping tool illustrated here in these casestudies is unique to the Sumitomo Corporation and characteristicof its approach to contributing to the well-being of society directly
through its business activities. By defining business opportunities
within the context of providing solutions to the long-term andfundamental problems we face in achieving sustainable growthand prosperity, Sumitomo strives to align its business objectives
with those of its stakeholders and create platforms upon which
other corporations and public entities can establish their own
businesses and in turn create further value. These maps are an
attempt to illustrate this virtuous cycle.
Using its various strengths as a global network—one that
integrates a wide variety of businesses and their attendantcompetences—Sumitomo is able to formulate and propose
resilient and inclusive stories to transform entire markets and open
the way for the future development of whole industries andregions. This approach to business as a process of planning anddeveloping opportunities for sharing growth is of particularimportance at present where many nations and regions areforegoing the development of their natural resources because of alack of a sure vision for the future or the wide range of abilities andskills necessary to formulate such a suitably viable vision.
These value creation maps are neither easy to read nor
understand. They require thought and careful consideration. Thisis because they are not built aroundsimplistic slogans or catch phrases.
They are instead illustrations ofadvanced and complex businessprojects within highly competitivemarkets. Despite their diversity,
however, each of these cases showthat the ideal of “Be the Best, Be theOne” is not some form of convenient
slogan but is actually being applied by
the Sumitomo Corporation to their
Professor Scott Davisown immediate activities as a measure
External Advisor
Professor of Collegeof their value as a business in terms ofof Businesstheir ability to contribute to the future.
Rikkyo University

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201212

Project Report 1

Expanding from Japan to Asia andto the rest of the world:
Our steel service center business’s journey of evolution
as a key supporter of industrial development
Through its consistent supply of steel products, a key industrial material for many sectors, theSumitomo Corporation Group has supported the Japanese economy and contributed to thedevelopment of manufacturing and other industries worldwide. In fulfilling these roles, our coil center
business has played a particularly important part, with its functions—based on our strong relationshipsof trust with customers—of material supply, inventory adjustment, and processing treatment.
Our Group identified customer needs correctly and opportunely and pioneered the establishmentof a global network of coil centers. As a result of our continued efforts to add more value to thisnetwork by upgrading its functions, building a supply chain which can address change in demand,and optimizing the overall market, our coil centers have evolved into “steel service centers (SSCs),”
which enable all parties involved to create value and improve productivity.
The Sumitomo Corporation Group will continue to expand and upgrade its SSC network andachieve more efficient resource allocation through innovation. We aim to achieve further development
for customers, industrial communities around the world, and ourselves.
Social & Environmental
Context
Supplying the right steel products at
the right time in the right quantities in
rapidly-growing emerging countries

From coil center business to
SSC business (Adding higher
value to services that meet
evolving customer needs)

13 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Capabilities toProvide Solutions

Goals for Social
Value Creation

Operational capabilities to deliver avariety of functions in an appropriate
and timely manner

Sustained development of the global
industrial community

Network capabilities to ensure
effective collaboration with customers’
production sites on a global scale

Efficient asset allocation
through innovation

Developing human resources who havestrong business and interpersonal skills andcan deliver results in a global marketplace

Optimizing the overall market bybuilding a global supply chain thatcan respond to changes in demand

Hiroshi Wakashima
Corporate Officer
General Manager
Iron & Steel Division, No. 2

Ensuring a stable supply of steel products bylaunching coil centers which serve various
functions from customers’ perspectives
Steel sheet is indispensable to industrial development as it is
widely used in electric appliances, automobiles, construction
projects, infrastructure development, and other industrial areas.
Because of the wide range of applications, growth in demandoften serves as a good indicator of economic growth. A trading
company which provides this key industrial material therefore
assumes responsibility for supporting industrial development by
ensuring a stable supply of high-quality steel sheet to meetgrowing demand.
As the manufacturing and transportation of steel sheet
products take a considerable time, a trading company must
maintain a suitable level of inventory to meet customer demandin a timely way. As steel sheet is manufactured in large
quantities, many customers also look for a processing service
where steel sheet is treated as they require and cut to the size
they need.
In order to meet customer needs tailored to the individual, a
trading company needs to establish product supply facilities
which can achieve just-in-time delivery of steel products as
specified by the customer. This means that it is important toestablish facilities—usually known as “coil centers”—locatednear customers’ production sites that not only supply steel
sheet but also have inventory adjustment and productprocessing functions.
Recognizing the importance of coil centers at an early date,the Sumitomo Corporation Group established Japan’s first coilcenter in Osaka (currently, Sumisho Steel Sheets Works Co.,
Ltd.) in 1961, when a period of rapid economic growth had juststarted in Japan. From then on, we continued expanding thesize of our coil center operations and network to keep pace withthe development of the Japanese economy so that we wereable to meet the growing demand for steel products andsupport the country’s economic growth.

Expanding the network globally as a firstmover in the industry to support Japanesecompanies entering overseas markets
Experiencing rapid growth during the country’s economic boom,
Japanese manufacturers accelerated their international
expansion, spurred on by the strong yen in the wake of the
Plaza Accord of 1985. Despite the necessity for constantprocurement of quality steel materials in order to build factories
and start production in South East Asia and other overseas
countries, Japanese firms found it difficult to purchase in thelocal markets where industries were not fully developed. Steelmanufacturers’ supply networks were not fully developed either,and it was Japanese general trading companies that played the
crucial role in satisfying their needs.
At first, most steels were procured in Japan and sent withother components to the overseas factories sites. However,with its firm belief that it is impossible to satisfy customer needs
promptly without an operation near the customer, theSumitomo Corporation Group made an early move to establish
coil centers outside of Japan. After participating in the
management of a local Singaporean company in 1977, wedeveloped coil centers in Malaysia and Indonesia in the next
few years. As Japanese companies expanded their overseas
production bases in the region, our coil center network also
expanded into Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, and other

Locations of steel
service centers

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

14

ASEAN countries. In the 1990s, we also entered China, which
had started to open up to foreign investment.
The establishment of these coil centers allowed us to offer
a timely supply of high-quality steel products to customers’ local
factories. At the same time, we also started to use our
integrated strengths to support Japanese companies inestablishing overseas factories and subsidiaries. Through these
activities, we became an indispensable partner for many
Japanese companies with new or expanding international
operations. It should also be noted that corporate Japan’s active
transfer of production bases into its Asian neighbors promoted
rapid industrial development in the host countries, playing amajor role in the growth of Asian economies.
In this way, the Sumitomo Corporation Group andJapanese manufacturers worked hand in hand to achieve
successful overseas expansion and this contributed to theeconomic development of the countries in which Japanese

Stakeholder’s Voice

production facilities are located. Moving forward, we willcontinue aggressively to make strategic investments in emerging
markets with growth potential.

Evolving from coil centers to steel service
centers as a result of our constant efforts to
add higher value to meet customer needs
While constantly expanding its network, our coil center businessalso focused on upgrading and expanding its functions to meetits customers’ evolving needs.
Our processing facilities were initially limited to providing
standard functions, such as levelers for processing coiled steel
into flat steel sheet, and slitters for cutting steel sheet to thesizes specified by customers. As customer needs became morediversified and complex, we upgraded the existing facilities inorder to offer products in a greater variety of sizes and also

Sumitomo Spirits

Working to meet growing demand in the
Chinese market, we look to the Sumitomo
Corporation Group’s advanced support

With experience in managing an overseas groupcompany at a young age,
I would like to realize my childhood dream

Our company was established in 1994
as a local production base to supply
sophisticated Japanese high-quality
products to the Chinese home electricalappliances market, which is seeing a
rapid growth in demand in tandem withthe country’s economic development. As
our business relationship with Sumitomo
Corporation Group’s SSC dates back to
Mr.Cai Ting Wei
our establishment, the operations theManager, Purchasing Dept.
Group offers are indispensable for our
Panasonic Home
business. Among the Group’s strengths,
Appliances Microwave
Oven (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
we particularly value their language
proficiency. Because we can discusseven technical matters in Chinese with
the SSC’s Japanese staff members, wefeel that our requests have been heard
correctly and will receive a prompt response. We will continue to
expect much from the characteristic cost competitiveness,
operational quality, and manufacturing capabilities of the SSC,
which performs the combined functions of a supply center and aprocessing factory.

My father worked at a trading company, andso I spent part of my childhood overseas
and wanted to become an international
businessperson and work for the economic
development of developing countries. I
joined Sumitomo Corporation to realize thisdream. However, becoming a senior
manager at an overseas group company
while still in my thirties was beyond my
Tomio Okada
expectations and I felt a lot of pressure
President & CEO
initially. A milestone came in the second
Shanghai Summit Metal
Products Co., Ltd.
year, when the World Expo was held in
Shanghai Hi-Tec Metal
Shanghai. We developed a medium-term
Products Co., Ltd.
management plan and introduced a new HR
Assistant to General
Manager, International
system to address the rapid economic
Steel Sheet & Strip
growth spurred by the international
Business Dept., No. 1
exposition. Putting together the new planand the HR system was difficult, but this process allowed me to
get my policies and ideas understood by my local staff andcreate an ethos of working together to create a better company.
In the future, I also would like to expand my business fieldbeyond Shanghai and broaden my horizon even further.

15 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Project Report 1
COLUMNOur global efforts to strengthen workplace health and safety at SSCs
Measures for workplace health and safety are an indispensable element

each other, for instance by inviting local SSC employees to Japan andin the smooth operation of steel service centers. Should a serious

holding regional meetings for SSC employees who are in charge ofaccident occur, it would affect the trust we have built with our local staff

health and safety management in the region. These activities help ourand the neighboring communities, and disrupt the stable supply of steel.

