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The Daikin Group has grown into a global corporation of more than 40,000 employees that manufactures and sells products around the globe including Europe, China, and North America. From such a global company as Daikin, society expects much and Daikin is working to respond to these expectations by making environmental protection one of its most important missions.
Our job is to utilize resources to make homes comfortable, more fulfilling places to live. Our greatest mission is to deliver what customers want in the form of safe, high quality products and to satisfy them through our products and services. Another is to ensure that minimal environmental impact ensues during the manufacture and use of these products. We believe that we can make our business sustainable by striving to achieve both comfortable living environments for customers and environmental protection. |
Protecting the Environment with Eco Technologies and Products
Under our FUSION 10 strategic management plan targeting 2010, we aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the production process in fiscal year 2010 to half of 2005 levels. We also set themes under FUSION 10 with the aim of contributing to the prevention of global warming by promoting the widespread use of our environmentally conscious products. We are placing a special focus on promoting the use of heat-pump type heating systems and energy-efficient inverter type air conditioners.
Heat-pump type heating systems, which draw heat from the air, are one type of product that helps prevent global warming. Compared to combustion-type heaters that burn oil or gas, heat-pump heaters keep CO2 emissions to about half. In 2008, the heat pumps were recognized in the EU as "technology that captures renewable energy." Switching from combustion-type heaters to heat-pump heaters can help reduce CO2 emissions in the heating process. Inverter air conditioners, while common in Japan, still have a low penetration rate in the rest of the world.
We established two joint venture companies in February 2009 with Chinese air conditioner manufacturer Gree Electric Appliances Inc. of Zhuhai in Guangdong Province with the aim to accelerate the widespread use of energy-efficient inverter air conditioners in order to provide customers with comfort while reducing the impact on the environment. We are planning to develop air conditioners that are as technologically advanced as those made in Japan and provide these to growing air conditioning markets in China and other emerging markets.
In Japan, where energy-efficient air conditioners are more common, we have started the Re: AIRCON Project to help customers get the most out of their products' energy efficiency while contributing to reducing CO2 emissions. The energy-conserving room air conditioners that we provide in Japan boasts "comfortable eco-operation" that provides a pleasant indoor environment at minimal energy consumption by the touch of a button. It is also equipped with an "eco-point." A tree grows on the screen of the remote control every time customers select "comfortable eco-operation," and the operation is linked to a Daikin reforestation project in Indonesia. Not only do customers reduce CO2 emissions, they have fun doing it. We will contribute to society on a global scale with our environmentally conscious products.
People: The Force behind Our Business and Change
It is our people who develop these products and bring them to consumers. As our business expands and as overseas activities make up an increasing part of our sales, fostering employees on a global scale becomes crucial. It is thus essential to pass on the all-important manufacturing skills, share Our Group Philosophy throughout the entire organization, and foster employees who have management and leadership skills that guide employees with various values in an integrated direction.
We created a base for fostering human resources with the establishment in May 2008 of the Daikin Global Training Center in Aoya, Tottori Prefecture. This facility will host training aimed at providing management and leadership skills to executives of Daikin worldwide bases. It will also contribute to the spread of techniques as engineers from the world polish their skills together.
The driving force behind Daikin's growth is "diversity management," a management style that utilizes the diversity of employees with differing cultural backgrounds and values that understand and respect one another, act based on Our Group Philosophy, and have thorough discussions to develop new products and services. Sticking firmly to this strategy will allow worldwide employees to use their abilities to the fullest and allow Daikin to build a rewarding, vibrant workplace where employees can grow. This we believe will lead to growth for Daikin as a whole.
Aiming for a Truly Global and Excellent Company
In October 2008, in order to clarify our code of conduct to the global community, Daikin participated in the United Nations Global Compact, a strategic policy initiative for companies that are committed to aligning their operations with universally accepted principles pertaining to human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption. Prior to participation, we revised our Handbook for Corporate Ethics to include Global Compact principles, including the abolishment of forced labor and child labor. We will use this handbook as the basis for efforts to abide by laws and to act according to accepted rules of ethics and conduct around the world as we aim to become a truly global and excellent company.
Daikin has been named to the "Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World" announced during the World Economic Forum in Davos for the past three consecutive years. We want to continue being a trusted corporate group by meeting our stakeholders' expectations to fulfill our social responsibility. With environmental protection and human resource development as our CSR pillars, we will continue to strive for corporate growth and a sustainable society.
June 2009
