Social Performance

Relationship with our Customers

Quality
Control Policy

At every stage of our operations, from research and development tomanufacturing, sales, customer service and management, in all sections andall hierarchies, we always strive to adhere to a PDCA management cycle basedon actual facts, maintain and improve our products, customer service and thequality of our operations and put our management policies into practice.

A Brief History of Furukawa Electric’s Quality Control Activities

27

Furukawa Electric established a Quality
Control Committee in 1949 and commenced
educational activities to raise employees’
awareness of statistical methods and otheraspects of quality control at all our plants.
As a result of these activities, we started tomake use of statistical methods at each of
our plants, work towards operational standardization and implement efficient experiments at our laboratories based on Designof Experiments. This enabled us to significantly increase quality levels, as well as in-creasing operational stability and efficiency.
Our quality control initiatives were recognized in 1952 as Furukawa Electric wasawarded the Deming Application Prize forachieving distinctive performance improvement through the application of TQM.
In an effort to maintain and improve
quality levels, we have continued to set
out and implement companywide Quality Control Policies every year since then.
Through these and other activities, including a range of quality control educational

initiatives and our unique quality auditor
training schemes, we continue to make every effort to improve our employees’ quality control skills.
In addition to obtaining ISO 9001 quality
management system certification in each ofour manufacturing divisions and achieving
operational standardization, we continue to
implement internal reform in areas such as
efficiency and promote activities designed
to improve levels of quality and customer
satisfaction.

Basic Stance of Quality

The Organization for Improved Quality Levels

Based on our basic policy of putting
quality first and implementing uniform
companywide quality control, we strive
every day to provide our customers withas many products and services that guarantee reliability and satisfaction as possible.

To guarantee quality at every level
throughout the company, we at Furukawa
Electric have established a Central Quality
Control Committee to oversee the companywide promotion of quality control activities. We have also set up Divisional Quality
Control Committees with direct links to
the heads of each division and make every
effort to maintain and improve the qualityof our products, services and operations
so as to offer continual quality assurance.
We have appointed Quality Control
Managers to promote quality control activities and quality assurance on behalf ofdivisional heads and strive to promote reciprocal cross-divisional efforts to improve
quality levels through the Quality Control
Management Meeting.

Quality Control Organizational
Structure
President
Central Quality Control Committee(Chair: CPO / Members: division heads)

Quality Control Management Meeting(Members: Quality Control Managers
from individual divisions)
Divisional heads
Quality Control Manager
Divisional Quality Control Committees

Quality Improvement Activities
Our Central Quality Control Committee
formulates companywide quality control
policy for each fiscal year, with divisional
quality policies then determined accordingly by each individual division. Policies
are implemented and followed up in accordance with policy management methods.
For fiscal 2007, we have set out a companywide quality policy based on striving toeliminate all defects through “DAN-TOTSU(unrivalled) quality activities.” To put thispolicy into practice, we are promoting quality improvement activities in each division,
revolving primarily around preventive activities to eliminate defects and efforts to
cut costs resulting from in-house failings.
We are also implementing a range ofbottom-up activities, including FR proposal
and QC Circle activities.
Named after “F” for Furukawa Electricand “R” for renewal, reform and rationalization, FR proposal activities involve employees submitting ideas on how to improve op-

Progress with Quality
Improvement Activities

erations. Proposals are then implemented
and improvements made in an effort tostrengthen the company’s underlying structure. Improvement activities are positioned
as one of the day-to-day activities carriedout directly by each division and continue
to yield substantial results each year.
By way of ongoing improvements on the
shop floor, we implement small group-based
QC Circle activities involving all employees. QC Circle activities include efforts toimprove yield from the production process
and increase efficiency. They prove highly
effective and also help motivate the employ-ees involved. We hold debriefing sessions
at individual works and on a companywide
basis to report back on the results of activities. QC Circle debriefing sessions havebeen held on an increasingly grand scale
in recent years, with even representatives
from overseas subsidiaries attending.