SSC members

With this recognition in mind, the Sumitomo Corporation Groupembrace ourworks to ensure that all SSCs worldwide implement globally consistent,

workplace safety

world-class health and safety measures. Staffs dedicated to health andprinciples and policy

safety management visit each SSC to assess its operations and provide

and build a sense of

feedback and instructions for improvement. In addition, we provide

unity and teamwork

many opportunities for our SSC members to learn together and fromamong them.

started more advanced and complex processes such aspressing, blanking, and even manufacturing dies.
Our distribution capabilities have also been evolving. We
initially served as a warehouse for temporary storage withinventory adjustment and delivery schedule management
functions, and then started to offer financing and othertransaction-related support. In recent years, our offerings have
expanded to cover customers’ entire procurement operations,
ranging from inventory control and order placement managementaligned with production plans to order placement for secondary
processing tasks and other operational processes.
As a result of constantly adding to our functions to meetcustomer needs, our coil centers have developed into steel
service centers (SSCs), which are comprehensive distribution
and processing facilities.

Among those keys, we place particular importance on
character and interpersonal skills. Accordingly, we haveallocated dependable and experienced employees in their 50s
to the management of SSCs. However, considering the growing
size of our SSC network, which is planning to grow even further
in the future, we urgently need to train younger employees who
can assume management responsibilities for our SSCs. In
response, we started a training program to train future
managers for our overseas SSCs in 2010 for mid-level
employees in their 30s and 40s. In this one-month training
course offered twice a year, most instructors are employees
who have experience in managing our overseas groupcompanies. Participants can acquire the knowledge andknow-how necessary to manage an overseas SSC company
from these instructors’ own experience and expertise.
Managing an overseas SSC unit requires a spectrum ofknowledge ranging from the business practices of SSCs to labor
management, process management, business planning, budget
development, and compliance with local laws and regulations.
The managers must also have excellent characters andinterpersonal skills, which cannot be developed only by taking
the training course, in order to manage non-Japanese staff
members, who speak a different language and have a different
cultural background, and ensure smooth business operations.
While several employees who completed the training program
are managing some of our overseas SSCs, their experiencemaking hard decisions in top management will surely provide
the best training for developing their characters andinterpersonal skills.
We believe that overseas managerial experience will help
their professional growth and they will be able to build stronger
relationships with customers, enhance our SCC businessfurther, achieve more efficient resource allocation throughinnovation, and ultimately assist customers’ businesses witheven higher-quality support. We will strive to create a chain ofprogress toward the sustained growth of our Group, ourcustomers, and overall industrial communities.

Developing talented global players
for business growthWith a strong customer base that includes Japanese andinternational and local companies operating through 38
companies at 59 locations in 14 countries and regions aroundthe world, and boasting the industry’s largest total annual
production capacity of 7.6 million tons (2.3 million tons in Japanand 5.3 million tons overseas), our SSC operations havebecome a mainstay of the iron and steel business of our Group.
That being said, the SSC operation still needs to continue
upgrading and evolving in order to always satisfy customer
needs in a rapidly changing business environment. Important
keys for success in our continuous efforts to improve our SSCs
are: “operational capabilities” that offer a variety of functions;“network capabilities” that ensure collaboration within our
network and support adjustments in our customers’ global
production and production transfer; and “excellent character andinterpersonal skills,” or the ability to quickly identify and meetcustomer needs, develop and provide optimal support services,and build stronger relationships of trust with customers.

Workplace health and safety training

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201216

Mongolia

Oyu Tolgoi Mine

Project Report 2

Contributing to the development of Mongolia
through our mining equipment business
The Mongolian economy is continuing to grow rapidly, driven by the development of natural resources
such as copper, gold, and coal. Sumitomo Corporation has entered the Mongolian market as the firststep toward the global expansion of its mining equipment business. We were soon able to win a large
contract with the Oyu Tolgoi Mine, one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines. Behind thissuccess were the Group’s abundant skills and know-how built through its Canadian operations and thestrong trust between Sumitomo Corporation and the local communities built over many years by thecompany’s telecommunications and mobile phone business.
Social & Environmental
Context
Mongolia’s ambition to use its richunderground resources to achieve
economic growth

Need for after-sales service available
24/7 due to increased demand forconstruction equipment

17 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Capabilities toProvide Solutions

Goals for Social
Value Creation

Capabilities to create businesses
by building relationships of trustwith various partners

Supporting the development ofMongolia’s key industries through theconstruction equipment business

Skills and know-how to enableglobal expansions (Global Mining
Office operations)

Developing TM to become Mongolia’s
No.1 technical service company

Capabilities to develop and use
human resources who possess
advanced expertise

Promoting technical transfer and humanresources development which can make asignificant contribution to Mongolian society

Hiroto Fujiwara
Manager, Mining Equipment
Business Team
Construction Equipment Dept.,
No. 3

Winning a large contract to provide large
mining machines for one of the world’s largest
copper and gold mine projects
In Mongolia, a country with abundant underground resources,
many large mine development projects are currently underway.
Among them is the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine, located in
the South Gobi region, approximately 550 km south of thecapital, Ulaanbaatar.
The Oyu Tolgoi mine is one of the world’s largest
copper-gold mines, with copper reserves of 25 million tons andgold reserves of 1,000 tons. The mine with its estimated mine lifeof up to 59 years is under joint development by the Mongolian
government and Turquoise Hill Resources (formerly Ivanhoe
Mines), a Canada-based resources development company
whose majority shareholder is the resource giant Rio Tinto.
In June 2010, the mine project announced a large-scaletender for mining equipment. Among the several corporate
bidders, SMS Equipment (SMS-E), Sumitomo Corporation’s

Canadian subsidiary, won a contract in October 2010 throughits Mongolian subsidiary, Transwest Mongolia (TM), to provide
40 Komatsu large mining machines. In addition to the contract
price of 132 million dollars or approximately 10.9 billion yen, thislarge transaction was expected to generate additional constantrevenue from after-sales service.

The first step in the global expansion of
our mining equipment business
Sumitomo Corporation entered the mining equipment businessmarket in Mongolia in 2008. Hiroto Fujiwara, then generalmanager of Ulaanbaatar Office, heard some useful information
about the mining equipment business in the country from local
acquaintances and reported that information to the Construction& Mining Systems Division at Head Office. The report came at atime when the Division had just launched its Global Mining Office(GMO) to pursue the possibilities of operating our mining
equipment business globally.
After detailed discussions, the Division and the GMO
decided to expand into the Mongolian market as the first step inour global expansion, and started to make preparations inpartnership with Komatsu, the construction equipment
manufacturer. TM was established as a local subsidiary of
SMS-E in August 2009 to ensure that the new mining
equipment business would take root in the Mongolian market.
As a result, we succeeded in winning our first major mining
equipment contract in Mongolia for the Oyu Tolgoi mine project.

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201218

Success factors: our proven track recordin Canada and strong relationships oftrust with Mongolian stakeholders
The news that the Sumitomo Corporation Group, a newcomerwith substantially no record or history in the major mining
equipment business in Mongolia, acquired the contract with the
Oyu Tolgoi mine, winning out over competition that had a wealthof experience in the local market, came as a surprise andattracted a lot of attention. We believe the following three factors
led to our success.
The first was the competitiveness of the products
themselves. Rio Tinto, the core operator at Oyu Tolgoi, hadbeen using Komatsu’s mining equipment for many of its mining
projects around the world, and Rio Tinto had great confidence inthe performance and durability of Komatsu products.
The second factor was the customer’s trust andconfidence in our technical and service capabilities. Although it
had no experience in the Mongolian market, SMS-E, TM’sparent company, had abundant experience in sales of mining
and construction equipment in Canada. Highlights of its
proven track record also include product delivery andassembly in extreme weather conditions and 24/7 after-service
support and maintenance provision. Presumably, Rio Tinto, a
key customer of SMS-E, had confidence in TM because it is a
subsidiary of SMS-E.
And the third factor was the relationships of trust built
between Sumitomo Corporation and Mongolian stakeholders
over years in the telecommunications business. Since the1990s, we have been involved in many telecommunications andbroadcasting infrastructure development projects in the country.

Our local joint venture, MobiCom, makes a significant
contribution to local communities by working to increase the useof mobile phones and improving the telecommunications
environment, as well as by creating jobs and developing relatedindustries. The deep trust we earned through these efforts no
doubt led to local stakeholders trusting TM.

Training Mongolian staff for the mining
equipment business
After the successful bid, TM immediately started to assemble
the manpower needed to do the work, which involved delivery
and assembly of 40 mining machines at the site in Gobi Desert
by the agreed dates and continuous provision of 24/7
maintenance and other after-sales services.
The transportation, assembly, and maintenance of large
mining equipment require the expertise of skilled engineers andmechanics. Making the most of the human network of SMS-E’s
management, we recruited 40 international experts from theindustry and sent them to TM. We also hired many local
individuals with some experience in handling mining equipment.
Hiring skilled mining technicians was not easy because of
the resource development boom. In response, TM had started
to train Mongolian workers even before they won the contract.
Specifically, the company established a special course at
the state-run Mongolian University of Science and Technology(MUST) in September 2010. On the course, which was
designed to train specialist engineers and mechanics in themining equipment field, TM’s professionals explain thetechnologies involved in mining equipment and provide practicaltraining in how to assemble and maintain the machines. In

Stakeholder’s Voice
Joy of training successful engineers
in Mongolia
I am teaching welding techniques at theTranswest Mongolia Training Institute(TMTI). TMTI is a vocational training
center registered with the Mongolian
government and provides training in thefields of mechanical, electrical, andwelding engineering. All the training
programs at TMTI are designed inaccordance with the Australian
Mr.Khishigbayar
Qualification Framework (AQF), a set of
LundegInstructor
training standards highly rated by(welding engineer)international mining technical training
Transwest Mongolia
Training Institute (TMTI)
facilities. It gives me great pleasure toknow that through my work I can help
young students grow into skilled engineers
who will be the future of Mongolia.

