Initiatives for Society
The Furukawa Electric Group values communication withall stakeholders throughout its corporate operations.

Relations with our Customers

30

Relations with our Shareholders

31

Relations with our Suppliers

32

Relations with our Employees

33

Relations with Communities

37

29 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

Relations with our Customers
Initiatives
for Society

Furukawa Electric responds to the diverse needs of its customers by maintaining and improving the qualityof its services and operations through technological innovation and effective quality control.

Furukawa Electric Quality Control
Furukawa Electric established the Quality Control Committee
in 1949 and commenced educational activities to raise
employees’ awareness of statistical methods and otheraspects of quality control at all of its works. This enabled theCompany to significantly increase quality levels, as well as
enhancing operational stability and efficiency. These quality
control initiatives were recognized in 1952 as Furukawa
Electric was awarded the Deming Application Prize forachieving distinctive performance improvement through theapplication of total quality management (TQM).
To maintain and improve quality levels, we have obtained
ISO 9001 certification at each of our manufacturing divisions,and standardized operations. We continue to make efforts toimprove efficiency and other core aspects of our operations
and promote activities designed to improve levels of quality
and customer satisfaction.

Quality Improvement in Fiscal 2009
We have managed to significantly reduce customer complaints
and successfully reduced complaints to 16% of levels in fiscal
2001 (as of fiscal 2009). Demand from customers for morediverse and sophisticated decryption has led us to mobilize awide range of technology and know-how .
Customer complaints
(%)

100

100

Base rate

80
60
35

40

28

27

20

18

16

2008

2009 (Fiscal year)

0
2001

2005

2006

2007

Quality Improvement Activities
Quality Control Policy
At every stage of our operations, from research anddevelopment to manufacturing, sales, customer
service and management, in all sections and all
hierarchies, we always strive to adhere to a PDCA
management cycle based on actual facts, maintainand improve our products, customer services and thequality of our operations and put our management
policies into practice.

To guarantee quality at every level throughout the Company,
Furukawa Electric has established the Central Control
Committee with direct links to the president to oversee theCompanywide promotion of quality control activities. We havealso set up Divisional Quality Control Committees with direct
links to the heads of each division and make every effort tomaintain and improve the quality of our products, services andoperations so as to offer continual quality assurance.
Quality control organizational structure
President

Central Quality
Control Committee

Quality Control
Management Meeting

Divisional
heads

Affiliated companies

Quality Control Manager

In accordance with our basic policy of putting quality firstand implementing uniform Companywide quality control, we
formulate a Companywide quality control policy each year.
This then forms the basis for quality control policies in eachdivision.
For fiscal 2010, we have set out a Companywide
quality policy, placing the utmost emphasis on quality
while endeavoring to manufacture excellent products fromthe customer’s perspective. To achieve this policy, we arepromoting quality improvement activities in each division,
focusing on efforts that help visualize design as well as
manufacturing quality and prevent customer complaints.
We are also implementing a range of support initiatives,
including FR proposal and QC Circle activities. Taking theirname from the “F” of Furukawa Electric and the “R” ofrenewal, reform and rationalization, FR proposals involves
employees submitting ideas on how to improve operations.
Proposals are then implemented in an effort to fundamentallystrengthen the Company’s business. Such activities continue
to yield substantial result each year.
QC Circle activities are small group-based activities thatinvolve employees and harness QC techniques in an effort tomake ongoing improvements in the workplace.
Debriefing sessions are held not only at individual works,
but also on a Companywide basis to report back on the
results of activities. With the participation of overseas affiliatedcompanies these sessions continue to grow substantially.

Divisional Quality Control Committees

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201030

Relations with our Shareholders
Initiatives
for Society

Furukawa Electric engages in IR (investor relations) activities based on two-way communication with ourshareholders and investors in an effort to contribute to society and enhance our value as a company.

Information Disclosure Policy and IR
Framework
The Furukawa Electric Group Action Guidelines state that wewill maintain and improve upon solid, friendly relationships withall of our stakeholders. Our own Regulations on the Timely
Disclosure of Corporate Information meanwhile set out aframework for the disclosure of appropriate information at theappropriate time.
All IR activities are overseen by the Chief Financial Officer(CFO) and are managed by the Investor & Public Relations
Unit of the Corporate Strategy Planning Department.

