Environment

Reasons for Priority

As the impact of climate change becomes more pronounced and the associated social and economic losses and damages become more severe, the importance of the 1.5°C target for limiting the global average temperature rise was confirmed at the 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The conference also determined to set stronger goals on a country-by-country basis, etc. To achieve the 1.5°C target, greenhouse gas must be reduced to effectively zero by the year 2050. In order to realize long-term environmental goals, companies need to establish environmental strategies, build frameworks for environmental management based on this strategy, and steadily implement initiatives within these frameworks.
Simultaneously, there is a need to shift away from the traditional linear economy characterized by a cycle of mass production, consumption, and waste generation toward a circular economy, in which resources are recycled and reused. In addition, with regard to chemical substances contained in products, there has been a steady expansion in the scope of substances that are subject to regulation, as well as in the geographical areas in which such regulations apply. Companies need to take steps to reduce environmental impact throughout the product lifecycle, and to respond appropriately and reliably to the aforementioned regulations in their business activities.
In December 2022, the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, agreeing to halt biodiversity loss and put nature on a recovery track by 2030 with the goal of achieving Nature Positive. The targets defined include enhanced information disclosure and initiatives by companies—matters that we must address.

Commitment

Under the Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision, Nikon strives toward three goals: (1) Realizing a Decarbonized Society; (2) Realizing a Resource Circulating Society; and (3) Realizing a Healthy and Environmentally Safe Society. To this end, we established the Nikon Medium-Term Environmental Goals as specific goals to achieve by fiscal year 2030.
In our efforts to realize a decarbonized society, we aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from business facilities by 71.4% (compared to fiscal year 2013) by fiscal year 2030. This effort will help us achieve carbon neutrality by fiscal year 2050. This target was certified by the Science Based Targets (SBT) initiative. We are also a member of RE100 and are working to adopt renewable energy. In fiscal year 2022, we improved to roughly 22% in renewable energy use. This fiscal year, we set quantitative targets for the 3Rs related to our products, such as usage rates for recycled materials, to realize a resource circulating society. We also intend to respond to requests for enhanced information disclosure in a consistent manner and based on the new biodiversity framework, aiming to realize a healthy and environmentally safe society.
While climate change is a risk to our business, we also see a business opportunity to contribute to decarbonization and resource circulation by leveraging our core technologies. The Nikon Medium-Term Management Plan includes a sustainability strategy as one of its pillars. Here, we will contribute to building a sustainable society while balancing environmental friendliness and business growth.

Environmental Strategy

Long-Term Environmental Vision and Medium-Term Environmental Goals

To proactively address environmental risks and regulations, we formulated the Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision, which looks ahead to fiscal year 2050.The Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision comprises three pillars believed to be particularly important in consideration of the global situation and the characteristics of Nikon’s business, which uses limited resources to manufacture and sell products. We will continue to strive for the achievement of carbon neutrality throughout our supply chain by fiscal year 2050 as we aim to realize a decarbonized society. These three pillars are linked with Materiality and with the Nikon Medium-Term Environmental Goals, for which fiscal year 2030 is the target year.

Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision (Target period: fiscal year 2050)

Sustainable Society / Realizing a
Decarbonized Society, Achieving Carbon Neutrality / Realizing a Healthy and Environmentally Safe Society / Realizing a Resource Circulating Society

The Nikon Group contributes to building a sustainable society through the Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision, established for Realizing a Decarbonized Society, Realizing a Resource Circulating Society, and Realizing a Healthy and Environmentally Safe Society.
The Nikon Group is committed to developing new businesses and tackling innovations that will contribute to reducing environmental impacts.

Environmental Action Plan

Based on the Sustainability Policy and the Nikon Environmental Activity Policy, the Nikon Group has formulated the Nikon Long-Term Environmental Vision and the Nikon Medium-Term Environmental Goals and has established the Environmental Action Plan as a single-year target. We are implementing this plan across the entire Nikon Group. We clarify the relationship between the environment and our business activities and then make an accurate assessment of the impacts and risks posed to the environment and use this information to prioritize these goals and plans.
The Environmental Subcommittee deliberates on and approves self-evaluation performances and we review our action plans for the next year and thereafter based on the issues that are identified by the Subcommittee.

Materiality

Pick Up

Regular Reviews for Compliance With ISO 14001 and Other Standards
EMS Assessments*

The Nikon Group conducts HQ EMS Assessments to confirm the state of top management and EMS Secretariat per region, and Local EMS Assessments to check the state of organizations within each region. These assessments are each conducted once a year, designed to check conformity with ISO 14001 and to improve performance.
To maintain and improve the quality of these assessments, the Nikon Group in Japan conducts EMS assessor cultivation training four times a year. A total of 74 employees completed this training in fiscal 2022. Employees completing this training are tasked with conducting Local EMS Assessments. We are also cultivating assessors at Group companies outside Japan through participation in training programs run by auditing organizations.

  • *EMS Assessment: At the Nikon Group, the term "EMS assessment" is used as an equivalent to "internal audit" in ISO 14001, and internal auditors are called "EMS assessors."

Reducing Environmental Impact Through a Focus on Quality Engineering Methods
Significant Efficiency Improvements in Optical Glass Development and Manufacturing Processes

The world-class optical performance of Nikon products is supported by high precision, high quality optical glass. The development and manufacturing processes for optical glass use high-temperature melting furnaces and require repeated experiments, which leads to high energy consumption and a large amount of waste. Therefore, we focused on quality engineering methods, devised new evaluation methods, reduced the number of experiments via simulation technology, shortened lead times, and improved the precision of stamping processes. These changes resulted in a significant reduction in energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste emissions, leading to significant reductions in environmental impact.

Product 3R Initiative
Reusing Semiconductor Lithography Systems

The Nikon Group has commercialized a service for collecting and reconditioning used Nikon semiconductor lithography systems from customers. Through this service, we replace and reconfigure parts, installing the refurbished systems for new customers in and outside Japan. This business is an example of the Nikon Group’s practice of reusing its own products within the Group. As of fiscal year 2022 the Nikon Group had sold a cumulative total of 449 refurbished products.

Major Activities in Fiscal Year 2022

Scope 1 and Scope 2 Greenhouse Gas Emissions (compared to fiscal year 2013)

CO2 33.8% Reduction

Total Waste Generated from Operations (compared to fiscal year 2018)

20% Reduction

FSC-Certified Paper Used in New Product Catalogs (Japan, North America, Europe)

Approximately 93%

Eco-friendly Products

The Nikon Group conducts product assessments from the product planning and design stages, taking into account the impact on the environment. Among them, we certified products that conform to more rigorous standards in product assessment are classed as either Eco-friendly Products or Super Eco-friendly Products.

Relevant Highlights