The Flow of Companywide Quality
Control Policy
Fiscal 2007 companywide
quality control policy

Eliminating all defects through“DAN-TOTSU (unrivalled) quality activities”• Prevention of defects through preemptive QC activities• Honest onsite implementation based on real products
and real situations

Preventive activities to eliminate defects
Reciprocal audits, new product audits,change management
Efforts to cut costs resulting from in-house failings

QC Circle presentation meeting

Proposal and Circle activities
FR proposal activities, QC circle activities

Customer Feedback

As part of the ongoing range of quality
improvement activities we are currently undertaking, we have managed to significantly
reduce customer complaints. We have successfully reduced complaints to 28% of levels in fiscal 2001 (as of fiscal 2006) and arereceiving glowing feedback from our customers. In an effort to address newly emerging
customer needs, we are making further quality improvements and promoting activities
geared towards eliminating defects through“DAN-TOTSU (unrivalled) quality activities.”

To respond to an array of increasingly
sophisticated, diverse and complex customer needs, Furukawa Electric combines
a wide range of technology, products, ser-vices and expertise to help its customers
to generate value. Our efforts have beenhighly commended by our customers to
date.

Commendations from Customers in Fiscal 2006
(In no particular order)Award

Customer (full titles omitted)

NTT West President’s Award

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corporation

NTT East/West Procurement and Supply Center
Director’s Award

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone East Corporation

Superior Quality Supplier Award

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

Cost Improvement Award

Toyota Auto Body Co., Ltd.

Customer Complaints (fiscal 2001 = 100)

Best Partner Award

Suzuki Motor Corporation

100

Supplier Performance Award

American Honda (USA)Aoki Katashi Best Technology Award

Japan Society of Polymer Processing

100

80

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corporation

73

60
47

40

42
35
28

20
0

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

(Fiscalyear)

28

Social Performance

Relations with our Shareholders and Investors
Based on two-way communication with our shareholders and investors, we engage in IR (investor relations) activities inan effort to contribute to society and help enhance our value as a company. We set out specific objectives for sustainablegrowth in March 2006 in the form of our 2006-2009 Medium-Term Business Plan: Innovation 09 and have since started
to implement a range of measures designed to meet the targets outlined therein.

Information Disclosure Policy and IR Framework
The Furukawa Electric Group Action
Guidelines state that we will “maintainand improve upon solid, friendly relationships with all of our stakeholders.”
Our Internal Regulations on the Timely

Disclosure of Corporate Information
meanwhile set out a framework for thedisclosure of appropriate information at
the appropriate time.
All IR activities are overseen by the

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and aremanaged 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 (covering interim and year-end
results and medium-term plans) for institutional investors and securities analysts,
both domestic and international, we actively organize meetings all year round, withthe exception of the quiet period prior tothe close of accounts. Through briefings,
visits from overseas investors and otheractivities, we engaged in communication
with a total of 799 institutional investors
and securities analysts over the course of
fiscal 2006. As of the end of March 2007,
the percentage of the company shares
held by overseas investors stood at 26.4%.

Main IR Activities in 2006
January
February Third quarter earnings announced
March Medium-term business plan unveiled
April Visit from European and US investors
May Annual earnings announced
June General Shareholders Meeting
July
August First quarter earnings announced
September Visit from Asian investors; US conference
OctoberNovember Interim earnings announced; briefing forindividual investors

End of year briefing session

December

Relations with Individual Investors
In fiscal 2006, we took part in a corporate research seminar sponsored by
the Nagoya Stock Exchange, as part ofwhich we gave business presentations
to a total of 240 individual investors andsales staff from securities firms. We havealso established a framework to provide
important disclosure information as andwhen necessary, including posting thelatest information on our website (http://
www.furukawa.co.jp/zaimu/index.html)
and running a registration-based email
IR newsletter service (registration for ouremail IR newsletter service can be com-pleted via our website). As of the end of
March 2007, we had a total of 65,126 individual shareholders, accounting for 25.3%
of company shares.

