Epson ups its environmental challenge
In it's Sustainability Report 2009 Epson shows that it has made a significant reduction in the impact it's making on the environment during its financial year to March 2009.
The report, which details the group's environmental and community activities during the period, states that on a per unit of sales basis, Epson's emissions of global warming substances showed a consolidated global reduction of 51%, compared with fiscal 1990 levels, against the target 50% reduction, and a decrease in energy use within Japan of 43% (target was 35%)
Also, as part of its ongoing commitment to socially responsible procurement, in 2008 Epson evaluated around 290 suppliers and performed on-site audits at 70 suppliers. The move is part of the group's wider Environmental Vision 2050 established last year and setting out long term targets including a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions across the life cycle of all its products and services by 2050.
"This year I intend to accelerate actions that will move us a step farther toward achieving the vision," said Epson president Minoru Usui. "Reducing our CO2 emissions by 90% will require fundamental changes in every facet of our business. If we reinvent business processes such that we can halve CO2 emissions arising from manufacturing, logistics and from products themselves, we can, with the help of synergies, slash our emissions by 90%. Conceiving of and delivering low environmental impact products is a challenge that belongs to manufacturers."