19 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Want to become a skilled professional mechanicfor heavy duty equipment and contribute to mycountry’s development
I joined TMTI in March 2012 and am taking
a training course with 37 classmates tobecome a heavy duty machine mechanic.
During the first year at TMTI, we participatedin a 12-week program in the classroom tolearn technical English, technical drawing,
how to repair engineering components, andother skills and then received on-site training
at Oyu Tolgoi. Upon completion of four
years of training at TMTI, we will become
certified Komatsu engineers. I will continue
to work hard to learn English and technicalskills toward my goal of becoming aprofessional mechanic for heavy machinery.
I look forward to contributing my skills to thedevelopment of my country.

Mr.Battushig
Togtokhbayar
Trainee (mechanic)
Transwest Mongolia
Training Institute (TMTI)Project Report 2
COLUMN

MobiCom Class for building grassroots friendships with future leaders of Mongolia
MobiCom Class is an informal gathering of Japanese-speaking people inand talk with business people in person, something they cannot do in

Ulaanbaatar, started in 2007 by Hiroto Fujiwara, then general manager of

their university classes.

Sumitomo Corporation’s Ulaanbaatar Office, as a personal and voluntary
activity in collaboration with local Japanese teachers. After he returned toJapan, employees who have been transferred to MobiCom have been
continuing his grassroots project.
In this monthly evening event, Mongolian students get together in a
meeting room at the MobiCom office to talk in Japanese about Japan andMongolia, on subjects ranging from society to business to culture, andfrom time to time to listen to talks given by guest speakers. Sometimes as
many as 50 students from five universities in the country join the meetingand take part in the active discussion. The MobiCom Class iswell-received by participants, who appreciate the opportunity to listen to

MobiCom Class

March 2011, immediately before shipping the equipment, TM
launched a large training center with a wealth of training
equipment in Ulaanbaatar to provide even more practicaltraining for the trainees.
Thirty trainees who completed the course at MUST in
November 2011 started work at the Oyu Tolgoi mine in 2012.

Supporting Mongolia’s core industry as
the No.1 technical service provider

Accelerating technology transfer toward
the goal of a company managed andoperated only by Mongolians
Meanwhile, TM had to cope with a ceiling on foreign workers in
the workforce, which is imposed on companies in Mongolia,
with different percentages being applied to different industry
sectors. TM’s quota was five percent. This means that TM, withits 40 foreign engineers, had to employ at least 760 Mongolians.
The requirement was financially untenable, since recruiting andtraining that number of employees was impracticable.
We therefore started negotiating with the Mongolian
government to solve the problem. The negotiations made little
progress at first. We continued to explain patiently that the main
purpose of hiring foreign technical staff was technical transfer
and that it would not take employment opportunities away fromlocal workers and that we intended to increase therepresentation of Mongolian employees in TM’s workforce to100% eventually. As a result, we were able to obtain special
permission from the government for TM to be exempt from theforeign workforce rule.

Overcoming those bumps on the road, TM completed deliveryof all the mining equipment ordered by the end of June 2012,
which was the original deadline. Currently, the company issupporting full-scale mining operations at Oyu Tolgoi with its
after-sales services.
As its next target, the company is also working to win acontract to provide mining and construction equipment for theTavan Tolgoi coal mine, located in southern Mongolia. This coalmine project, involving the construction of peripheral facilities
such as a railway and a thermal power plant, is anticipated to
become the largest in Mongolian history.
To win the order, TM must maintain and even enhance thequality of its after-sales services and build a good track recordand reputation in the Mongolian market. The Sumitomo
Corporation Group will of course continue to focus on humanresources development and educational support to train
individuals who can play their part in the development of TM andother Mongolian organizations.
Our future goal is to make TM the No. 1 mining equipment
technical services provider in Mongolia, mirroring the strong
leadership position that SMS-E holds in Canada, and continue
to support the development of the country’s core industry formany years to come.

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201220

Project Report 3

Promoting an efficient collection and recycling system
for used plastic bottles that helps to build
a recycling-oriented society
As more and more waste is being generated in Japan today, waste disposal facilities are approaching
their full capacity and we must use finite resources more effectively. To address these issues, morewaste recycling needs to be introduced. Sumitomo Corporation is involved in the collection andrecycling of used PET plastic bottles in Japan in partnership with the world’s leading company withexpertise and a proven track record in this area. With our unique strengths as a trading company,
including extensive networks and advanced business model creation capabilities, we work to develop a
more efficient system to collect and recycle used beverage containers and ultimately help build a
recycling-oriented society.
Social & Environmental
Context
Increased volume of waste plastic bottles;
high costs of waste collection,
storage, and transportation;
drain of recycled materials to overseas markets
Need for an efficient waste collection
and recycling system in Japan
Need for a mechanism to allow domestic
use of recyclable resources in Japan

21 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Capabilities toProvide Solutions

Goals for Social
Value Creation

Extensive networks in theindustrial community

Building a recycling-oriented society

Capabilities to coordinate
among stakeholders(Ability to build partnerships)

Building an efficient collection andrecycling system for supermarkets

Capabilities to create a win-win-win
business model beneficial to all
stakeholders involved

Creating a business model topromote the collection andrecycling of waste PET bottles

Daisuke Fujii
Executive Vice President
Tomra Japan Ltd.
Assistant to General Manager
Environmental Solution
Business Dept.

Launching a used PET bottle collection andrecycling business in Japan in partnershipwith a world leader
Due to their many advantages, that include being lightweight,
durable, easy-to-process, and hygienic, polyethylene terephthalate(PET) bottles are widely used as beverage containers and theirproduction is growing year by year. At the same time, thevolume of used PET bottles being disposed of is growing eachyear. For this reason, developing a more efficient collection andrecycling system has become a social issue.
Tomra Systems ASA (Tomra), a Norwegian company
founded in 1972, promotes efficient recycling systems throughits proprietary reverse vending machines (RVMs) for automatedcollection of used PET bottles and other beverage containers.
Tomra’s RVMs are used in more than 50 countries around theworld, mainly in Europe and North America, holding over 80% of
the worldwide market.
Tomra traditionally operated in countries with deposit
systems, where a refund is given for the return of a used
container. As those countries represent only 15% of the world
beverage market, the company, whose mission is to create
sensor-based solutions for optimal resource productivity, waslooking to expand into other countries that do not have deposit
systems. And they selected Japan as their first target market.
Tomra found that there would be a lot of growth potential for
its RVMs in Japan, because with recycling-conscious consumers
and one of the highest PET bottle collection rates in the world,
the country was facing the costly storage and transportation ofenormous volumes of used containers collected.
Tomra started its operations in Japan in 2001, but had adifficult time. To sell RVMs in this new market, they had toapproach many organizations, such as municipalities whichcollect and separate used plastic bottles, manufacturers
engaged in the recycling business, and the national government
formulating and regulating legislation on waste collection andrecycling. While they were looking for a partner who has astrong and extensive network in the public and business sectors
in Japan, they learned about Sumitomo Corporation, which was
exploring opportunities to expand its environmental businesses.

That was the beginning of the creative and original green
partnership between Tomra and Sumitomo Corporation, making
the most of the synergy created by Tomra’s unique technologies
and abundant experience in PET bottle collection and recycling
and Sumitomo Corporation’s extensive networks and advanced
business model creation capabilities.

Building an innovative collection andrecycling system, delivering benefit to all
the parties involved
After forming a partnership in 2004, Sumitomo Corporation andTomra established a joint venture, Tomra Japan Ltd. to launch
full-scale operations in the Japanese market in July 2008.
Meanwhile, the parties participated in separate research
projects by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)
and the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) to explore how bestused PET bottles could be collected and recycled in Japan.
Based on the results of the research projects, the joint venture
focused its attention on large commercial facilities such as
supermarkets. Japanese consumers usually rinse used PET
bottles with water and remove the caps and packaging film
before putting them into collection bins. Tomra Japan thought
by installing RVMs at supermarkets that consumers visit on adaily basis, clean used PET bottles suitable for recycling could
be collected efficiently in large numbers.
This system provides consumers with an additional means
to dispose of used PET bottles, supplementing the role of theregular collection service offeredby municipalities. It also allows
municipalities to reduce the costs
involved because thecollection and transportationof used bottles is outsourced
to the retailers participating inthe system. For retailers,
joining the system will resultin them seeing theircustomers coming back to
Flaked PET bottles processed with
an RVM
visit more often.

COLUMN

Recycling system for PET bottles using RVMs
RVMs, Tomra’s original invention, automatically separate
waste PET bottles with an internal sensor and compact themat high speed to reduce the volume to one-eighth. In this way,
the machines eliminate the need for manual separation andrequire a smaller storage space and lower collection andtransportation costs.
RVMs also award points which can be redeemed when
shopping and offer other features to encourage consumers toreturn used PET bottles for recycling.