Trends in Shareholder Distribution
(%)
100
80

2.7
21.0

5.0
26.4

7.2
7.2

60

47.3

36.1

21.8

25.3

March 31, 2006

March 31, 200740

Securities firms
Overseas companies
Domestic companies
Financial institutions
Individuals

20
0

An individual presentation

Returning Profits to Shareholders
In addition to operating a stable dividend policy, we also aim to pay out dividends in line with the medium- to longterm growth strategy set out under our
2006-2009 Medium-Term Business Plan:

29

Innovation 09.
In the fiscal year ended on March 31,
2007, we paid out interim dividends of 3.0
yen per share and end of year dividendsof 3.5 yen per share, making a total of 6.5

yen per share. This represented a yearon-year dividend increase of 3.5 yen per
share over the course of the fiscal year
ended on March 31, 2007.

Relations with our SuppliersWorking Together with our Suppliers
As part of our efforts to contribute tosociety and the environment through ourbusiness activities, including developing
and manufacturing products with minimal environmental impact and reducing
the volume of industrial waste generated,
it is essential to ensure that our suppliers
understand our purchasing policy for materials and supplies. We also make every
effort to secure additional support andcooperation from our suppliers.
In addition to promoting green procurement (see relevant section) toachieve this, we also organized our first
Supplier Meeting in March 2007. The

Furukawa
Electric
Purchasing
Policy(outline)

event was aimed at establishing stronger
relationships and was attended by roughly 200 of our suppliers. We used this as
an opportunity to explain matters such as
our purchasing policy and aspects of our
Action Guidelines for Company Officials
and Employees and Environmental Policy relating to the procurement of materials and supplies and to ask our suppliers
to promote environmental preservation,
consideration for human rights and safety and compliance. We intend to continue
to hold such meetings in the future in aneffort to establish even closer communication with our suppliers.

Supplier Meetingl We will establish strategic relationships with suppliers toensure optimum purchasingl We will guarantee the reliability and safety of materials andsupplies and their steady procurementl We will employ purchasing methods closely linked to
production methods
l We will implement global procurementl We will engage in green procurement and enforce compliance

Promoting Compliance in Relation to Procurement
Furukawa Electric promotes compliance in relation to the procurement ofmaterials and supplies in accordancewith the Furukawa Electric Group Action
Guidelines.
Whereas we have always taken partin external workshops and organized inhouse study sessions on legislation suchas the Act Against Delay in Payment of

Subcontract Proceeds, Etc. to Subcontractors and the Waste Management andPublic Cleansing Law, in view of our increasing use of overseas procurement inrecent years, we plan to organize workshops and study sessions on Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, Customs
and other laws as well in the future, as
and when necessary. In addition to mak-ing every effort to maintain open, fairrelationships with domestic and overseas clients, we also intend to pay close
attention to all forms of data provided
to ensure that they are not used for any
improper purposes and to maintain andimprove levels of compliance as part ofall procurement operations on behalf of
the Furukawa Electric Group.

30

Social Performance

Relations with our Employees
Relations with our Employees
Personnel Management Policy
The Furukawa Electric Group Action
Guidelines state that we will “respect human rights, cultures and traditions as amember of the international community”
and that we will “create a company inwhich employees can feel a sense of reward, ease and fulfillment.” This encapsulates the basic approach that we employ
with regard to personnel management.
Above all, we believe that it is absolutely

crucial to establish safe, healthy working
environments and workplaces that are
free from irrational discrimination andharassment to get the most out of theabilities that our employees have to offer.
Based on these foundations, we are aiming to devise a personnel system that will
harness employees’ various abilities andindividual personalities and bring out
their creativity, through initiatives suchas equal treatment irrespective of age or
gender and support schemes to enable
employees to achieve a work-life balance.
By combining all of our employees’ individual abilities, creating jobs suited tocurrent needs and providing safe products, we are striving to contribute tosociety and create a company that both
motivates its employees and fills themwith pride.

Outline of Furukawa Electric’s Personnel System
Skill development
l OJT
l OFF-JT						l Self-development

Global Business Leader training
Graded training
Education in specialist expertise
External training schemes
Support for distance learning andEnglish conversation classes

Remuneration
Recruitment and assignmentl New graduates, mid-year
recruitmentl Job rotationl Career advancement interview
system

Impartial evaluationl Evaluation of performance,
attitude and contributionl Management-by-objective
systemMonetary remuneration

Non-monetary remunerationl Award schemes

Benefits and welfare

Diverse work pattern and work-life balance support schemes

Health, safety, fairness and compliance31

l Pension schemel Company housing andaccommodationl Savings and property supportl Shareholders association, etc.