Relations with Institutional Investors
and Securities Analysts
In addition to holding management briefings (coveringinterim and year-end results and medium-term plans) for
institutional investors and securities analysts, we actively
encourage communication all year round. Through results
briefings, overseas road shows and other activities, we
engaged in communication with a total of 1,005 institutional
investors and securities analysts over the course of fiscal
2009. As of the end of March 2010, the percentage of theCompany’s shares held by overseas investors stood at
approximately 22%.

Relations with Individual Investors
In fiscal 2009, we held our second plant tour for individual
investors. A total of 119 investors chosen by lot from 1,632
applicants experienced Furukawa Electric by observing
the manufacturing of optical fibers and electric cables andexperiments on superconductivity. Many of the investors
commented on the benefits of gaining a true understandingof the Company’s technological capabilities and businessactivities. As of the end of March 2010, we had a total of
64,770 individual shareholders (a reduction of 3,466- on theprevious year), accounting for 27% of company shares.
Trends in shareholder distribution
Securities firms, etc.

Individuals

Securities firms, etc.

Individuals

2.5%

29.1%

2.6%

27.2%

Overseascompanies

21.6%

Domestic
companies

7.4%

Overseascompanies

21.6%

March 31,2009

Financial institutions

39.4%

March 31,2010

Domestic
companies

7.1%

Financial institutions

41.5%

Plant tour

End of year briefing session for institutional investors

Main IR activities in 2008
January
February
March
April
May
June

Superconductivity experiment during plant tour

Third quarter earnings announced

Returning Profits to Shareholders
Tours of overseas plants
Annual earnings announced; visits to overseas investors
General Shareholders’ Meeting; Shareholders’ Report issued

July
Augus
SeptemberTours of domestic plants
First quarter earnings announced

OctoberNovember
December

Plant tours for individual investors
Interim earnings announced
Visits to overseas investors

31 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

Despite a harsh business environment, Furukawa Electric
maintained its basic policy to pay stable dividends. In fiscal
2009, we paid an interim dividend of 2.5 yen per share and a
year-end dividend of 2.5 yen per share, which added up to anannual dividend of 5.0 yen per share and represented a yearon-year decrease of 1.0 yen per share.

Relations with our Suppliers
Initiatives
for Society

Furukawa Electric strives to maintain cooperative relationships based on mutual trust with
suppliers through enhanced communication.

Striving to Ensure Optimum Purchasing
on a Steady, Ongoing Basis

Supplier Meetings and Supplier
Evaluation Scheme

Furukawa Electric’s purchasing policy is to establish strategic
relationships with suppliers to ensure optimum purchasing
on a steady, ongoing basis. We believe that cooperative
relationships with our suppliers will become even more
important for achieving sustainable growth. Furukawa Electric
has always sought to forge cooperative relationships basedon trust with each supplier by communicating our status andpolicies through Supplier Meetings and a Supplier Evaluation
Scheme. In addition to these efforts we are working on thefollowing initiatives.
Study Group on Subcontracting Transactions
We believe today’s severe economic conditions make iteven more important to forge sound relationships with our
suppliers through fair transactions that comply with rules andregulations. As part of this effort, we have held Study Groups
on Subcontracting Transactions for the Furukawa ElectricGroup aimed at legal compliance as a training focus for theentire Group. In fiscal 2009, 60 employees from 18 affiliatedcompanies participated in lectures held on subcontracting
transactions.
Formulation of BCP in Procurement Activities
We have started developing a BCP (business continuationplan) for our procurement operations that is based on theassumption of a major disaster. We are setting up a systematic
framework for compiling data from all suppliers on theirsituations, which we currently obtain from them separately,
to quickly discern the overall picture in the event of a disasterand to update our risk management system and minimize
obstacles in maintaining procurement operations under the
worst-case scenario.

Furukawa Electric strives to forge cooperative relationships
with suppliers by regularly holding Supplier Meetings, by
evaluating the status of transactions under the Supplier
Evaluation Scheme and by providing feedback on the results.
At the Supplier Meetings, we provide an overview of theCompany, outline our purchasing policy and explain the
management strategy of each company to enable suppliers togain a deeper understanding of our operations. In the Supplier
Evaluation Scheme, we evaluate suppliers on the basis ofquality, technology, price, delivery system, degree of social
contribution and financial condition, and then hold meetings
to provide feedback on our findings. We explain and discuss
results during these meetings to more closely align ourawareness of procurement activities.
In fiscal 2009, we held a Supplier Meeting in September,which was attended by 91 of our major suppliers. We also
evaluated approximately 350 companies under the Supplier
Evaluation Scheme and conducted feedback meetings.
We intend to further
strengthen our relationships
in the future.

