3R & Repair

Stressing Effective Use of Resources in Design

The Daikin Group strives to use resources as effectively as possible by carrying out the 3Rs-reducing, reusing, and recycling-along with repairing under its 3R & Repair initiative.

This initiative plays a key role in our product design and development. Based on product assessment, we design and develop products that are smaller and lighter, and that use materials and construction that make them easy to maintain, separate, and recycle.

• Environmentally Conscious Design through Product Assessment

3R & Repair: Approach

3R & Repair: Effective Use of Resources

Recycling

Designing Products for Easy Disassembly

Product design stresses 3R & Repair based on product assessment. Since 1997, we have designed products so that their construction makes them easy to disassemble.

Reducing

Maker Smaller and Lighter Products that are Still Energy Efficient

Making products smaller and lighter means they will use fewer resources. When making air conditioners, we set weight reduction targets for both the entire product and its components. However, it is technically difficult to achieve this without sacrificing energy efficiency. If making it smaller and lighter means that it consumes more energy, then the product's environmental performance throughout the entire lifecycle has not yet been improved.

When the Daikin Group develops new products, we establish weight reduction targets for each product on the condition that the energy efficiency (COP) does not decrease.

Product Packaging Weight Reduced by 6% Since 2005

We set a target of reducing the amount of packaging for air conditioning products by 6% in fiscal 2010 compared to fiscal 2005.

In fiscal 2010, our distribution and design divisions worked together to make products stronger and develop a new structure for packaging to reduce the amount of packaging. (For details, see Topics below.) We achieved our goal of a 6% reduction compared to fiscal 2005.

We will continue working to reduce packaging weight through measures including using new materials and devising better methods of package assembly.

Amount of Packaging per Product (wood, cardboard, styrofoam, etc.)

Reusing

Repair and Reusing Parts that have Already Been Replaced

In the Daikin Group, we try to use resources efficiently. We take parts that have already been replaced and that contain multiple components, such as printed circuit boards, and we repair any malfunctions or replace the worn-out components. These parts (the printed circuit board, for example) are then tested for quality by ensuring that they are functioning properly and, with the customer's permission, are used as replacement parts when performing repair on a product.

Repair

Reinforcing the Global Repair System

Making products that last longer means that fewer resources are used. To this end, the Daikin Group is strengthening its repair system by establishing service outlets around the world to take customer repair requests and questions and enquiries regarding products.

In Japan, the Daikin Contact Center is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year to take inquiries, while 55 service outlets across the nation carry out product repair and maintenance. We will continue to strive for even greater customer satisfaction by improving the technical expertise and etiquette of our service engineers.

With Daikin picking up the pace of its overseas expansion in recent years, it is crucial that we strengthen our service network in each country. We have added service bases in countries like Spain, Singapore, and Italy through the integration of the service system of O.Y.L. Industries Bhd, which Daikin acquired in 2006. In North America and China, Daikin is working with O.Y.L company McQuay International to exchange employees and utilize networks so as to improve the service system.

Daikin Service Network

Recycling Residential Air Conditioners

Daikin Achieves Recycling Ratio of 84%, Well above Obligations under Home Appliance Recycling Law

The Home Appliance Recycling Law obligates manufacturers to recycle at least 70% of the material from their own air conditioners as well as recover and then reuse or destroy refrigerants.

In fiscal 2010, the start of the eco-point system in Japan led to an increase in consumers making purchases to replace their old products. It also led to an increase in the amount of used residential air conditioners we recovered: 250,000 products totaling 8,648 tons, more than the previous year. The recycling ratio was 84% and the amount of refrigerants recovered was 145 tons.

In April 2011, we reduced the recycling fee to encourage more people to recycle their used products.

Recycling of Residential Air Conditioners in FY2010 (Japan)