Diverse Work Patterns and Work-Life Balance Support Initiatives
In addition to operating a number ofschemes in support of employees’ diverse working patterns, we also continue
to review areas such as labor management and personnel systems to enable
them to reflect a similar approach in lightof Japan’s dwindling birth rate and aging
society. As well as striving to enhance our
employees’ working lives, we also work
together with our employees to actively
support their personal lifestyles and help
them stay in good health through educational and other initiatives.
Activities undertaken during fiscal
2006 included reviewing our post-retirement reemployment scheme and reforming our maternity/paternity leave system.
In terms of action plans for the future, as
required of all regular business operatorsin accordance with the Law for Measures
to Support the Development of the Next
Generation, we have implemented themeasures set out in our first phase plan(fiscal 2005-2006) according to scheduleand have been accredited as a company
that is actively providing support for thedevelopment of the next generation. As

it stands, we have finished compiling andsubmitting our second phase action plan,running from fiscal 2007, and are now entering the implementation stages.

Diverse Work Pattern and Work-Life Balance Support Schemes
Scheme/educational
initiative
Flexible working hours
Annual paid leave
Consecutive leave
Half-day paid leave
Congratulatory or
condolence leave
Carried-over leave
Maternity/paternity
leave (and reduced
working hours)
Nursing care leave (andreduced working hours)
Reemployment after
retirement
Retirement seminars
Middle-age seminars

Purpose and details
We provide lifestyle support to enable employees to work efficiently in line with business demandand strike a work-life balance.
We provide employees with up to 25 days annual paid leave (e.g. if an employee has been with thecompany for 11 years or longer)
We allow all employees to take three days consecutive leave every year providing that it does notexceed their annual paid leave entitlement. Employees can obtain an additional two days every five
years (up to a maximum of five consecutive days).
Paid leave may be taken in half-day units to enable employees to take care of minor personalerrands on week days.
We operate a congratulatory and condolence leave scheme whereby, for example, an employee cantake five days paid leave if their wife gives birth to a child.
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 or providing nursing care.
We provide support over and above statutory requirements to enable employees to strike a work-lifebalance, including partial pay during maternity/paternity leave and the option for employees to work
reduced hours thereafter until their child reaches elementary school age.
We provide support over and above statutory requirements to enable employees to strike a work-lifebalance, including enabling employees to take nursing care leave (or the option of working reduced
hours) for up to a year at partial pay.
We operate a reemployment scheme for any employees aged 60 or over who are in good health andwish to remain in work. The duration of reemployment is being increased in phases, with employees
currently entitled to be reemployed up to the age of 65 (in response to revised legislation in 2006).
We jointly organize seminars every year to provide 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 and plan for theirlife after retirement.
We jointly organize seminars every year to provide individual support to help middle-aged employees(those aged 40 or older as a rule) to stay fit and healthy, including measures to prevent illness.

Recruitment
The table on the right shows figures
for the number of employees recruited
over the last five years. As we continue toexpand our business in line with society’s
needs, we intend to continue to secure
personnel to act as the driving force en-abling us to sustain and develop our business in the future, particularly enthusiastic personnel who are willing to take on
new challenges.

Recruitment Figures
Fiscal year
2003
New graduates
51(Female new
2graduates)
Mid-year recruits
1
Clerical staff
0
Professional staff
0(People)

2004
34

2005
32

2006
53

2007
71

3

2

6

8

0
1
0

1
2
0

10
0
47

Unknown
Unknown

29* Figures for fiscal 2007 refer to numbers of new graduate recruits.

Employment for People with Disabilities
Although we are yet to reach the statutory target of 1.8% rate of employment
for people with disabilities, in 2004 we set
up Furukawa New Leaf, a special subsidiary to actively promote employment forpeople with disabilities. Furukawa New
Leaf is subcontracted to handle cleaning
operations at our Hiratsuka Works andhas a workforce that includes ten employees with disabilities. There are plans

however to extend operations to our
Chiba Works as well in fiscal 2007 and to
expand employment further. By promoting employment for people with disabilities at Furukawa Electric and throughour special subsidiary, we are aiming tomeet statutory employment targets overthe coming years.