Furukawa Electric Purchasing Policy (Outline)• We will establish strategic relationships with
suppliers to ensure optimum purchasing• We will guarantee the reliability and safety ofmaterials and supplies and their steady procurement• We will employ purchasing methods closely linked
to production methods• We will implement global procurement• We will engage in green procurement and enforce
complianceThis year’s Supplier Meeting

Promoting CSR Activities in Relation
to Procurement
Furukawa Electric has been promoting compliance initiatives
as part of the procurement of materials and supplies inaccordance with the Furukawa Electric Group Action
Guidelines. Work is currently underway to organize past
initiatives and policies toward developing CSR Procurement
Guidelines. Looking ahead, we plan to expand internal CSR
procurement operations into activities that regard the entire
supply chain. Furthermore, we will respond to customer
requests to avoid using resources produced by mines that
disregard human rights and the environment, or “dirty mining,”by continuing efforts such as requiring refiners to demonstrate
ethical judgment in selecting mines. Dirty mining is not,however, an issue that the Company can resolve in its own
right. Furukawa Electric plans to further highlight dirty mining
as an issue for the industry as a whole.

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201032

Relations with our Employees
Initiatives
for Society

The Furukawa Electric Group strives to create a varied personnel system and pursues health and safety activities
to remain a corporate group that motivates its employees and fills them with pride.

Personnel Management Policy

Status of Employment

Our basic personnel management policy focuses on creating humanresources who are capable of putting the Furukawa Electric Group
Credo’s five principles into practice.
We believe that to get the most out of our staff’s abilities, it
is imperative that individual employees adhere to compliancerequirements and that we develop a workplace environmentthat respects human rights. Based on these foundations, we aredevising a personnel system that will harness employees’ abilities
and personalities through such initiatives as performance-based
remuneration schemes and programs that help achieve work-lifebalance. In this manner, we are endeavoring to become a company
that motivates its employees and fills them with pride.
In our medium-term management plan “New Frontier 2012,” wehave identified efforts to foster a powerful workforce and to build
collaborative ties with affiliated companies in Japan and overseas as
key measures. We are taking up the challenge of revamping existing
initiatives while introducing new measures.

Recruitment
Furukawa Electric has newly adopted “the driving force” asa concept slogan in fiscal 2010. Furukawa Electric is placingemphasis on the individual human resource qualities including
promise and potential. We are working to secure thosecapable personnel who will drive the Company forward. At thesame time, we are actively recruiting foreign nationals with theability to excel on the world stage.
Furthermore, we are conducting the Furukawa Group
Forum, a collaborative presentation by Group companies
targeting university and graduate students.
Recruitment figures

Specialized
staff

Overview of the personnel system
Management philosophy
Management policy

Management strategy

Fiscal
2008

Fiscal
2008

Fiscal
2008

Fiscal
2009

Fiscal
2010

Male

55

81

84

79

51

Female

8

16

17

13

8

Total

63

97

101

92

59

Foreign nationals

2

1

1

4

2

73

49

86

44

15

0

1

1

0

0

73

50

87

44

15

Professional Male
staff
FemaleTotal

Becoming a strong organization
Invigorating individuals* Total figures for fiscal 2009 do not include mid-career recruitment

Sharing directions, combining strengths

Employment for People with Disabilities

Personnel system based on merit and performance
Incentives for
employees
Challenging
settings

Performance
evaluation based on
management by
objectives

Setting
objectives

Multi-track
qualification
systemClear
expectations ofresponsibilities

Evaluation ofcontribution
levelsSetting
objectives asan organization

Appointmentof the righthuman
resources to theright positions

Motivating
system oftreatment

Evaluation
feedback

Ratio of employees with disabilities

Skillsdevelopment

Appointments
based onmerit

Enhanced selfawareness

Furukawa Electric established Furukawa New Leaf Co., Ltd.
as a special subsidiary in 2004 to actively employ people withlearning disabilities. The company handles cleaning operations
within the compounds of our works and currently employsa total of 23 people with disabilities, 10 at Hiratsuka Works
and 13 at Chiba Works. The company also provides detailed
guidance to assist people with disabilities in becoming
independent members of society. Although our employment
ratio of people with disabilities was 1.85% in the previous fiscal
year, exceeding the statutory target, we intend to work on
further expanding this group of employees, primarily throughour special subsidiary.

