Four approaches on environmental preservation

Sony Chemical & Information Device has organized an Environment Specialists Committee for continuously advancing improvements by the PDCA activities in four fields: energy saving, water saving and recycling, recycling of industrial wastes, and chemical substance management.

While our production activities have to generate a fair amount of greenhouse gases, we have been actively promoting CO2 emission reduction by group-wide efforts including plant renovation to reduce fuel consumption, reuse of waste heat, search for new clean energy sources (such as wind, water or solar power generation), and electricity exchange.

• - CO2 emissions have been reduced by introducing a process in which driers can be stopped to coordinate with the line operating status in part of the magnetic tape manufacturing process. (Tagajyo Plant)
• - CO2 emissions have been reduced by changing the fuel for boilers and the deodorization system (Voc oxidizers) from heavy oil to LNG and by introducing (centrifugal liquid chiller). (Kanuma Plant)
• - CO2 emissions have been reduced by switching fuels from kerosene to LNG. (Neagari Plant)
• - Electricity savings through facility improvements; for example, introducing energy-saving equipment for mercury-arc lighting, improving no-load running times, and introducing more efficient transformers. (Nakada Plant)
• - Strengthen the activities of Energy Conservation in the Workplaces.

Water-saving initiatives and recycling efforts have been promoted aggressively in response to land subsidence due to overuse of groundwater and increased environmental burdens imposed on rivers by factory effluent.

• - The quality of water to be supplied to the once-through boilers can be improved through chemical treatment of water, reducing factory effluent. (Tagajyo Plant)
• - Recycling through the introduction and use of effluent-recycling facilities. (Neagari Plant)
• - Conserving water by switching the cleaning process from chemical cleaning to pure water cleaning and through process improvements. (Nakada Plant)
• - Introduction of water purification equipment that enables use of groundwater as primary pure water for industrial use (Nakada Plant)

We are making efforts to recycle industrial wastes by promoting the reuse and recycling of industrial wastes disposed at each plant. More than 99% of wastes generated in domestic manufacturing sites are now reused or recycled, practically achieving the "zero waste" goal. Reduction of industrial wastes by improvements in manufacturing processes is also emphasized.

• -- Recovery and use of solvents from waste solvents
• -- Reuse of packaging materials
• -- Recovery and reuse of valuable metals

• -- Use of inorganic sludge, plastics wastes, incineration ash, and acid/alkali wastes as starting materials of fertilizers and cement
• -- Recovery of metallic wastes by re-melting

• -- Reduction of industrial wastes by improvements in manufacturing processes
• -- Recycling of sludge as roadbed material
• -- Measures to reduce solvent effluent. (Tagajyo Plant)
• -- Implementing a joint across-the-board waste reduction project with Sony Sendai Technology Center to reduce general waste other than industrial waste (e.g. paper and household-type waste). (Tagajyo Plant)
• -- Implementation of "530 (zero-waste) Campaign". (Nakada Plant)
• -- Reduction of dehydration sludge (Sony Chemicals (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. / China)

The Sony Group has consistently worked to prevent use of prohibited chemical substances and to manage those to be reduced under GM2010 as well as legally-regulated chemical substances.

• - An organic solvent emission decontamination process was recently introduced at No.3 Kanuma Plant. (Kanuma Plant)
• - Reducing VOC substances through process improvements and studying replacements. (Nakada Plant)
• - Complies with PRTR* Law (corporate-wide initiative)
• - NOx and SOx reductions (Tagajyo, Kanuma, and Neagari Plants)
• - Implementation of strict control of chemicals to prevent theft and leakage (Kanuma Plant)

Sony Chemical & Information Devices implements its Chemical Substance Management System based on the PRTR Law to obtain monthly quantitative data on release/transfer of substances. The actual figures for 2007 have been reported to suitable prefectural authorities.
Substances released or transferred in quantities of 0.1t or more at each plant are listed below.

*It has changed to publishing only of the Tagajyo plant since current year though the Sony Sendai Technology Center amount was included in the figure of the Tagajyo plant so far.