Number of Employees with Disabilities(as of June 1 each year)
(%)

1.6
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.1
1.0

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006 (Fiscal
Year)* In April 2004, the exclusion rate set out when the rate of employment
was calculated was lowered, reducing the rate of employment.

32

Social Performance

Relations with our Employees

Employee Assignment, Evaluation and Treatment
We make every effort to assign employees and place them in specific positions based on their individual motivation and abilities based on the concept ofequal opportunities. As part of such efforts, we operate a range of consultation

schemes and give employees opportunities to reflect on their career goals.
In terms of employee evaluation andtreatment, we have introduced a personnel incentive scheme to enable employees to be evaluated and treated fairly de-pending on the abilities that they display
and their performance. We are also training managers in performance evaluation
and are working on ways for improving
the way in which the system is run.

ployees to independently develop theirskills by providing opportunities such as
training, distance learning and support tohelp them obtain qualifications.
In fiscal 2006, we launched the Global
Business Leader training program to aid
the development of personnel capableof handling business development andmaking a greater contribution on a global

scale. We are also focusing on training designed to improve manufacturing capabilities and compliance-related education.
On other fronts, we organize human rights education (training for new
recruits or employees being promoted
to management positions, etc.) to raiseawareness of the importance of respecting human rights.

Education and Training
We believe that our strength as acompany stems from the synergy of theabilities of each and every one of our employees and that their abilities improve ona practical level through their day to day
work duties.
In addition to giving individuals the
chance to grow and develop through theirwork, we also encourage enthusiastic em-

Safety Efforts
Safety Record
There were four accidents that resulted in the cessation of work in fiscal 2006,
making for a frequency rate of 0.52.

Frequency Rate for the Suspension of Operations
1.2
1.1
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0

Furukawa Electric
Overall manufacturingindustry

0.54

0.47
0.36
0.09
2000

2001

0.3

2002

2003

0.52
0.25

2004

2005

2006

(Fiscalyear)

Companywide Priority Safety Activities
We set out companywide priority safety targets as part of our Companywide Safety and Health Control Guidelines for fiscal 2006 andhave implemented priority safety activities accordingly.

Companywide
Priority Safety
Activities

1. Promotion of operational standardization to eradicate unsafe conduct (II)Establishing correct operational procedures and skills based on three-pronged operational standards

2. Comprehensive safety and health education for transferred personnel andtemporary workers (II)Promoting OJT via a safety and health operation follow-up system

33

Progress with Safety Efforts
We are promoting safety efforts aimed at eliminating unsafe conduct through preemptive safety measures and foreseeing problems
rather than preventing them from reoccurring.
(1) Promoting operational standardization and improved overall equipment safetyvidual safety interviews and skill assessments, focusing particularly on employees with less than one
year of work experience.

In addition to promoting operational standardization for the second fiscal year in a row, incorporating factors such as the instincts and techniques
required to effectively carry out operations fromthe three-pronged standpoint of safety, quality andproductivity and decision making criteria, we arealso continuing to improve the overall safety of individual facilities and equipment.

(3) Auditing compliance with laws andregulations(2) Safety and health education fortransferred personnel and temporary workers

We actively engage in activities designed to improve working environments, including encouraging
all employees to identify residual risks, improving
unsafe operations based on risk assessments andrepairing malfunctioning equipment.

We continue to organize OJT-based education
through the regular monitoring of operations, indi-(4) “Hiyari-Hatto” activities

Forklift truck safety competition

Healthcare for Employees
Working Long Hours

Mental Health Education
employees during the period from fiscal 2002 to 2004. During fiscal 2005 and2006, we have been offering an advanced
course, incorporating case studies tohelp equip supervising managers withpractical skills.

Promoting Separate Smoking Areas
Smoking Rate (Male Employees)
(%)

60
50

Smoking rate

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, we designated more than
70 smoking rooms in fiscal 2004 in an effort to isolate smoking areas. As a result,the percentage of smokers amongst male
employees on a companywide basis fell
from 53.3% in fiscal 2002 to 44.5% by fiscal 2006. We intend to continue to makeevery effort to prevent passive smoking
in the future, as well as actively promoting nonsmoking.