Activelyutilizingeducational
curriculum

(%)

2.00

1.50

1.49

1.54

2005

2006

1.80

1.86

1.85

2007

2008

2009

1.00
: Arrows indicate directions objectives are executed

33 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

0
(Fiscal year)Employment of the Elderly
We operate a reemployment scheme for any employees
aged 60 or over who are in good health and wish to remain
in work. The duration of reemployment is being increasedin phases, with employees entitled to be reemployed up to
the age of 65. In fiscal 2009, 56 people (42% of employees
who had reached the retirement age of 60) applied for thisprogram, and a cumulative total of 104 had been reemployed
as of the end of fiscal 2009.

Fair Evaluation, Human Resource
Development and Treatment
Employee Assignment Evaluation and Treatment
We provide opportunities based on individual motivation andabilities under the concept of equality and operate consultation
schemes for employees to reflect on their career goals. In
fiscal 2009, we created an employee capability, job experienceand specialist expertise database to ensure uniform
management. In this manner, we assign each employee to his
or her most appropriate position commensurate with businessdevelopment. We have introduced a remuneration schemethat ensures fair evaluation and treatment. We are also training
managers in performance evaluation while improving the way
in which the system is run.

Development, Education and Training
We offer individuals the chance to grow and encourage
employees to develop their skills by providing training andsupport to help obtain qualifications.
For example, we have implemented the Global Business
Leader training program and are fostering personnel at theCompany and affiliated companies. In fiscal 2010, we willcommence training in Japan for overseas affiliated company
leaders to promote interaction with Company employees. We
have augmented training aimed at bolstering communication
since fiscal 2008. Moreover, we implemented a 360-degree
evaluation and follow-up training for middle-management,
which will conclude during fiscal 2010. At that time, we will
launch a new OJT curriculum.
We established the Conference for Worksite Innovation,
reinforced initiatives for creating human resource development
programs and training curricula, identified and resolved
manufacturing problems and commenced training for midlevel operators from fiscal 2008. We will implement programsfor those responsible for training and imparting traditional skills
as well as level-specific courses for manufacturing supervisors,
managers and technical staff.

Diverse Work Patterns and Work-Life
Balance Support Initiatives
As well as striving to enhance our employees’ working lives,
Furukawa Electric cooperates with labor unions to actively
support their personal lifestyles and help them stay in good
health through educational and other initiatives.
In fiscal 2007, Furukawa Electric was accredited as acompany that actively supports the development of the next
generation. In line with our second phase action plan (fiscal
2007–09), we significantly relaxed requirements to make iteasier for employees to take maternity/paternity leave. We
also established a system for the provision of financial support
whereby employees can use carried-over leaves in place ofmaternity/paternity leave or for the purpose of looking after theirchildren. Moving forward, we will upgrade and expand systems
and implement new initiatives in line with our third phase action
plan (fiscal 2010-12) in an effort to build a comfortable workplaceenvironment.
In addition, during fiscal 2008 we established a new programfor a mandatory two-day annual leave assigned by the Company(simultaneous leave) to reinforce our efforts to reduce total work
hours. At the same time, we are advancing a variety of initiatives.
We became, for example, a member of the nonprofit organization
J-Win and continue to actively participate in external networks
concerned with promoting diverse work patterns as well as worklife balance.
Diverse work pattern and work-life balance support schemes
Scheme/educational
initiative

Purpose and details

Flexible workinghours

We provide lifestyle support to strike a work-life balance.

Consecutive leave

We allow all employees to take three days consecutive leave every
year providing that it does not exceed their annual paid leave
entitlement. Employees can obtain an additional two days every ﬁve
years (up to a maximum of ﬁve consecutive days).

Carried-over leave

Up to ten days of annual paid leave can be carried over, for up to ﬁve
years, and can be used if an employee is ill, providing nursing care, onmaternity/paternity leave or looking after their children.

Maternity/
paternity leave(and reduced
working hours)

We provide support over and above legal requirements to enable
employees to strike a work-life balance, including partial pay during
maternity/paternity leave and the option for employees to work
reduced hours thereafter until their child reaches elementary school
age. The program was applied to two male and 20 female employees
in ﬁscal 2009.

Nursing care leave(and reduced
working hours)

We provide support over and above legal requirements to enable
employees to strike a work-life balance, including enabling
employees to take nursing care leave (or the option of working
reduced hours) for up to a year at partial pay. No applications werereceived in fiscal 2009.