Reverse vending machine (RVM)
Collecting used containers at stores/shopping arcades
Direct transportation
by truck

Diagram of the
new recycling system
Users
Producingrecycled
products

Factory producing
recycled products

Turning waste
containers into
flakes/pellets

Recycling
factory

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201222

Project Report 3

In addition, the system enables the collection ofhigh-quality used containers in large quantities and thereby
contributes to increasing the value of those used bottles asrecycled resources. Due to profitability concerns, the used PET
bottles collected are often exported to China and otheroverseas markets with lower recycling costs, which has raised
concerns over the flow of recyclable resources overseas. To
address this issue, Tomra Japan is using Sumitomo
Corporation’s capabilities to provide solutions and working toestablish a scheme to provide clean used containers torecycling vendors in Japan, who will then produce recycled
products, such as PET bottles and food trays, with greater
value added.
As a result of actively promoting this innovative collection
and recycling system which delivers benefits to all the parties
involved, in 2006 Tomra Japan entered into a contract with
Adachi City, Tokyo, to collect used PET bottles. The company
has been making steady progress since then, including thelaunch of a scheme to install RVMs at supermarkets in theSeven & i Group in 2012.

Promoting easy and fun recycling activities tohelp build a recycling-oriented society
Since its establishment in 2008, Tomra Japan has installed morethan 400 RVMs in Japan to date, and is currently working
actively to achieve the goal of 3,000 units by fiscal 2015.
To accelerate the expansion of the business, the company
would like to see the creation of a legal framework to promote
the collection and recycling of waste containers. To this end,

Tomra Japan is actively engaged in information exchange
activities with related regulators, such as METI and MOE, and is
working to build a convincing track record as a trustworthysocial system.
Revision of the Containers and Packaging Recycling Law isplanned in 2013. A revised law encouraging the use of a wider
variety of means of collecting used containers and packaging,for instance collection at retail stores, in addition to the existing
regular collection by municipalities, would add a strong tailwind
to our efforts to expand our business.
We believe that collecting and recycling used PET bottles
through RVMs will appeal to consumers’ at times unconscious
desire to contribute to environmental conservation, and thus willencourage them to participate in recycling activities more
actively. With this recognition, we provide and participate inawareness-raising and education programs for building a
recycling-oriented society.
RVMs help consumers, children and adults alike, to learn
about recycling. In fact, recycling demonstrations at stores
often attract long lines of visitors. In September 2012, we also
supported a family bus
tour organized by Fuchu
City, Tokyo, in which
participants gathered at astore with RVMs andvisited a recycling factory.
We will continue to offer
various opportunities tohelp raise publicawareness of recycling.
Recycling demonstration at a store

Stakeholder’s Voice
We hope to see the development of an evenmore advanced recycling system based on
Adachi City’s initiatives

Together with a trustworthy partner, we will
create a recycling system that can serve as amodel for the future

Adachi City has introduced Tomra
Japan’s recycling system in a bid toaddress the sluggish increase in thevolume of used PET bottles collected
and to respond to citizens’ growing
environmental awareness. The system
launched under the Adachi Eco Network
Project offers the citizens of our city theopportunity to have fun participating in
Mr.Teruo Ota
environmental activities. After installingManager of the Reduce
RVMs, some stores collect more than
Waste Promotion Section
Environmental Department
7,000 used PET bottles a day, which is
Adachi city
far more than the city’s regularcollection service.
This project is widely recognized as an exemplary case of thepartnership between the local government, a private sector
company, and citizens. It was commended by the Ministry of
the Environment for promoting the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse,
Recycle) in the category of containers and packaging in 2007.
We hope Tomra Japan will create an even more efficient
recycling system in the future based on the experience andknow-how gained from this project in Adachi City.

We have long been collecting used PET
bottles as part of our customer service
and as part of our activities as a
responsible retailer. To expand thisinitiative across the entire group
nationwide, we decided to adopt Tomra
Japan’s system, mainly because of thecompany’s excellent proposal
development capabilities, as well as the
Mr.Tatsuro Nagai
attractiveness of the system itself.
Environment Management
Through its proposals, we were able
Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.
to see the company’s capabilities ofproviding solutions to on-the-groundissues, its aspiration to establish a resource recycling systemfor domestic consumption, and its ability to make thearrangements needed to turn this aspiration into a reality. In
addition, the stable operation and sincere attitude toward
stores and shoppers that they demonstrated at the project in
Adachi City, in which some of our Group stores participated,gave us a lot of confidence in them. We look forward to seeing
this start-up project become a basic model for future recycling
systems in Japan.

23 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Together with Customers▶ p.25

Together with
Stakeholders
The Sumitomo Corporation Group aims to achieve
prosperity and realize dreams of all its stakeholders,such as shareholders, investors, customers,
suppliers, business partners, and employees, as wellas the broader society including the global
environment, through sound business activities.
In this section, we illustrate through specific examples
how we work with our stakeholders to promote andoperate CSR activities.

Together with Business Partners▶ p.26

Together with Employees▶ p.27

Together with Society▶ p.29Together with the Global
Environment▶ p.33

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201224

Together with Stakeholders

Together with Customers
While we at the Sumitomo Corporation Group are engaged in various business-to-business (B-to-B) transactions as anintegrated trading company, we also focus on business-to-consumers (B-to-C) businesses, such as TV shopping andsupermarket businesses. With rigorous systems in place that are compliant with global standards, we act as a responsible
consumer business operator to provide safe and reliable products and satisfying shopping experiences for our customers.

Building customers’ confidence in
our TV shopping business

Establishing world-class reliability ineverything from customer contact
to personal information protection
Jupiter Shop Channel Co., Ltd., the operator of Japan’s largest TV
shopping channel, aims to deliver “heart-pounding moments ofdelight” to customers everyday by leveraging its strengths—productcompetitiveness, program competitiveness, and operational
competitiveness.
As part of its efforts to enhance consumer confidence in Shop
Channel and the overall direct marketing industry, the company
became one of the first Japanese retailers to adopt ISO 10002*1 inJune 2008. In accordance with the international standard, the TV
shopping leader has established a mechanism for listening tocustomers and incorporating their feedback into its merchandise, TV
program, and customer service. In May 2012, the company also
formulated its code of conduct following ISO 10001*2, which includes
rules on returning products with a defect or other problems.
To ensure the appropriate handling of customers’ personal
information, the company has also built a personal information
protection and management system based on JISQ 15001*3 andobtained certifications in related areas.
10002*1 : ISOInternational standard regarding the basic principles, frameworks, and processes of

Listening and valuing customers’ opinions

Adopting a consumer tester
program in
our supermarket operations
Summit, Inc., which operates a supermarket chain in and aroundTokyo, launched a consumer tester program in 1978 to better reflect
customers’ opinions and requests into its store operations.
Under this system, usually 2 stores are selected every year to join
the program and about 10 customers of each store are asked to takeconsumer tester activities. More than 1,000 customers have taken
part to date. In a monthly testers’ meeting, the top management of
Summit meet with and listen to the testers in person, enabling thecompany to take action to address the issues and requests raised.
For instance, the supermarket chain has recently introduced covered
showcases for breads, prepared meals, and other unwrapped
products to eliminate customer concerns over hygiene quality of those
products on uncovered shelves. This is one of many improvements
made from a customer perspective.
The New Product Popularity Contest is another example of ourefforts to communicate closely with customers. In the competition
event, items voted most popular by consumer testers receive awards,
and the award-winning new products are publicized to a broader
customer base.

complaint handling, based on which Japan’s JISQ 10002 was formulated.

10001*2 : ISOInternational standard providing guidance for developing and publishing codes ofconduct designed to take fair and prompt action in the event of a problem occurring
to a product or service delivered, and thereby reducing customer complaints.

15001*3 : JISQ
Japan’s national standard specifying requirements for personal information
protection and management systems.

Call center of Jupiter Shop Channel Co., Ltd.

25 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Consumer testers’ meeting at Summit, Inc.

Together with Stakeholders

Together with Business Partners
The Sumitomo Corporation Group operates a wide range of projects around the world in collaboration with like-minded
partners who share values such as philosophies, principles, aspirations, and ways of thinking.
With those business partners, we build and maintain strong relationships of trust and work together to fulfill our social
responsibilities. To this end, we maintain a fair and wholesome attitude toward business, which include the implementationof strict health, safety, and environment (HSE) management measures.

Building strong partnerships with the world’s leading firms

Rigorous HSE management in a power
plant expansion project in Indonesia
Building electricity infrastructures bolstering
Indonesia’s economic growth
In Indonesia, a country facing a chronic shortage of power that comeswith continuous economic growth, Sumitomo Corporation has been
engaged in power infrastructure businesses from thermal to hydro togeothermal power for more than 30 years, contributing to the stablesupply of electricity in the country.
Under the continued tight electricity demand-supply situation
anticipated, we have implemented an expansion project from 2008 to2012 to double the power generation capacity of the Tanjung Jati B
coal-fired thermal power plant (TJB), operated by our group’s
wholly-owned local subsidiary, P.T. Central Java Power.
In this expansion project, we engaged Fichtner to act as thein-house engineer, who supported our engineering and project
management functions, and the globally renowned German
engineering company and Sumitomo Corporation worked as a team.
Meanwhile, we contracted with Japanese and international companies
who are world-class, leading players in their respective fields tomanufacture and install steam turbines, power generators, boilers,
and the balance of plant.