We held a companywide competition, also open
to affiliated companies, in which employees tested
their safe, steady forklift truck driving skills against
one another.

We have conducted internal audits based on
qualifications and assignments, as part of our safety
management structure, and on checklists relating tohandling chemical substances and heavy manuallabor, as part of job-specific management.

Health Initiatives
We have continued to promote companywide mental health measures eversince 2002 in accordance with the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare’s“Guidelines for Promoting Mental HealthCare in Enterprises.” We provided basic
mental health education sessions for all(5) Forklift truck safety competition

53.3

52.7

48.3

40

45.7

44.5

30
20
10
0

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

(Fiscalyear)

In line with the Labor Standards Bureau’sguidelines, “Measures to be Taken by Employers to Prevent Health Impairment Due
to Overwork,” we are focusing on efforts
to ensure that any of our employees working long hours stay in good health, throughmeasures such as (1) enforcing strict work
restrictions based on the results of medical
examinations and (2) operating a consultation system whereby employees working
long hours are seen by a medical officer.

Responding to AsbestosRelated Health Issues
During the period from fiscal 2005 to༛ᾍ₸㧔↵ᕈ㧕
2006, we have once again investigatedworkplaces that have previously been used
to handle asbestos products and organizedspecial medical examinations for all relevant
60
53.3
52.7notices
employees. We have also sent
out
48.3
50
urging retired employees
who worked at
the relevant sites to 40
undergo special medical examinations. Although
no products
30
containing asbestos are handled at any of20
our workplaces at present, illnesses causedby asbestos tend to 10
take a long time, up to
20 or 30 years, to develop.
We will 2003
therefore
0
2004
2002
continue to undertake such activities
ᐕᐲ andmonitor all relevant employees.

45.7

44.5

2005

2006

34

Social Performance

Involvement with Local Communities
The Furukawa Electric Group fulfills its responsibilities as a member of society through activities such as disaster relief
support and exchanges with the local community.

Support and Assistance
We provide support and assistance forvictims of natural disasters and throughenvironmental foundations and othersuch organizations.

Name
Donation Campaign for theIndonesian Earthquake Victims
Keidanren Nature Conservation
Fund
Chiba Environmental
Restoration Fund

Details of support/
assistance
1 million yen
1 million yen
147,000 yen* We are also involved in and provide support for soil pollution funds and various
other environmental organizations. In
other areas, we are engaged in activities
such as providing support for welfare
facilities and to enable people with disabilities to be a part of and reintegratethemselves into society.

Awards from Outside Sources
Aoki Katashi Best Technology Award
We received the Aoki Katashi BestTechnology Award from the Japan Society of Polymer Processing for the development of micro-cellular foam PET sheets
and their use in light-reflecting sheets.
We became the first company in theworld to apply micro-cellular foam technology to PET resin and successfully
achieve industrial production. Due to theoutstanding optical reflective propertiesof the micro-cellular PET foam developed as a result, we have expanded ourbusiness operations into areas such as
electrical billboards made using MCPET

and reflective sheets for backlighting
LCD TVs. Our efforts were acclaimed asa major breakthrough in terms of practical application and a remarkable achievement in the field of polymer processing.
JSAI Invention Awards:
Achievement AwardAt the 32nd JSAI Invention Awards,
Mitsuo Inoue from the Technical Department of Asahi Electric Works received
an Achievement Award for inventing(patenting) a method of minimizing galloping vibration by improving the way inwhich loose spacers grip power transmission lines. When snow or ice form along a
conductor, strong winds cause the snowor ice to act like an airfoil and can cause
the conductor to experience a type of vibration known as galloping. To prevent
this from happening, Inoue came up with
the idea of fitting a rotating mechanism
to the gripping part of spacers (devices

Local Community Clean-up Activities
We carry out clean-up activities in andaround the local communities in the vicinity of each of our bases, as well as nearby
coastal, riverside and other locations.
In the district where our Head Office islocated, we also take part in community
activities in areas such as Otemachi andMarunouchi and collect garbage along
local streets once a month as part of ourefforts to keep local environments clean.