Retirement
seminars

We, labor and management, jointly organize seminars every year toprovide support to help middle-aged and older union members (those
aged 50 or older as a rule) to make the most of their time in work andplan for their life after retirement.

Middle-age
seminars

We, labor and management, jointly organize seminars every year toprovide individual support to help middle-aged employees (those aged
40 or older as a rule) to stay ﬁt and healthy, including measures toprevent illness.

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201034

Initiatives
for Society

Relations with our Employees

Furukawa Electric Safety Activities

Occupational Health and Safety

Companywide Health and Safety Group Activities
Presentation Meeting

Furukawa Electric System for Health and Safety
The Furukawa Electric Group pursues health and safety
activities, recognizing our social responsibility to make theutmost effort in these areas and to develop a comfortableworking environment. The Central Health and Safety
Committee chaired by the Company’s Chief Social
Responsibility Officer, the officer in charge of safety, formulated
the Companywide Health and Safety Management Guidelines
and promotes health and safety activities on a Companywide
basis. Individual Health and Safety Committees chaired by theheads of the respective works are also in place at each works
to implement programs based on the Guidelines as well as
independent works’ activities. We strive to raise the level ofsafety standards at each works by establishing and following
up on standardized Companywide priority safety targets under
the Guidelines.
In addition, we established the Safety Management Liaison
Meeting in 2007 to oversee safety issues at Furukawa ElectricGroup manufacturing companies to secure safety acrossthe Group.
Furukawa Electric system for promoting health and safety
Central Health and
Safety Committee
Safety and Environmental
Promotion Department

Health and Safety
Committees (Works)

Every year, the manufacturing division undertakes healthand safety improvement activities at each workplace. The
38th Companywide Health and Safety Group Activities
Presentation Meeting was held at Chiba Works in July.
Thirteen groups representing each works presented theresults of their activities. The Group’s Copper Tube Division
was selected for its outstanding results in safe forklift truck
driving operations.

Companywide Health and Safety Group Activities
Presentation Meeting

Forklift Truck Safety Skills Competition
With the aim of promoting and improving safe forklift truck
driving skills, the 5th competition was held in October. A totalof 21 drivers from individual works and affiliated companies
participated in the competition. This is seen as an excellent
opportunity to raise the level of awareness with respect todriving safety and to highlight the gap between driving on adaily basis and ideal safety standards.

Health and Safety Staff
Subcommittee
Working Environment
Subcommittee

Workplace Health and Safety
Committees (Plants)

Safety Management
Liaison Meeting

Frequency of accidents resulting in the suspensionof operations
2.00

1.95

1.90

1.83

1.75

The forklift truck safety competition

1.62
All sectors

1.50

1.01

1.02

1.09

1.12
0.99

1.00

Manufacturing

0.74

0.65
0.53

0.52

Group-wide

0.50

0.50

0.27

0.25

Furukawa Electric

0.14
0
2005

2006

2007

35 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

2008

2009

(Fiscal year)

Safety Management Liaison Meeting
The Safety Management Liaison Meeting is a forum for sharing
the details of and countermeasures for accidents that occur
within the Group. This information is used to prevent similar
incidents from reoccurring. Furthermore, efforts are being
made to ensure that safety measures are implemented laterally
through such measures as plant safety inspections conductedby Furukawa Electric, presentations of safety activities by
each company at meetings and plant tours advanced by the
Copper Tube Division.

Furukawa Electric Initiatives on Health
Mental Health Education
Our Companywide mental health measures have beenpromoted since 2002 and are based on the Guidelines for
Promoting Mental Healthcare in the Workplace issued by
the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. We held lecturesby industrial physicians and nursing staff as well as outside
experts for management staff and general employees.
Moreover, we conducted stress control seminars as stressprevention support in fiscal 2007 and 2009 for employees
between the ages of 30 and 35. In fiscal 2010, we are
implementing education and training with a view to improving
workplace environments. Our goal is to enhance mental healthby invigorating both the organization and individuals whoplace the utmost emphasis on workplace engagement.
Responding to the Pandemic Influenza Virus
With the CSR Division and Health Management Centertaking leading roles, Furukawa Electric formulated the Basic
Policy on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and put out arelated manual in 2008. At the same time, steps were taken
to conduct preventive education and to stockpile hygienic
and medical supplies. With the identification of a new
influenza virus strain in Japan and overseas, we adopted
strict measures to prevent the Group-wide spread of infection
during 2009 by requiring offices and works to submit any
and all reports of fever. Taking into consideration conditionsof the day and the less virulent virus strain, the Company
revised both its policy and manual. To ensure that the Groupremains fully prepared both for less and highly virulent strainsfrom fiscal 2010 and beyond, we are ramping up efforts tostock hygienic and medical supplies and continuing education
support incorporating overseas bases.

