In May, NGK celebrated its 90th year in business. Since its foundation, the Company has delivered products worldwide that support social infrastructure, and that are indispensable to socioeconomic development. Of course, society’s needs have changed over the years, but NGK has answered these needs through a dedication to technological development, for which the Company has always earned society’s trust.
In fiscal 2008, NGK regrettably saw business performance falter year on year, reflecting the adverse impact of a sharp economic downturn worldwide. Conditions are expected to worsen further in fiscal 2009. Yet even in this climate, I am convinced that constantly honing our technology, developing human resources, and addressing emerging social needs in order to spur the next stage of growth for our businesses remain the most important missions that society has entrusted to the Company.
“NGK products and technologies must create new value and contribute to the quality of life.”
At NGK, our fundamental objective with respect to corporate social responsibility (CSR), as this our corporate philosophy suggests, is to consistently generate new products and services of value to society through our business activities, contributing above all else to society’s sustainable development.
Each year, we have published a detailed account of environmental initiatives taken by NGK in the “Environmental & Social Responsibility Report.” However, beginning from this milestone year of the Company’s 90th anniversary, we have chosen to publish a “CSR Report,” offering a broader review of NGK’s actions relating to its social responsibilities beyond care for the environment. In addition to articulating NGK’s vision for the future, we hope to foster greater understanding of the Company in reporting this information to our stakeholders.
The basic aspects of CSR at NGK are the creation of new value, the environment, and compliance. Going forward, we will review annually whether our activities on each of these fronts are a suitable response to what society of the day demands. In the process, we hope to improve management of the Company to the level of CSR management.
Today, there is strong worldwide interest in reducing CO2 emissions to preserve the environment and achieve sustainable social development. NGK, while supporting efficient use of energy by meeting customers’ energy efficiency needs through its products, at the same time consumes substantial heat energy and releases CO2 in its manufacturing processes for ceramics products.
For a company like NGK, which handles a wide range of products that contribute to environmental performance, reducing the environmental load associated with its business activities is an imperative. Accordingly, for some time now we have been taking action to achieve this, including switching to fuels with fewer CO2 emissions and minimizing energy requirements by significantly shortening manufacturing process time. In parallel, we have developed a consolidated environmental management framework that includes overseas bases, and are enacting measures to raise the level of environmental management across the Group. Going forward, we remain committed to reducing the environmental load of our business activities by developing and adopting more efficient processes.
As always throughout the history of NGK, the Company’s management today must continue to earn the trust of wider society and meet its expectations.
To realize this, we must encourage greater understanding of our activities by enhancing communication with all stakeholders, including customers, shareholders and investors, employees, suppliers, and local communities. At the same time, I believe we must listen even more carefully to the feedback from our stakeholders.
Today, you are reading NGK’s first CSR Report, conceived as a step-up from the former Environmental & Social Report. When you finish, I sincerely hope that all of you will share with us your candid thoughts on NGK activities.
President and Chief Executive Officer