Cleanup activities at individual works and companies

35

used to maintain spaces between cables
in multi-conductor transmission lines)
and limiting the angle of rotation, thereby minimizing snow or ice buildup andsubsequent vibrations. His invention has
been adopted by six power companies todate.

Communicating with the Community
l We invited students and teachers from local elementary and junior high schools to come and take a tour of plants at our works and affiliated companies. We also invited employees’ families to take a tour of our Chiba Works.

A family tour (Chiba Works)

A tour for social studies teachers(Furukawa Circuit Foil)

A tour for elementary school students (Nippon Foil Mfg)

l We play an active part in community events in the local areas where our works and affiliated companies are located. We try to establish involvement with the local community through initiatives such as opening up recreational areas and other facilities to local people on holidays and inviting
employees’ families and local people to take part in festivals and other events held on company premises.

Nikko Waraku Odori Dance (Nikko Works)

Summer Festival (Chiba Works)

Assisting with Nikko Volunteer Festival(Furukawa Circuit Foil)

l At our Hiratsuka Works, we take part in the local Environmental Fair, an event organized by Hiratsuka City and the Forum for Environmental Symbiosis
Corporations, in an effort to inform local residents about our environmental initiatives.

Exhibiting at the Hiratsuka Environmental Fair

36

Social Performance

Social Contribution Activities at
Individual Works

Chiba Works

Toru Kumabe
Manager, Chiba Works

Nikko Works

Hiroyuki Kamishiro
Manager, Nikko Works

A Beacon Sending Out an Environmental Message
In an effort to improve the landscape and create a tranquil environment around the Chiba Works, we have set up a Beautiful
Natural Environment Committee. Its activities include MIC (Minnade Issho-ni Clean (everyone cleaning together)) cleanup activities
involving all employees, support for environmental patrols and efforts to improve green space management. Our aim is to send out
an environmental message through such activities, not only to ouronsite employees but also to our customers and local residents. I
encourage anyone to come and take a look at the results of ourhard work here at the Chiba Works. Having achieved our target ofzero emissions two years ago, once again thanks to the involvement of all of our employees, we went a step further and turned
our attention to the percentage of waste products recycled. We
have already achieved a recycling rate of 95% and are now work-

ing towards a target of at least 99%.
To contribute to and work in harmony with the local community, we are also actively involved in an ongoing series of initiatives
such as environmental education as part of plant tours for local
elementary school children and employees’ families, helping toraise funds for
the Chiba Environmental Restoration Fundand taking partin the Yawata
Seaside Festival.

Acting in Accordance with our One-Phrase Environmental Declaration
There are no borders when it comes to the environment. It is
my hope that we can all act in an environmentally sustainable
manner both at work and at home based on a universal acceptance of the fact that our actions have the same impact no matter
where we are. In accordance with our “one-phrase environmental declaration” based on the notion that causing pollution is thesame whether at work or at home, each and every Nikko employee
carries around an environmental policy card outlining their own
personal declarations.
Whereas we have previously taken waste products offsite forpermanent disposal over the course of our 100 years in business, westarted waste recovery and processing work in 2003. In June 2007
we completed the relevant work after a period of five years. As ademonstration of our gratitude to everyone in the local community

for their support over the years, we have planted grass seeds onthe former work site to restore it to its natural state. My personal
one-phrase environmental declaration is to “learn from the lessons of the past and to strive to create an environmentally friendly
works.”

Hiratsuka Works Promoting the 3Rs and Striving to Become an Eco-Works

Toshio Kikuta
Manager, Hiratsuka Works

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Thanks to our efforts to carefully sort waste and scout out
companies that reuse materials, we managed to achieve our zero
emissions target in fiscal 2006. Having reached a recycling rate of
97.6%, we intend to pull together to promote the 3Rs across allplant and research operations to enable us to run at the target rateof 99.1% by fiscal 2009. As you can see from the photograph, wehave started to chop up fallen or removed branches, which had
previously been thrown away as industrial waste, into woodchips
and lay them around the bases of trees to help prevent weeds andminimize the heat island effect.
In terms of conserving energy, in addition to using climbing
plants as sunshields, we have also created a sweet potato garden
on the roof of our network building in an attempt to help lower
rooftop temperatures during the summer months. As an added bonus, we may even be able to hold a yaki-imo baked potato party

when fall comes!
Half of the west side of our magnet wire plant has now been
demolished, creating a wide open space to the left hand side of themain gate. We plan to continue to push ahead with refining plans,revolving largely around the reuse of vacant land, and to complete
development
work by 2009
to mark the50th anniversary of theworks’ opening.