Manual on the pandemic influenza virus

Healthcare for Employees Working Long Hours
In line with the Labor Standards Bureau’s guidelines, Measures
to be Taken by Employers to Prevent Health Impairment Due
to Overwork, we are focusing on efforts to ensure that anyof our employees working long hours stay in good health,through measures such as (1) enforcing strict work restrictions

based on the results ofmedical examinations and(2) operating a consultation
system whereby
employees working longhours are seen by anindustrial physician.
Medical questionnaire

Promoting Separate Smoking Areas
In accordance with a 2003 notification, Concerning the
Guidelines for Measures on Smoking in the Workplace, issued
by the Director-General of the Labor Standards Bureau,
the percentage of smokers among male employees on a
Companywide basis fell from 53.3% in fiscal 2002 to 42% by
fiscal 2009. As an initiative running parallel to measures aimed
at preventing passive smoking announced by the Department
of Health of Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
in February 2010, Furukawa Electric is conducting a series of
events to enhance Companywide awareness toward smoking
abstinence and the prevention of passive smoking.
Group-wide smoking rates among males
(%)

60
53.3

52.7
48.3

45.7

44.5

42.9

40

40.6

42.0

2008

2009

20

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

(Fiscal year)

Responding to Asbestos-Related Health Issues
During the period from fiscal 2005 to 2006, we once again
investigated workplaces that previously handled asbestos
products and we organized medical examinations focused on
asbestos for all relevant employees. We also sent out notices
urging retired employees who worked at the relevant sites toundergo medical examinations. So far, symptoms have been
detected in one current employee and nine retired employees.
Also, a retired employee who had worked laying undergroundcables died from mesothelioma, and in 2006 this was
confirmed to be an industrial accident. We have notified retired
employees who worked at the relevant site regarding changes
to the requirements for issuing health cards in the wake ofrevisions to Occupational Health and Safety Regulations in
October 2007 and will continue to monitor the situation.

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201036

Relations with Communities
Initiatives
for Society

Under our Group Basic Policy on Social Contribution Activities, we are nurturing future generations,promoting sport and culture and living side by side with local communities.

Furukawa Electric Group Basic Policy on Social Contribution Activities
The Furukawa Electric Group will uphold and strengthen the bonds built up with local communities over more than acentury and consistently and tirelessly undertake social contribution activities, focusing on nurturing future generations,promoting sport and culture and living side by side with local communities as well as contributing to society through its
core operations, to help create a better world for future generations.

A System of CSR Awards Established
Furukawa Electric recognizes outstanding contributions byaffiliated companies to the Group’s overall performance througha system of awards each year in June. From the current fiscal
year, the Company has newly established a system of CSR
awards to reward affiliated companies for their endeavors outside
mainstream business activities focusing largely on contributions
to society and the environment.
A total of eight companies, including both domestic andoverseas, were recommended for consideration. Two overseas
companies, one from Brazil and the other from Thailand, wererecognized with social contribution awards, and one Group
company in Japan was presented with a social contribution
encouragement award. Based on the Furukawa Electric Group
Basic Policy on Social Contribution Activities, award winners
are selected after taking into consideration a variety of factors
including the number of people involved in each activity bothwithin and outside the Group, originality and ingenuity, the level ofdevelopment potential and the extent to which the activity has an
ongoing affect.
Each recipient of the CSR award is presented with a certificate
of merit and a cash prize by the president. The awards ceremony
was attended by the representatives of each company as well as
local staff, who gave a presentation of specific activity details.

