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Environment-Friendly Products and Recycling Technology

1. Environment-Friendly Products
To protect the environment and contribute to therealization of a sustainable society, Furukawa Electricrecognizes that "the 21st century is the century of theenvironment," and in response to the needs of society
and our customers, is actively working to develop
environment-friendly products and technologies. Our aim

is to develop a range of commercially viable"environment-harmonized" products--products that at
every stage, from materials selection, manufacture anduse to distribution and disposal, will be non-toxic and oflow environmental impact.

Typical Environment-Friendly Products
Name of product(1)
Products with reduced
environmental impactFeatures

Home appliances, power distribution, communications

Halogen-free, Lead-free■ Lead-free electrical wire

Automobiles

Lead-free■ Lead-free plated parts of electronic equipment

Electronic parts

Lead-free■ Halogen-free resin flexible conduit (Eco-PlaFlexi)

Indoor electric wire laying

Halogen-free, Lead-free

Home appliances, automotive

For CFC substitutes

Electronic equipment

Eliminates CFCs

(2)
■ HPWR II heat- and refrigerant-resistant windings
Products that contribute■ SALAMANDER nitrogen-atmosphere reflow ovens
to preventing ozone■ FullCoat functional resin-coated aluminum sheets
layer depletion(3)
Products designed for
reduced waste disposal
and improved
recyclability

Field of application■ Halogen-free electrical wire (ECO-ACE, ECO-Beamex)

Electronic equipment

Eliminates lubricants, cleansers■ Recycled aluminum can stockCans

Recycling■ Recycled aluminum distribution wire

Wire and cable

Recycling■ CCBOX and Information Box underground ducts

Cable laying

Reuse of materials■ BioAce biodegradable resin sheets

Packaging materials

Biodegradability■ MCPET high-reflectivity foamed sheets

Lighting

Saves energy

Automobiles

Lightweight, saves energy

Electronic equipment

Saves energy

Electric power

Clean energy

Power generation

Reduces CO2■ High-performance heat-exchanging material(4)
Products that contribute■ Products containing micro heat-pipes
to preventing global■ Solar photovoltaic systems
warming■ Deep-sea CO2-fixing systems

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5

Environment-Friendly Products and Recycling Technology

ECO Non-Halogenous Wire and Cable

Lead-Free Plating for Electronic Components

1
Lead-free plating for the leads of ICs, capacitors, connectors,
printed circuit boards, etc. has been achieved by using a tinbismuth alloy instead of the tin-lead material used previously, sothat elimination of lead from customers' mounting process can bemuch improved.

Products with
ReducedEnvironmental Impact
We are developing products that do
not create environmental problems
when they are used, but further, they
do not emit toxic by-products when
they are eventually disposed of byincineration or in landfills, thus
reducing environmental impact.

Eco-PlaFlexi (Environment-friendly indoor cableprotection conduit made of flame-retardant resin)

By developing polymers and flame-retarding agents, we haveachieved products free of halogens, lead and phosphorous, which
permit easy disposal by incineration. "ECO-ACE" general cables
for indoor use, "ECO-Beamex" wires for electrical appliances andpower supply cords, and highly flame-retardant optical cables arealready in use.

HPWR II for Use with CFC Substitutes

Since these cable conduits contain no halogen-based flameretarding agents, they do not emit dioxins nor halogenous gases
when combusted, permitting easy recycling.

Copper Tube for Use with CFC Substitutes(Furukawa Multi-Grooved Tube, Furukawa SuperClean Tube)

2
Products thatContribute to Prevent
Ozone Layer
Depletion
We are developing devices andprocesses that do not use CFCs,together with products adapted toCFC substitutes.

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These heat- and refrigerant-resistant windings are now in use in
the compressor motors of air-conditioning and refrigerating
systems using CFC-substitute refrigerants (HFC-407C, R410A,R134a).

These are heat exchanger copper tubes for use with CFCsubstitute refrigerants to reduce the ozone layer depletion. They
have reduced oil residuals in the tube's inner surface and areinternally multi-grooved to improve heat-exchanging
performance.

SALAMANDER Nitrogen-Atmosphere Reflow Oven

"FULL-COAT" Functional Resin-Coated Aluminum Sheets

This reflow oven carries out the reflow soldering process during
the mounting of electronic components in a nitrogen atmosphere.
This eliminates the need to cleanse completed circuit boards,
obviating the use of CFCs.