Manager, Mie Works

Over the course of the ten years since the Mie Works was granted ISO
14001 certification in November 1998, we have engaged in a wide range
of environmental conservative activities and have achieved significant
reductions in paper, waste, power consumption, chemical substances, atmospheric pollutants, water pollutants and other substances causing environmental impact, taking our sales figures into account. For example, wehave achieved a 23% reduction in the volume of paper purchased, a 61%
reduction in the volume of outsourced industrial waste disposal and a 51%
reduction in specific energy consumption compared to levels in fiscal 1998.
In an effort to step up our environmental activities even further, we havealso continued to engage in activities designed to help protect the environment by addressing improvements relating to positive environmental activities as part of our general business operations. As of fiscal 2006, we havestarted to put the framework in place for an environmental system that will
include running environmental impact assessments on our general business
operations. In terms of specifics, we are striving to conserve resources andenergy, (including cutting CO2 emissions) through measures such as reduc-ing or reusing raw materials, improving product yield and reducing defectrates, and make a contribution through measures such as reducing waste.
In addition to continuing to make every effort to reduce the essential environmental impact of the Mie Works, we plan to expand activities designed
to help preserve the environment through improvements in our generalbusiness operations in the future.
Reductions Compared to Fiscal 1998 (%) and Sales Figures
80
60
40
20
0
-20
-40
-60
-80

Sales

Nobuo Arai

A Turning Point in our Environmental Preservation Activities

Reduction (%)

Mie Works

Electricity
Industrial waste
Paper
Sales

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

(Fiscal2006 year)

Osaka Works Contributing to Involvement with the Local Community

Tatsuo Yoshisue
Manager, Osaka Works

The grounds of the Osaka Works come to life with the voices of
excited children at the weekend. Our employees play an active rolein training sessions for youth baseball and soccer teams, serving
as their managers or coaches. We also get parents coming onto
company grounds to watch their children play, always with serious
expressions. Our policy of opening up our grounds in this manneris welcomed by the local community as it helps with the development of well-rounded human resources.
In October, we provide the use of our grounds for the annual softball tournament hosted by the Amagasaki Employers’
Association, of which we are a member. Over five Sundays, withfour matches played each day, a total of around 100 participants
give their all, whether playing or just offering their support. All of
the companies that take part, large or small, do their bit to help

strengthen the bonds of friendship between member companies
belonging to the association.
We will continue to engage in activities designed to contributeto the local community in the future as we strive to win a place inthe hearts of local
people.

Yokohama Works Establishing Ourselves as a Works that Puts Environmental Preservation First

Hisaharu Yanagawa
Manager, Yokohama WorksIn April 2006, the Yokohama R & D Laboratories were incorporated into the Yokohama Works, with a newly added admin divisionalso commencing full-scale EMS activities from 2007 onwards. In
addition to raising divisional standards in view of our newly added
EMS activities, we intend to continue to focus on environmentallyfriendly research and development over the course of 2007 on apriority basis, as we have done up to now. Our research and development division is actively engaged in environmentally friendly research and development, including support initiatives to reduce thecontent of harmful substances in our products, efforts to minimize
the usage of harmful substances within the research and development process and making full use of DfE to enable environmentallyfriendly design from the design stages onwards. Our admin division
meanwhile is addressing priority issues in the form of saving energy,

reducing waste and reducing consumption of paper.
We also engage in a range of initiatives that take the local environment into consideration, including offsite environmental patrols
during environmental months and cleanup activities in the vicinity ofour premises. We intend to continue to make the most of what the
Yokohama Works
has to offer in the
future to establish ourselves asa works that puts
environmental
preservation first.

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