Scope of Activities
Exceptional activities aimed at nurturing future
generations, promoting sport and culture, living side byside with local communities, protecting the environmentand contributing to society

The 1st CSR Awards
Social Contribution Award• Project to Nurture the Children of
Neighboring Communities
Furukawa Industrial S.A. Produtos Eletricos (FISA, Brazil)• Social Contributions Celebrating the Company’s Founding
Thai Furukawa Unicomm Engineering Co., Ltd. (TFU, Thailand)Social Contribution Encouragement Award• Welfare Activities
Asahi Electric Works Co., Ltd. (Japan)

Masao Yoshida, President Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., and therepresentatives of award recipients
A meeting to report on the CSR awards

37 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

Introducing Awards Winners
The Social Contribution Award
Project to Nurture the Children of
Neighboring Communities
Furukawa Industrial S.A. Produtos Eletricos (FISA, Brazil)
FISA is promoting a project that aims to help children consider
and prepare for their first employment. This project targets
children between the ages of 10 and 15 at local elementary andjunior high schools. The project strives not only to instill in each
student a greater sense of awareness toward working for a living
through handicraft workshops, in addition to actual production
methods and knowledge, while being designed to provide
students with an insight into developing human relationships, butalso delivers lectures on such topics as values and morals withconsiderable effort placed on motivating students toward selfdevelopment. Furthermore, the company provides scholarships
to students aged 15 and above seeking to attend industrial
high schools. Funding for scholarships is drawn from various
sources including proceeds from the recycling of wastepaper
and plastics (cups and packaging materials) produced by FISA.
In this manner, a complementary framework has been developed
to promote employee participation, with efforts to generateincreased motivation among staff toward volunteer activities.

FISA project team members together with students

Social Contribution Award

conjunction with local schools. As well as donating stationery
and other items to students who took part in the event,employees enjoyed a meal and sporting activities in a spirit ofcommunal interchange. TFU took steps to expand its social
contribution activities by involving local communities.

Key members in TFU’s activities

Social Contribution Encouragement Award
Welfare Activities
Asahi Electric Works Co., Ltd. (Japan)
Several facilities for the disabled are located in close proximity
to the Nagai Plant operated by Asahi Electric Works Co.,
Ltd. The Plant has conducted disaster prevention drills incollaboration with these facilities for around three decades.
One such facility called on the Plant to assist in providing
practical workplace training, helping the disabled to returnsmoothly to employment. As a result, the plant consistently
accepts around five individuals, who are provided with training
in the Plant’s sorting operations. In pursuing this activity,
many hurdles had to be overcome including participant safety
and the difficulties of communication. Nevertheless, withthe cooperation of all concerned, the Plant has successfully
implemented this community and welfare contribution activity
through to the present day. In recognition of these efforts,
the Plant received an award from Japan’s Minister of Health,Labour and Welfare in 2007.

Social Contributions Celebrating
the Company’s Founding
Thai Furukawa Unicomm Engineering Co., Ltd.
(TFU, Thailand)
TFU has for many years engaged in donation activities.
In addition to monetary support, the company also gifted
equipment to children’s facilities and public schools in fiscal
2008. In fiscal 2009, a large number of employees directly
participated in activities focusing on mountainside treeplanting endeavors. This particular activity was conducted in2007 certificate of commendation from
the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201038

Initiatives
for Society

Relations with Society and Local Communities

Activities at Each Region
Nurturing Future Generations• Plant tours for NEETs and individuals engaged in related
support activities in the Nikko and Kanuma districts; NEET
employment support (Copper Foil Division)• Plant tours for local elementary school students; plant tours
and study meetings for junior high school students (Nikko)

Nature Observation Group (insect
collecting) (Mie)Living Side by Side with Local Communities• Each month employees cleanup rubbish and remove weeds
along the roadways surrounding the Hiratsuka Works as apart of the community beautification campaign organized by
the Kawara Group of the local industry association working
largely out of the Higashiyawata area
• Provide assistance to a Nikko Area NPO by requestingmaterial cleanup and other support; engage in donation andvolunteer activities as well as the supply of bazaar items(Copper Foil Division)

School support corporate advisor(Copper Foil Division)

Promotion of Sports and Culture

The clean mission illegal dumping
prevention campaign (Mie)The Amagasaki water sprinkling mission(Copper Tube Division)• Donations to the community-organized Star Festival andfireworks competition (Hiratsuka)• Held an event at the Yawata Athletic Park featuring booths
as well as horticultural, mimicking and character showsin collaboration with the 42 companies located along
the Yawata coastal region and members of the Yawata
Merchants’ Association as well as the town council (Chiba)• Provided use of the Copper Tube Division’s grounds for the
Amagasaki Business Friendly Softball Competition (Copper
Tube Division)

Participation in the Sagami River field survey, cleanup and grass planting
event (Hiratsuka)• One team participated in the
Kameyama City Relay Road
Race Competition (Mie)The soccer competition organizedby the Furukawa Electric Football
Club (Furukawa Battery)

Others• Received a certificate of appreciation in recognition of donations
to the Chiba Prefecture Environment Foundation (Chiba)• Received a certificate of appreciation from the National
Land Afforestation Promotion Organization in recognition ofactivities aimed at supporting the Green Fund (Nikko)• Participated in local community revitalization activities
organized by the Town Development Committee (Nikko)

Moji Seaside Park clean-up activities(Furukawa Logistics Corp., Kyushu
Branch)39 Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 2010

Kameyama Eco Forest development
tour

Cooperating with blood donation
activities (Miharu Communications Inc.)