Earning the trust of partners with
our leadership role in HSE management
Successful implementation of such a large-scale project with the
involvement of many project partners such as equipment
manufacturers and construction companies requires solid

Safety management training (fire-fighting drill)

management of all the project activities, paying keen attention to
health, safety, and environment. Without the assurance of a soundand healthy working environment at the manufacturing and installationsites, our business partners and local communities cannot trust us,which makes smooth implementation of the project difficult.
With this recognition in mind, equipment which met and evenexceeded applicable environmental standards was installed and amost effective environmental conservation plan was established.
A safety management team was also assembled with competentpersons from partner companies. These HSE management efforts
were led by Sumitomo Corporation itself, rather than being delegatedentirely to Fichtner. Take site worker management for example. As theprime contractor, Sumitomo Corporation demonstrated its
commitment to safety-first and environmentally conscious
implementation by establishing a rigorous internal control system
where schedule expediting managers and safety managers haveclearly separate roles and responsibilities. As a result, all thecompanies engaged in the project were united, with shared values, inproceeding with the project, giving their fullest attention to HSE
management. The outcome: project completion three months earlier
than scheduled, which is an outstanding outcome for this kind oflarge-scale power construction business, without any HSE-related
problems causing a serious interruption of project progress.
After the completion of the expansion project, TJB boasts a total
power generation capacity of 2,640 MW, supplying electricity to meetsome 13% of the peak power demand in the Java-Bali Grid, indicating
TJB’s position as a major power station in the country.

Safety management training (rescue drill)

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201226

Together with Stakeholders

Together with Employees
The Sumitomo Corporation Group believes that employees are the greatest asset of a company, and that the true value of theGroup is represented by an aggregate of the capabilities and experiences of individual Group employees around the world,
including locally hired employees working in overseas offices and group companies.
With this firm belief, our human resource management focuses on the development of employees who practice SC VALUES*1
with a good understanding of the Group’s Management Principles and Activity Guidelines. With each and every employee’s
strengths combined, we will create new values and achieve our aspiration to “Be the Best, Be the One.”*1. SC VALUES:SC VALUES embody the core behavior based on our Management Principles and Activity Guidelines expected of all members of the Sumitomo Corporation Group.

Human resource management
at Sumitomo Corporation
Recruitment policy with respect
for basic human rights
As a global business operator, we look for talents who are able to andeager to work in the global business arena. To this end, we conduct
fair recruitment activities with respect for basic human rights and nodiscrimination. Specifically, we apply the same screening process toall employee candidates, irrespective of their gender, academic
background, or nationality, and our selection criteria consist only of
applicants’ aptitudes and abilities.
In addition to new graduates, we recruit mid-career employees on
an ongoing basis, since attracting talents who can deliver results fromday one forms part of our HR strategy. We also welcome many
employees with disabilities: as of March 31, 2012, employees withdisabilities represent 2.08% of our workforce, a higher percentage
than the statutorily required level of 1.80%.

HR statistics
We provide a quality working environment that allows employees
to work comfortably and perform to the best of their potential.

The number of new employees and breakdown■ Female■ Male(People)

300
250

93

200
150

72

100
50
0

122

51

11

22

172

■ Mid-career■ New graduates

83
167

2007

209

195

48

105 131

123

2008

7

10
10

36

2009

152

111

2010

2011 (Fiscal Year)

Note: Number of new graduates employed in fiscal 2012: 186 (including 69 women)

Ratio of male to female employees (as of March 31, 2012)

Developing global talent
To achieve sustained growth, it is important for the Sumitomo
Corporation Group to develop and execute business strategies and
HR strategies in an integrated manner and recruit, develop, and utilize
talented individuals who can contribute to our global operations, fromboth medium- and long-term perspectives. In line with this vision, we
have been continuously providing training programs for specific careerlevels or job titles to locally hired employees in our overseas offices
and group companies for more than 10 years. Every year, more than
300 Group employees visit the Tokyo Head Office to take training
programs designed for their respective career levels. In line with ourfurther expansions into growth markets, we also have a greaternumber of employees train overseas, primarily to learn Chinese,
Russian, Spanish and other languages.

Strengthening HR management on a companywide level under the f(x) management plan
The current Medium-term Management Plan, “f(x),” for the period
from fiscal 2011 calls for strengthening human resource management
on a company-wide level as one of the four key actions. Based on thismanagement plan, we are focusing our efforts to strengthen our
recruitment and development of global talent and conducting strategic
placement of human resources on a company-wide level.

27 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

21.6%
4,063

■ Male■ Female

1,122

0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
Note: The numbers above include fixed-term employees.

5,000

6,000
(People)Average employee turnover rate in fiscal 2011

2.87%

Number of employees left the company in fiscal 2011: 152
Total number of employees as of April 1, 2011: 5,302

Overseas employees by region (as of March 31, 2012)(Units: people)

Locally hired

Hired by Head Office

Total

China

489

66

555

Asia

894

145

1,039

Middle East

219

42

261

Europe

333

100

433

Africa59

13

72

North America

275

120

395

South and Central America

192

26

218

Oceania

61

18

79

Total

2,522

530

3,052

Note: Employees temporarily assigned to group companies are not included in
the above figures.

Strengthening the development of global talentOpening of a new training facility,
Sumitomo Corporation Global
HRD Center
In March 2012, Sumitomo Corporation Global HRD Center wascompleted in Ginza, Tokyo, near our Tokyo Head Office. The new
training center serves as a training center to develop global talent andas a strategic multi-purpose facility. As a training center, we use thiscenter to strengthen our human resources development across theentire Group worldwide and to encourage our diversified humanresources management. The
facility also provides amultipurpose and versatile
space, supplementing Head
Office functions. In thistraining center—designed topromote active
communication among users
by, for instance, housing“communication rooms” withdifferent room design
themes for different
floors—we expect to see our
global colleagues fromaround the world,
irrespective of organizationor country, meeting forintensive discussions on the
future visions and strategies
of our Group.
Sumitomo Corporation Global HRD Center

Sumitomo Corporation Group and what is required for participants toplay a positive role in the company’s global operations.

Sumitomo Global Excellence Program at IMD

Developing human resources of theGroup on a global basis

Providing e-learning programs
globally at SBC
Sumisho Business College (SBC), a company-wide training program
started in fiscal 2001, offers a range of mandatory courses for
specific career levels or job titles, as well as theme-based, or
skills-based practical programs. More than 15,000 employees eachyear take these training sessions to acquire necessary businessknowledge and skills.
SBC offers training programs in two formats: on-site grouptraining and e-learning. To meet the growing needs for the training of
locally hired employees of our overseas offices and group companies,
some of the e-learning programs are being made available in English
from fiscal 2012. To further strengthen our human resources
development on a global basis, we will continue offering learning tools
in English to help employees learn about trading practices, risk
management and other knowledge and skills which are commonly
required to work in an integrated trading company.

Developing future executives
who will lead the growth of the Group

Offering Sumitomo Executive Management Program and other growth
opportunities for future executives
Aiming to develop employees who can lead the sustained growth of
the Sumitomo Corporation Group, Sumitomo Executive Management
Program was launched in 2009 to help participants acquire necessary
management knowledge and skills, always think in terms of the big
picture, and develop their management principles and vision.
In line with our further global expansion, participants on the
program also attend a one-week training course at IMD, a businessschool in Switzerland. Locally hired employees of our overseas offices
and group companies also attend the made-to-order training course
developed by Sumitomo Corporation and IMD. Discussing with otherparticipants in English such themes as business model innovation andglobal leadership provides participants with a great opportunity tothink seriously about what constitutes the globalization of the

English version of our e-learning program

Please refer to the following websites to learn more about ourhuman resources management and work-life balance initiatives:
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/company/
management_policy/talent/index.html
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/wlb/
index.html

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201228

Together with Stakeholders

Together with Society
The Sumitomo Corporation Group, as a global organization, conducts social contribution activities
in many countries and regions around the world while working to further strengthen its relationships with local
stakeholders in consideration of the unique social conditions of each community.

1

5

2

6

7
3
2012 BFP
2002 Y.O/S

8

4

In Europe, CIS,Middle East and Africa● Supporting Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre (UK)● Supporting Centrepoint to help young homeless people (UK)● Working with a local NGO to help children with disabilities to attend

school (Romania) 1● Supporting indigenous people as part of the timber business with
Terneyles (Russia) 2● Supporting Japanese speech contests (Russia, Ukraine,
Kazakhstan)● Participating in a tree-planting event organized by a local NGO:
“Bought a car? Plant a tree!” (Ukraine) 3● Donating a piano to Istanbul Japanese School (Turkey) p.32
● Supporting events celebrating the 40th anniversary of theestablishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and
Qatar (Qatar)● Supporting demining activities (Angola) p.32
● Supporting infrastructure and health care improvements for the local
community as part of the Ambatovy Nickel Mine project(Madagascar) 4

29 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

In Japan● Providing long-term assistance for recovery from the Great East

Japan Earthquake p.35

● Supporting the Junior Philharmonic Orchestra● Promoting “barrier-free” movies

56● An annual local clean-up activity “CLEAN UP OUR TOWN” by

J:COM, a cable TV operator 7● Donating clothes and other goods to social welfare facilities andbazaars to support international students● Organizing events for local residents hosted by commercial

complexes of the Sumitomo Corporation Group 8● Supporting vocational training for people with disabilities● Blood donation campaigns to support the Japanese Red

Cross Society● Supporting environmental NPOs and NGOs through donations to

Keidanren Nature Conservation Fund and World Wide Fund for
Nature (WWF)● Workplace tours and work experience programs for students andlocal residents● Collecting and donating used stamps, prepaid cards, and PET
bottle caps
● Supporting TABLE FOR TWO activities

The Sumitomo Corporation
Group’s Basic Principles on
Social Contribution Activities

OBJECTIVE

We, as a global organization, will work on social issues through our business activities and social
contribution activities with the aim of building a sustainable society by implementing the Sumitomo
Corporation Group’s Management Principles and Activity Guidelines.