These functional resin coated aluminum sheets provide enhanced
formability, corrosion resistance, scuff- and fingerprint-resistance,
resistance to chemicals, electrical conductivity, ease of printing,and anti-bacterial and anti-mold properties. They are also selflubricating, so that disposal of the lubricants and cleansers
formerly used in the stamping process is eliminated.

Environment-Friendly Products and Recycling Technology

5Recycled Aluminum Can Stock

Recycled Aluminum Distribution Wire

The use of can stock made from used beverage cans contributes
to promoting aluminum recycling.

We have succeeded in processing the old power distribution wire
removed and retrieved by power utilities by developing
techniques for sorting the aluminum wire, re-refining it andmanaging impurities, and remanufacturing it as wire rods anddistribution wire.

3Products thatContribute toReducing Waste andAchieving a RecyclingOriented Society
We are moving to develop productsthat reuse waste materials, productsthat feature unification of materials tofacilitate recycling, and products thatare biodegradable and thus do notleave residual waste products.

BIO-ACE Biodegradable Resin Sheets"KOTA-KUN"
Underground Cable Duct Made from Cable Waste

When these foamed sheets used in packaging and wrapping aredisposed of in landfills, they are completely broken down by theaction of microorganisms in approximately one year. We havedeveloped an environment-friendly foaming process based on ourproprietary technology.

This underground cable duct with multiple bores makes effective
use of plastic waste. "KOICHI-KUN" duct for information box use
is also highly reputed.

MCPET High-Reflectivity Foamed Sheets

High-Performance Heat-Exchangers Material

Furukawa Electric is the first in the world to succeed in thecommercial-scale production and marketing of white sheets madeof extra-fine foamed polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Bubble
diameter is so small that optical performance is outstanding, witha total reflectivity of 99 % or more.

We have developed aluminum radiator and air-conditioner
materials for automotive applications that are lighter in weight,
promoting better fuel economy and reducing CO2 emissions.

Solar Photovoltaic Systems

Micro Heat-Pipes

These clean distributed power generating systems use solar
batteries to convert the sun's rays directly into electricity.

Furukawa Electric's micro heat-pipes provide a solution to theproblems of heat-dissipation and cooling of electronic equipment,
making possible greater availability of computing power alongwith energy conservations.

4Products thatContribute toPreventing Global
Warming
Through the development of productsthat realize energy conservation,clean energy systems and the like, weare developing products that
contribute to the prevention of global
warming.

155Environment-Friendly Products and Recycling Technology■Product Development in Future
In future, new product development must take account of
the environmental impact over the whole life of theproduct, and life cycle assessment (LCA) is a techniquethat is gaining wide acceptance. Furukawa Electric has
already begun conducting life cycle assessments inrelation to the development of insulated cables andaluminum heat exchangers.

2. Recycling Technology(1) Recycling System of Electric Wire and Cable
Recycling systems of used power cables andcommunication cables from customers have been
established, thus enabling reuse of conductors mainly.
Recycled cables are disassembled and separated
material to material, and subsequently reused. Copperand aluminum from conductors are 100 % reused, while
covering materials are reused as recycled plastic and fuelachieving a considerable reusability.
(2) National Project for the Development of Recycling
Technology
During the 5-year period 1991-96, the Japan ElectricCable Technology Center (JECTEC) has been involvedwith cable manufacturers under the aegis of the Ministryof International Trade and Industry (currently theMinistry of Economy, Trade and Industry) in research on
thermal recycling through the development ofliquefaction and pulverization technologies. Since FY
1998, research has been going forward on the use of PVC
as solid fuel.
With respect to aluminum, funding from the New
Energy and Industrial Technology Development
Organization (NEDO) made it possible for the Japan
Research and Development Center for Metals (JRCM)
and seven manufacturers of aluminum rolled products toembark in 1993 on a 10-year project to develop
technology to promote aluminum recycling

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Recycling Technology Aiming at Recycling-Oriented Society

Production

Plant

Aluminum canElectric wireand cable
Consumption

ThermalRecyclingRecycling

Recycling

Place ofconsumption

Pulverization andLiquefaction

Fuelsubstitute

Retrieval, Sort andRecycling

Material
Recycling

Retrievedcable

Recycled
aluminum
Recycled
plastics
Recycled
copperSorting of cablematerials

Natural resources
Copper, Aluminum, Oil,
Plastics and Rubber

Furukawa Electric manufactures a broad range ofproducts, from electrical wire and cable to fiber-optic
components, machinery, and plastic and metallic
materials, and we will mobilize all of our expertise toadvance solutions to problems of the environment.