Study session with an NPO (Copper Foil
Division)

Support and Cooperation• Placing requests to companies that help the disabled
to gain greater independence for cleanup and weed
removal assistance within the company’s grounds fivetimes a year (Nikko)

Interaction with facilities for the disabled Interaction with schools (Copper Foil
(Copper Foil Division)
Division)Awards from Outside Sources
Receiving a Prime Minister Award for “Developmentof Erbium-Doped Optical Fiber Amplifier (EDFA) and
Its Sophistication” at the 7th Industry-AcademiaGovernment Collaboration Honor Program
Haruki Ogoshi, Manager, FITEL Products Department,
Telecommunications Company, The Furukawa ElectricCo., Ltd. received the Prime Minister Award with supreme
distinction at the 7th Industry-Academia-Government
Collaboration Honor Program. Mr. Ogoshi won the award
for “Development of Erbium-Doped Optical Fiber Amplifier(EDFA) and Its Sophistication” jointly with Masataka
Nakazawa, Professor, Research Institute for ElectricalCommunication, Tohoku University and Kazuo Hagimoto,Director, Network Innovation Laboratory of Nippon
Telegraph and Telephone Corporation.
The award presentation ceremony was performed together
with contents exhibition at the site of the 8th Conference for
the Promotion of Collaboration Among Business, Academia
and Government held on June 20 and 21, 2009, at the Kyoto
International ConferenceCenter.

Purpose of the AwardAn erbium-doped optical fiber amplifier (EDFA) can directly
amplify attenuated optical signals within an optical fiber,without the need to first convert it to an electrical signal as
has been conventionally done. For this reason, the EDFA is afundamental technology that is used to implement long-haul,
high-capacity, high-speed optical communication systems
easily and inexpensively.
As is known, the development and sophistication of
EDFAs and the EDFA-based optical communication systems
has created a new technology for optical communication
networks, which has been broadly adopted worldwide toserve as the driving force for widespread use of the Internet,
leading to the expansion of the optical industry. These
achievements have been highly evaluated, resulting in theaward at this time.
Furukawa Electric has long been involved in the practicaluse and productization of EDFAs, under the guidance ofProfessor Nakazawa and NTT Corporation. In particular,
we succeeded in developing a high-power semiconductor
pumping laser at 1.48 µm, thereby promoting practicalapplication of high-power EDFAs that use the developed
laser. The product has grown up to become a mainstay
product in our optical components business, and a numberof products are manufactured in the production bases inThailand and China, to be delivered to markets in Japan andworldwide. Hereafter we intend to enrich our EDFA-related
products to expand our business further.

Desktop-type erbium-doped optical fiber amplifier (EDFA)

Column“Small Acts of Volunteer Work” Launched by Furukawa Electric’ Secretaries’ Office“Can anything be done about the large volumes of leftover
calendars at the end of the year?” This topic of discussion
during workplace meetings led Furukawa Electric to the workof the Nippon Volunteer Network Active in Disaster (NVNAD).
NVNAD is engaged in disaster prevention and relief activities
and organizes the Calendar Market, a leftover day planner andcalendar charity bazaar. In January 2008, and by word-ofmouth among the secretaries of affiliated companies, a total of
968 items comprising 910 calendars and 58 day planners werecollected and sent. Formal requests were placed among theCompany’s head office, branches and works as well affiliatedcompanies, which led to the collection of 124 day planners
and 1,610 calendars for a total of 1,734 items, up 179% year

on year, in fiscal 2008. Around the same number was collected
and sent in fiscal 2009.
In addition, the Secretaries’ Office has located a volunteer
organization that collects old stamps. Calling these activities“small acts of volunteer work,” acollection box has been placed at
the secretaries’ counter. Efforts arebeing taken to expand volunteer
activities within the Group.

Cardboard boxes filled with dayplanners and calendars

Furukawa Electric Group CSR Report 201040