ACTIVITIESWe will engage in social contribution activities aimed at developing the next generation of human resources
who will drive the sustainable development of society, and contributing to local communities in areas we dobusiness all over the world. We will also take part in various activities as a good corporate citizen.

APPROACH

We will perform and seek to continuously improve our activities with modesty and high aspirations andendeavor to maintain a high level of transparency while strengthening our relationships with all our
stakeholders.

9

14

10

15

11

12
16

13

In Asia and Oceania● Sumitomo Corporation Scholarship to help university students in

Asia (various Asian countries) 9● Internship programs, work experience programs, and office tours forstudents (various Asian countries) 10● Courses bearing the Sumitomo Corporation name at Tsinghua
University (Beijing) and Nankai University (Tianjin) in China, andHanoi National Economics University and Foreign Trade University in
Hanoi, Vietnam● Helping children in poverty-stricken areas in Yunnan, Anhui andGuangdong provinces finish school (China)● Supporting programs of study tours to Japan for Chinese university
students (China)● Hosting Japanese-speaking gatherings, MobiCom Class(Mongolia) p.20
● Supporting Japan-Korea Exchange Festival (South Korea) 11● Donating school uniforms and school supplies to elementary school
students (Myanmar) p.32
● Supporting educational and health care improvements for local
communities as part of the Tanjung Jati B coal fired power plant
project and the Batu Hijau Mine (copper, gold) project (Indonesia)● Japanese language education and culture learning for junior highschool students (Vietnam) 12● Supporting educational and infrastructure improvements for local
communities as part of overseas industrial park development
projects (the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam) 13● Donation to The Warren Centre for Advanced Engineering
guaranteed by the University of Sydney (Australia)

17

In Americas● Supporting various programs and events to celebrate the 100th

anniversary of Japan’s donation of cherry trees (US)● Supporting the Center on Japanese Economy and Business,

Columbia Business School (US) 14● Support for organizing Japan Day, an event to showcase Japaneseculture (US) 15● Supporting the efforts to develop a cure for leukemia, Alzheimer’s,and other diseases (US)● Supporting art museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art,

the Lincoln Center, and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) (US)● Supporting Toys for Tots program to give toys to underprivilegedchildren (US) 16● Supporting The First Tee of Columbian Basin, a youth development

program providing educational programs and life-enhancing values
through the game of golf (US) 17● Supporting areas affected by catastrophic hurricanes in the Southand Midwest (US)● Acting as a good corporate neighbor in the San Cristobal Mine
project (Bolivia) p.31

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201230

Together with Stakeholders

Together with Society
Building harmonious relationships withlocal communities

Acting as a good corporateneighbor in our mine projectin Bolivia
Keen recognition of our responsibilities
to the local community in which we operate

Construction of a large environmental
protection facility on our own initiative

Sumitomo Corporation has been participating in the San Cristobal
Mine project in Bolivia, one of the world’s richest countries innatural resources reserves, since 2006. We produce lead andzinc concentrates through its wholly-owned group company,
Minera San Cristobal (MSC).
Operating such a large-scale project overseas requires due
consideration to local communities and the surrounding
environment to achieve sustainable growth together with thecommunities.
MSC pursues the strategic goal of fulfilling its social
responsibility to the local community in which it operates, andmaintaining a sound workplace environment during, and evenafter, its operation. To protect the surrounding environment, MSC
periodically monitors the mine’s impact on the environment andmakes the necessary improvements when needed, so that thecompany can ensure the use of natural resources in an efficient,rational and sustainable manner while complying with theregulations on six environmental factors: the quality of air, water,soil, noises, plants and animals, and socioeconomic conditions.

Dust control is one of the most important environmental measures
for a mine project, particularly for the San Cristobal Mine, which islocated 4,000 meters above sea level and often exposed to strong
winds of 35 to 40 meters per second. To prevent dust at themining site spread in the air, MSC constructed Bolivia’s first dust
control dome in September 2011.
The dome, 140 meters in diameter and 59 meters in height, isthe largest of its kind in South America. MSC followed its
safety-first policy and completed the construction with zeroaccidents, while the construction process was temporarilysuspended due to strong winds, resulting in a later-than-scheduled
completion date.
Praising this environmental measure by MSC, which built adome costing more than 10 million dollars on its own initiative, thelocal governor at the completion ceremony said, “With this dome
completed, people in the neighboring areas can enjoy clean air
without concerns. We hope the other mines will follow theexample of San Cristobal Mine with appropriate environmental
management activities.”

Monitoring water level and quality

Bolivia’s first dust control dome

31 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Contributing to Japan-Turkey cultural exchange

Donating a piano to
Istanbul Japanese School
Aiming to maintain harmonious relationships with the local communities,
Sumitomo Corporation Dis Ticaret A.S. is engaged in local community support
activities on an ongoing basis. As part of these efforts, the company donated a
piano to Istanbul Japanese School.
With its employees having served as chairman and vice chairman of theJapanese Society in Turkey since 2009, the company witnessed firsthand how
significant the contributions that students of the Japanese School make tocultural exchange between the two countries. We hope the piano will help
improve the quality of music education at the Japanese School and further
promote the cultural relationship between Japan and Turkey.

Students of Istanbul Japanese School

Collaboration with a Japanese NPO

Supporting demining activities
in Angola
Sumitomo Corporation has been supporting Japan Mine Action Service (JMAS)
since 2008. In Angola, we provide this Japanese NPO with financial assistance,
office space, and a variety of necessary support by using the local network that
we have built up for many years through our operations in that country. Our
support has led to JMAS’s launch of landmine removal operations in Angola in2009. While we will continue supporting JMAS’s activities, we will also provide
assistance for other initiatives to develop the next generation of human resources,
such as donating uniforms and balls to local boys’ soccer clubs.

Komatsu’s equipment for removing anti-personal landmines

Supporting local schools and students

Donating school uniforms andschool supplies to elementary
school students in Myanmar
Yangon Office of Sumitomo Corporation Asia Pte. Ltd. has been donating school
uniforms and school supplies to local primary school students in the Mingaladon
township (located on the outskirts of Yangon) since 2005. The latest activities
include the donation of school bags, textbooks, stationery, umbrellas and otheritems to three primary schools in May 2012.
Representatives of Yangon Office visited the schools to deliver these schoolsupplies in person. Each recipient school held a ceremony to welcome ourrepresentatives who spent an amiable time with the teachers and students.

Students with our donated school supplies

Please refer to the following website to learn more about
our social contribution activities:
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/contribution/index.html

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201232

Together with Stakeholders

Together with the Global Environment
Under our groupwide environmental policy, we are involved in various activities to protect the global environment. Indeed,pursuing industrial prosperity and environmental wellbeing at the same time has long been a tradition of Sumitomo. While
working to minimize our own environmental footprint, we make the most of our integrated corporate strengths and operatevarious businesses that will help environmental conservation and improvement.

Building a harmonious relationship between
automobiles and the global environment

Holistic efforts to promote
the use of electric vehicles

Promoting electric vehicles as a key
contributor in reducing environmental impact

A wide variety of activities under thewatchword, “Green Fleet Management”

Sumitomo Mitsui Auto Service Company, Limited (SMAS) provides afull range of automobile management services, including automobile
leasing, under its slogan, “Smart mobility with a smile”.
In recent years, growing environmental awareness around theworld has led to an intensifying demand for a reduction in theenvironmental impact of automobiles. SMAS is actively involved inenvironmental management, guided by a corporate philosophy thataims to contribute to the development of motorized community andenhance the global environment. Certification in ISO 14001, a leadinginternational management system, at 47 business sites in Japan isamong many environmental efforts SMAS has made to date.
Another major environmental initiative since 2009 is the promotionof electric cars and other electric vehicles (EVs). As EVs do not require
the use of gasoline or other fossil fuels and emit no exhaust gasses,
many countries around the world position EVs as the next-generation
vehicles to replace gasoline-powered ones, and are accordingly
working to put more EVs on the road. For SMAS, promotion of EVs isan activity that embodies its aforementioned management principles,and it also represents the fulfillment of its responsibility to society as
the industry leader in the automobile leasing business.

To promote the use of EVs, SMAS takes holistic measures while
taking advantage of our Group’s integrated corporate strengths. The
watchword in these efforts is: “Green Fleet Management.”
The term refers to a one-stop service for the safe, comfortable,
and efficient operation and management of EV-related systems,
covering everything from the supply of EVs, pre-launch consultation,
the development of charging stations and other necessary
infrastructures, to post-launch maintenance. This unique Green Fleet
Management service has allowed SMAS to steadily increase its
experience in this field in Japan, including adding EVs to taxi fleets,
leasing electric buses as plant tour vehicles, and leasing rental electricmotorcycles to rental business at tourist sites.
In addition to providing services to EV users, SMAS also delivers
its proposals incorporating user feedback to automobile
manufactures, and national and local governments, participates inenvironment-themed events, and conducts many other activities topromote the public awareness and use of EVs, the next-generation
vehicles. Through these efforts, SMAS is striving to help create asociety with clean-fuel automobiles—in other words, electric vehicles.

