Ricoh 2014 Annual Report Download - page 33

Overview Action Data & Prole
In Pursuit of
a Sustainable Society
ISO 26000: • The environment • Consumer issues
Ricoh Group Sustainability Report 2014 32
Economicgrowthinemergingnationscontinues,par-
alleling the steady advance of globalization. Urbaniza-
tion is progressing in these nations, and new markets
are appearing one after another, as the people’s stan-
dard of living begins to improve. However, along with
positive aspects of globalization come social issues
of global scale, notably, population growth and, due
to urbanization, environmental problems and short-
ages of food, water and energy. Such developments
prompt concerns about the sustainability of society.
No company can make light of these issues when
laying out a growth path into the future. A factor
indispensible to sustainable growth for any company
is the pursuit of business activities that take sustain-
ability into account. This requires an approach that
breaks away from the conventional consumption-style
economic structure in favor of a transformed busi-
ness model that supports realization of a sustainable
society.
To the Ricoh Group, a sustainable society is one that
balances Planet (environment), People (society) and
Prot (economic activities), and reduces the environ-
mentalimpactofsocietytoalevelthattheEarth’s
own recovery capabilities can manage.
Two approaches that support this future ideal
highlight activities to reduce the environmental impact
exerted on our planet through such processes as
resource extraction, energy consumption and dis-
charge of chemical substances, and activities to
protectthebiodiversitythatbooststheEarth’sown
recovery capabilities. Through these approaches, we
aimtoexpandtheEarth’scapacityforrenewalsothat
ユーザー
•Promotingrecyclingtogeneratehigheconomicvalue
•Decreasingtheuseofnewresourcesbyexpandingtheuseofrecycled
©1994 RICOH
Product
manufac-
turer
Parts
manufac-
turer
Materials
manufac-
turer
Shredder
company
Final
disposal
company
Thermal
energy
collection
company
Shredder dust
Metals
Fossil and mineral resources etc.
Disassembly oil
Open loop
materials
recycling
Closed loop
materials
recycling
Reuse of products
Reuse of parts
Sorting and disassembly
Crushing of products Landll
Long use
Parts
recovery
center
Materials
recovery
company
Recycling
center
Materials
supplier
Product
recovery
center
Collection
center
Sales
company
User
Generation of raw materials
• Chemical recycling
• Metals recycling
Energy recovery
(Energy, CO2)
Maintenance
company
User of
recycling
materials
Oil recovery
company,
smelting
company
Flow of the Comet CircleTM
Each circle in the chart above represents Ricoh partners that can help develop a sustainable society. Moving from right to left along the upper path, natural
resources provided by a supplier (upper right) are turned into products, and nally reach the users (customers). Used products travel in reverse, following the
path below from left to right. The Ricoh Group emphasizes the reuse and recycling of products and parts, expressed as the inner loops of the Comet Circle™.
• Concept of a sustainable society: The Comet Circle™
the planet can compensate for the environmental
impact caused by society.
Also, we know that a company only taking
responsibility for the impact that its own business
activities have on the environment will never reduce
the environmental impact of society as a whole and
will do little to achieve the future ideal. So, in 1994,
we formulated the Comet Circle™, a concept to
support realization of a sustainable society. It looks
beyond the domains of the Ricoh Group, making and
marketing products, and embraces the idea of
reducing environmental impact over the entire
product lifecycle, including associated upstream and
downstream processes.
We are aware that the biggest impact on the
environment is people, because it is we who hold the
reins of basic design in product development. We will
maximize the value of resources across the lifecycle of
our products, promote manufacturing that dramatically
limits the consumption of newly acquired resources, and
keep the Comet Circle™ in constant orbit. ➤ WEB1,2,3
Corporate responsibility for
a sustainable society
Ricoh Group’s future ideal • Society with balanced relationship between Planet,
People and Prot (Three Ps Balance)
Minimum disposal
Resource
recovery
Society
Global
environment
Economy
Resources
Money
Products
Production activities
Ecosystem
conservation
Consumption activities
➤ WEB1 ThreePsBalance:www.ricoh.com/environment/management/earth.html
➤ WEB2 Toward the realization of a sustainable society: www.ricoh.com/environment/vision/approach.html
➤ WEB3 The Comet Circle™: www.ricoh.com/environment/management/concept.html