Demonstration and test drive event using the company’s EV fleet

Suntory Minami Alps Hakushu Water Plant and Hakushu Distillery in Yamanashi

33 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Contributing to mitigating climate change

Operating a fluorocarbon refrigerant
recycling business in North America
Adding a fluorocarbon refrigerant recycle
operator into our GroupIn May 2012, Diversified CPC, International Inc. (DCPC), a leading
propellant gas supplier and a subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation ofAmerica, announced the acquisition of substantially all the assets ofPure Chem Separation, L.P. (PCS), a provider of fluorocarbon
refrigerant recycle services.
Fluorocarbon refrigerants include CFC refrigerants, first-generation
refrigerants that are a major culprit in the destruction of the ozone layer
and no longer used in new products, and HCFC refrigerants or
second-generation refrigerants, use of which is being phased out. In
the United States, where DCPC is located, those refrigerants are
subject to increasingly stringent regulations by the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). For instance, the EPA has decided to phaseout the manufacture of new HCFC refrigerants and is strongly
recommending the use of recycled ones. Although the use of CFCs
has been already abolished, many CFCs have not yet been destroyed:
they have been stored or left unattended. To address this situation, thecontrolled destruction of existing CFC refrigerants is now underway
through the carbon credit scheme.
In recent years, HCFC refrigerants have been increasingly replaced
by HFC ones, which are also called alternative refrigerants, or
third-generation refrigerants. Unlike their fluorocarbon-based
predecessors, HFCs do not cause depletion of the ozone layer. Still,
the alternative refrigerants have a high global-warming coefficient value,
contributing to global warming. This indicates that HFC refrigerants arehighly likely to follow a similar path of the first- and second-generation
refrigerants: growing global demand for the appropriate reclaim ofused refrigerants for recycling or destruction.
Given these developments, adding a refrigerant recycle operator
into our Group and our support in expanding and energizing theoperations of the acquired business will help prevent ozone depletionand global warming,
contributing to theconservation and protection of
the global environment. This
recognition was behind ourdecision to go ahead with theacquisition.

Leveraging our Group’s integrated corporate
strengths to expand
the sustainable recycling business
Recycling of used refrigerants requires advanced techniques andcapabilities because collected refrigerants are mixed with water, oil,heavy metals or other materials, and refrigerants themselves consist ofmultiple types of gaseous coolants. PCS boasts the highest technicalexcellence in the industry, which include a high-performance distillation
column that is capable of processing all types of mixed refrigerants ofany generations.
With the combination of PCS’s world-class recycling capabilities
and the Sumitomo Corporation Group’s creditworthiness, network,and financial strengths, our refrigerant recycling business iswell-positioned for rapid expansion. DCPC’s aerosol-related expertiseis also expected to bring synergy to this business.
Toward the expansion and international operations of this recycling
business in the future, we are first focusing on reclaiming
yet-to-be-recycled stored refrigerants, making the best use of ourGroup’s network.

Employees of Diversified Pure Chem, LLC**A new company created as a result of DCPC’s acquisition of PCS

Please refer to the following website to learn more about
our environmental contribution activities:
http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/society/environment/index.html
Distillation column

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201234

Providing long-term assistance for recovery
from the Great East Japan Earthquake
The Sumitomo Corporation Group supports efforts to recover from natural disasters worldwide by making
donations and offering various other kinds of support. When the devastating earthquake and tsunami hit East
Japan in March 11, 2011, we immediately set up an emergency response team headed by the President andCEO of Sumitomo Corporation to determine the safety of employees of our Group, make arrangement for theprovision of relief aid, contact customers and business partners to check on their status, support and join in
the recovery efforts, and take other actions that were necessary. We were fortunate to be able to confirm thesafety of all the employees of our Group, although the unprecedented disaster caused some damage to thefacilities of our group companies in the Tohoku region. To support victims and affected communities, ourgroup companies immediately started to collect and deliver emergency aid supplies and made donations. We
have continued providing assistance to disaster victims and affected areas since then, thinking how best we
can contribute our strengths as an integrated trading company operating across a wide range of businessareas and locations to the reconstruction efforts. We are committed to providing long-term assistance both forthe reconstruction of industries in the region and for humanitarian relief.

Assistance for industrial reconstruction
Supporting the recovery of the fishprocessing industry in Kesennuma City
The fish processing industry in Kesennuma City, Miyagi
Prefecture, suffered devastating damage from the Great East
Japan Earthquake. Many buildings and facilities wereseverely damaged, and the pier of the fishing port—whichboasted Japan’s largest bonito landings—and the fish
market there have sunk by over 70 centimeters. Although
this key Kesennuma industry has resumed operations after
makeshift repairs to damaged facilities, it is still plagued withmany issues such as reduced catches and unemployment.
The industry urgently needs reconstruction.
Sumitomo Corporation and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. launcheda joint collaborative initiative with Miyagi Prefecture,

Temporary processing facilities

35 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

Kesennuma City, and local chambers of commerce to help
the industry recover at the earliest possible date.
Specifically, the two trading companies are supporting thedevelopment of a business model for the fish processing
sector in Kesennuma by assisting in establishing andoperating the Kesennuma Shishiori Fisheries Processing
Cooperative association which is uniting the efforts offishery workers in the city to rebuild their businesses.
As the first step after its establishment in July 2012, theCooperative is planning to open new temporary processing
facilities and resume the processing of mackerel and otherfish products there. The Cooperative would then like to buy
equipment such as water supply equipment needed to use
ground water and sterilized sea water, water drainage
equipment, and ultra-low refrigerators, because sharing

Celebrating the establishment of Kesennuma Shishiori Fisheries Processing
Cooperative association

these machines will cost less than each member worker
buying and operating them individually. In the future, thefisheries organization would like to develop the partnerships
among members by, for instance, launching a scheme forthe joint purchase of materials and developing sales
channels in Japan and abroad. To revitalize the industry,
they are also considering attracting companies to the region
in a bid to improve cost effectiveness and taking other
innovative measures.
Leveraging the extensive networks they have developed
as trading companies, Sumitomo Corporation and Mitsui &Co. are helping the Cooperative develop its operational
business model. The two companies serve as a liaison
between the Cooperative and relevant governmentalorganizations and financial institutions, facilitate theCooperative in building relationships with their groupcompanies, provide business know-how in various areas,
and offer coordination and business planning functions.
Although the trading companies have no direct participationin the fish processing business itself, which is operated by
the local Cooperative, the two firms will continue to think
together and work together with the Cooperative to makethe project succeed. The two companies share a wish and acommitment to making the most of the integrated strengthsof trading company groups to tackle the national crisis
caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and contributeto the reconstruction of the Tohoku region.

Building energy-efficienthydroponic facilities
Many farmers in the disaster-struck area have lost
agricultural machinery, greenhouses and other facilities in thetsunami that followed the quake. Large areas of the local
farmland were damaged by seawater and improving the soil

Energy-efficient hydroponic farming facilities

will take several years. Coupled with financing difficulties,
their predicament is making an early reconstruction of the
agricultural industry in the region difficult. To address thisissue, Sumitomo Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation
Tohoku Co., Ltd. have entered into partnership with theenvironmental consultant Recycle One, Inc. to buildenergy-efficient hydroponic farming facilities that are freefrom seawater damage or soil contamination. Our assistancemainly focused on financing and developing sales channels.
The most notable feature of the hydroponic facilities istheir excellent energy efficiency. By adopting a combinationof heat pumps and heat exchanger pipes installed under thewater tanks that soak the vegetable roots, the new system
requires about 40% less energy than regular greenhousefarming, in which the entire facilities are warmed up. Anotheradvantage is that the facilities enable the temperature of thevegetable roots to be maintained at a designated level sothat vegetables can be grown all year round. The hydroponic
farm has adopted many other energy- and cost-efficientfeatures. For instance, the facilities are designed to let inplenty of sunlight and to recycle and reuse water. The
vegetable growing stands are made from waste plastic
reclaimed from the disaster-struck area. The success of thisnew farming will lead to the rehabilitation of local agriculture,
one of the major industries in the affected areas, as well as
to revitalization of local economies through the creation ofjobs and new businesses.
In partnership with farmers in Miyagino-ku, Sendai City,
construction of the first hydroponic facilities was started in
January 2012 at a farm which was ravaged by the tsunami
in neighboring Natori City. After completion in May 2012, thefacilities have started to produce lettuces, baby bok choi,arugula and other vegetables to meet the demand ofrestaurants and retailers.

Plant growing stands made from waste plastic

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201236

Providing long-term assistance for recovery
from the Great East Japan Earthquake

Humanitarian assistance
Volunteer Program for Earthquake
Disaster Reconstruction
As part of its humanitarian support for the disaster-hit areas,
Sumitomo Corporation conducted a Volunteer Program for
Earthquake Disaster Reconstruction from August to
November 2011.
The purpose of this program was for the company toprovide support for employees who wished to participate
in volunteer activities to support the afflicted people. The
program was formulated after a series of consultations
with local government officials and with the staff of a local
social welfare council that manages a volunteer center fordisaster reconstruction.
Participants in the program have taken part in activities
in Yamamoto Town located at the southern end of Miyagi
Prefecture. More than 600 residents of the town lost theirlives in the disaster and about 80% of dwellings weredamaged, of which more than half were totally destroyed.
The JR Joban Line railway track was also swept away by
the tsunami, making the town difficult to access from theoutside. Sumitomo Corporation chose the town as the place
for its volunteer program because it was in need oflong-term help from volunteers.
Employees were assigned at the local volunteer centerin the town, carrying out support activities that included
helping to accept volunteers, allocate work to thosevolunteers, and disseminate helpful information through a
blog. They also helped to remove debris and mud from theRemoving debris and mud from houses

37 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

houses of residents that had been damaged by the disasterand to plant seedlings and thin out leaves at strawberry
farms, since strawberries are a local specialty. Employee
volunteers worked in Yamamoto Town for two nights andthree days or three nights and four days, with five or six
members engaged in work in the town every day. Up to theend of November, when the town stopped accepting
general volunteers, a total of nearly 160 employees had
participated in the volunteer program.

Youth Challenge Program for the
Revitalization of East Japan
While we were engaged in our Volunteer Program for
Earthquake Disaster Reconstruction, we also conducted ourown surveys to grasp the needs of the affected regions. As aresult, those surveys revealed that there was very little
support for the younger generations in the affected regions
to participate in the recovery effort. These generations range
from high school students to university and graduate school
students. In response, Sumitomo Corporation joined forces
with the Civil Society Initiative Fund, an NPO, to launch theSumitomo Corporation Youth Challenge Program for the
Revitalization of East Japan to assist young people who willbe the future leaders of the affected areas.
This program will provide subsidies of up to ¥100 million
a year over the five-year period beginning with the fiscal year
ending March 31, 2013. The subsidy will be designed toencourage the participation of younger generations in the“Internship Program” kick-off ceremony

regional revitalization process to rebuild the daily lives ofpeople directly affected by the earthquake. At the sametime, the program supports the growth of younger
generations into leaders of the future. The program consistsof two parts: the “Activity and Research Subsidy” (subsidy
commenced on June 1, 2012) and the “Internship Program”(activities commenced on July 1, 2012).
The “Activity and Research Subsidy” supports activities,
surveys and research directed at regional revitalization that is
carried out mainly by younger generations in teams, circles,
or groups, or by NPOs and other organizations led by youth.
To date, the program has subsidized unique activities
reflecting the unmistakable enthusiasm of young people andtheir distinctive personalities. Examples include town
restoration proposals, revitalization of local communities,

and educational support for children who will be the next
generation of young adults.
Meanwhile, the “Internship Program” encourages thecreation of internships for young people at NPOs and otherorganizations active in the affected regions. The young
people participating in this program share a strong
dedication and responsibility toward the recovery of theaffected regions, and are giving every effort to pursue theirrespective activities.
Through such support for younger generations
participating in regional revitalization activities, Sumitomo
Corporation will continue to provide long-term assistance forrecovery, in the hope for an early recovery and revitalizationof the affected regions.

COLUMN
Other humanitarian assistance programs
Sumitomo Corporation offers various humanitarian assistance programs, using its extensive
partnerships and know-how developed through its ongoing social contribution activities.
Philharmonic
1 Junior
Orchestra (JPO)

2 Barrier-free movie screening

1 We invited the March 11 victims toconcerts performed by JPO, an orchestra
we sponsor (a total of five concerts up to
September 2012). In August 2011, we
donated the sales of tickets bought by our
employees and former employees to thecharitable organization Ashinaga’s support
program for children who lost their parents
in the March earthquake and tsunami.
2 In collaboration with the Kesennuma City

event to sell local products
3 Internalfrom the disaster-struck areas

4 Grief care program

Disability Support Center in Miyagi, we
hosted a “barrier-free” movie screening in
September 2011 for an audience that
included people with disabilities.
3 In April 2012, sea products from

Kesennuma City, strawberries from
Yamamoto Town, and other local products
from the disaster-affected areas were soldin our office.
4 We offered a grief care program in a

temporary housing complex in Natori City,
Miyagi, in August and September 2012 tohelp evacuees cope with their grief.

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201238

Third-Party Review

they serve as evidence that the company fulfills its
responsibility to society in the course of its business
operations. I found myself drawn into reading thesefirsthand accounts by staff members who were in chargeof respective projects, demonstrating their strong belief
and sense of responsibility. As reported in the section, thestaff member in charge of the Mongolian project used his
own initiative to establish MobiCom Class. The case has

Ms.Yoko Takahashi

reminded me that the ultimate goal of global expansion is

President of Japan
Philanthropic Association

to establish and maintain locally-focused operations, andthe Report indicates that there must be many other similar
examples worldwide.

While reviewing the Sumitomo Corporation Report on

I found each of the examples selected for the “Together

Responsibility and Sustainability 2012 (the Report), thewith Stakeholders” section very interesting. Ranging from athought occurred to me as to whether an organization thatmining project in Bolivia, the origin of Sumitomo’s businesscan obtain a broader and deeper understanding of a wide

there, to human resources development at many businessrange of needs holds the key to creating new value in Japansites around the world, these initiatives are dynamic, and at

and in the international community. The Report says thatthe same time attentive to details. They would not have“integrated corporate strength” is the core competence ofbeen possible without the collaboration and endeavor of all

the Sumitomo Corporation Group and that it means that thethe parties involved.

company integrates its business foundation and its functions

The “Together with Employees” part is a reflection of thestrategically and organically to meet a wide range of needs

company’s strong eagerness to support employee develop-

and to create new value, which constitutes its driving force

ment. Based on the recognition that human resources arein market competition. Having read this statement, I realized

the key enabler in creating new value, Sumitomo Corpora-that the company’s CSR goals are consistent with its owntion offers a variety of opportunities and programs. I feel,

definition of its core competence.

however, that more specific reporting on employee diversity

The Report includes a description of Sumitomo’s

should be included. In future reports, I hope to see how thebusiness philosophy, which has governed the company over

Sumitomo Corporation Group ensures that their diverse

its 400 years, together with the President and CEO’s

workforce, including international staff, females, andmessage, “‘Be the Best, Be the One’ We aspire to become

disabled employees, play their roles effectively. As some ofan organization that contributes broadly to society.” I found

the related initiatives are already reported in detail on their

these important statements are indispensable for thewebsites, I would recommend as a first step that futurecompany to clearly communicate to its Japanese andreports include the URLs of those web pages. While ainternational stakeholders its commitment to staying a stepsustainability report is published to report the company’sahead in dealing with change, creating new value based onrelated performance and activities, it also plays an important

its longstanding universal philosophy.

role as a tool to communicate the company’s future

The “Project Report” section provides a detailed
description, using the Social Value Creation Chart

direction, its message to stakeholders, and the challenges
facing it for future success.

framework, of how the company earnestly tackled theWhen it comes to the “Together with the Global

issues it faced and what specific actions it took. These

Environment” part, I am not entirely comfortable with the

projects are cases in point where Sumitomo Corporation’s

idea that the global environment is a part of the company’s

integrated corporate strengths are used to the full, andstakeholder groups. No corporate activities can continue

39 Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012

without taking into account the sustainability of the Earth.

support initiative in Natori City, and the employee volunteer

While the Report mentions that detailed reporting is available

program because of their usefulness and ability to satisfy theon the website, the paper-based Report should also haveneeds of the region. I also have high expectations for the

more in-depth reporting on environmental initiatives toYouth Challenge Program for the Revitalization of East

demonstrate the company’s commitment to, and illustrate

Japan, an encouragement for young generations who will

its framework for, environmental conservation.

lead the region and the country in the future.

I am gratified to read that the Sumitomo Corporation

As we are moving into uncharted territory without clear

Group is making the most of its integrated corporaterole models to follow, I hope the Sumitomo Corporation

strengths to provide powerful support for the reconstruction

Group with its integrated corporate strengths will striveof the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake.

toward its goal of “Be the Best, Be the One” by using its

Among the support programs primarily focusing on industrial

knowledge, experience and network, as well as the trust

reconstruction and human resources development, I

earned from stakeholders around the world, while address-

particularly commend the program to reconstruct the fish

ing a range of ideas and values through its business andprocessing industry in Kesennuma City, the agriculturalsocial contribution activities.

Response to the Third-Party Review
We would like to thank Ms. Yoko Takahashi for her

employees can work in the Group with pride andimportant review of the Sumitomo Corporation

ambition are the driving force behind our distinctive style

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 2012. Thisof value creation. As we believe that our Group cannot

is the second straight year that we have received

achieve sustainable growth without the existence of a

feedback from her.

sustainable society, we have positioned the global

It was encouraging to receive the comment thatenvironment as one of the key stakeholder groups and

our CSR goals are consistent with our approach toreported our related activities accordingly. We will use

creating new value, in which we use our Group’s

various other communication tools to provide more

integrated corporate strengths to meet a wide range

information on the projects and activities that are notof needs. Her remarks on the Project Report section,

fully covered by the Report.

saying that the ultimate goal of global expansion is toWith its commitment to providing long-term support

establish and maintain locally-focused operations,for reconstruction following the Great East Japan

also give us valuable insight as a business group

Earthquake, the Sumitomo Corporation Group will

operating globally. We also appreciate important

continue to offer a variety of support programs to help

comments and advice regarding reporting the efforts

the industries in the region recover and to offer humani-

we made for each of our stakeholder groups. We

tarian assistance.

recognize that achieving diversity for our humanresources, the main players in the business activities

Masayuki Doi

of our Group, is a significant theme. Respecting

Chair of the CSR Committee
Director, Senior Managing Executive Officer
General Manger, Corporate Planning & Coordination Group

workplace diversity and ensuring that all our

Report on Responsibility & Sustainability 201240

For any inquiries or comments regarding this report,
please contact:

Environment & CSR Department

Sumitomo Corporation

1-8-11, Harumi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-8610, Japan
Phone: +81-3-5166-3898 Fax: +81-3-5166-6310
Email: environment-and-csr@sumitomocorp.co.jp
URL: http://www.sumitomocorp.co.jp/english/
Printed in Japan