Fujitsu Limited, a world leader in ICT-related business, including personal computers, obtained worldwide integrated ISO 14001 certification three years ago, which covered Fujitsu Limited, 90 domestic consolidated subsidiaries, and 11 overseas consolidated subsidiaries, representing a total of 117,000 employees, and successfully established a global environmental management system (EMS).

The goals of the system are to strengthen environmental risk responsiveness in the supply chain platform and to consolidate group-wide governance. The establishment of the system has enabled the company to share its corporate values across the Group and achieves ideal governance where all locations across the world operates under one policy called “One Fujitsu.” （１／２）

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One Fujitsu with worldwide integrated certification as a vehicle

Fujitsu is not only a well-known global company, but also one of the best sustainable companies. With a keen awareness as a global exporter, the company creates an environmental action plan and implements thorough environmental risk management every three years: It ensures full compliance with the various environmental regulations of different countries; provides Super Green Products (*1) that are in the top class in terms of environmental components, energy saving, and non-use of hazardous chemical substances; and has maintained a no-claim status with respect to shipped products.

There is a reason that such a large company can constantly achieve the highest level in environmental practices. There is only one environmental policy in the Fujitsu Group, under which all group companies come together as one. “One Fujitsu,” a phrase representing governance of the Fujitsu Group (*2), was enabled with the acquisition of worldwide integrated ISO 14001 certification covering domestic and overseas operations.

Completion of domestic integrated certification as a steppingstone toward worldwide integration

In March 2004, Fujitsu Limited received integrated ISO 14001 certification covering 99 locations, including affiliates, branches, factories, and establishments, representing 48,000 employees in total. In March 2005, the integrated certification was expanded to include domestic Group companies, covering 97 domestic consolidated subsidiaries (457 locations). These efforts represented an unprecedentedly large-scale advanced project and laid the foundation for the worldwide integrated certification obtained this time.

The acquisition of domestic integrated certifications was the first step toward the goal presented in the Fujitsu Group Environmental Protection Program Stage four developed in 2004, that is, “Establish the framework for the environmental management based on the environmental management system throughout the Group by the end of 2005.” Thus, the acquisition of worldwide integrated certification covering overseas operations was already built into the Fujitsu Group Environmental Protection Program Stage four. The Plan will not be accomplished unless worldwide integrated certification is obtained.

The Fujitsu Group says that since it has production bases and sales subsidiaries throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, the need to integrate them has existed for a long time. Therefore, when domestic integrated certification became feasible, the Group began considering the details of worldwide integrated certification, which was in 2003.

Two propositions: Governance and Sharing Information and Value

What gave rise to the need for worldwide integrated certification? Dr. Michinori Kutami, general manager of Sustainable Development Planning Division , explained as follows: “There were two reasons. One was for Fujitsu Group governance. While the company had many overseas bases, we had not yet established integrated environmental standards. Factories and establishments were responding to environmental issues in their own ways: Some had an ISO 14001-based environmental management system in place while others did not have any environmental programs at all. The worldwide integrated certification seemed the optimal means to realize true “One Fujitsu.”

The second reason was for sharing information and value. Value here means environmental value, and information means information concerning overall environmental activities, to which the entire Group is committed as its mission, such as environmental risk responsiveness and CO2 reduction. For a company with a global supply chain, it is indispensable to establish a system that enables the company to respond to the environmental regulations of each country in a seamless and smooth manner. Such a system will also facilitate compliance with RoHS (*3) and WEEE (*4). We thought that the acquisition of worldwide integrated ISO 14001 certification was a rational approach to share information and values globally.” What Dr. Kutami means by governance is “One Fujitsu,” that is, corporate operations under one policy.

However many bases a company may have, its business direction is one and its core organization is generally organized by product or service. When it comes to environmental management, however, it is often the case that establishment or practice varies with the base. Through the efforts toward acquisition of worldwide integrated certification, Fujitsu intended to streamline this situation and integrate the varied environmental standards into one. At the same time, the company strived to achieve sharing information and value.

Such efforts toward integration resulted in building horizontal ties among overseas bases, which in turn facilitated the prompt sharing information concerning, for example, compliance status and environmental accidents at each base. Moreover, such sharing enabled the company to create a variety of environmental activities in a systematic manner, such as measures against global warming, global recycling system, green procurement geared toward the every supplier, and the Environmental Contribution to Society, where tree planting and local volunteer programs are promoted.

The Fujitsu Group does not view environmental activities as a cost, but rather as value. The efforts toward the acquisition of worldwide integrated certification, therefore, played a significant role also in promoting the sharing value, “Strive to contribute to the environment on a global basis,” across the entire Group.

Mission! Integrate 623 world locations and 117,000 employees!

The first preparations toward the achievement of the mission began in the latter half of 2004. In May 2005, a policy was established and a specific plan was launched. What was done first was to determine certification organizations that implemented inspections. In the past, Fujitsu entrusted the domestic ISO 14001 certification process mainly to JACO (Japan Audit and Certification Organization for Environment and Quality).

However, in order to cover 11 overseas subsidiaries for worldwide integrated certification, the company needed the cooperation of a new certification organization with a solid track record in overseas inspection procedures and selected DNV (Det Norske Veritas AS). “We decided on DNV due to its reliable global track record, efficient paperwork, possibility of collaboration with JACO, offices in countries where our overseas bases are located, and the ability to handle local languages and currencies. Since a joint inspection was the first attempt for JACO and DNV, as well as our company, it was not all plain sailing for all of us,” said Mr. Tsutomu Kawaguchi, project director, Corporate Environmental Affairs Unit, Fujitsu, recalling those days.

“In 2005 when the worldwide integrated certification project took shape, we had meetings almost every day for six months after July. After discussing the style of the certification contract among three parties of our company, JACO, and DNV and signing a memorandum, we had meetings day and night on matters, such as the inspection schedule, cross inspections, and mutual certification procedures after the inspections.

These meetings often dragged on late into the night, and we were all exhausted,” said Mr. Kawaguchi. Our final goal was to obtain joint certification via “best mix inspections” by DNV and JACO, that is, to obtain one integrated registration certificate under one certification number, which covers 90 domestic and 11 overseas subsidiaries (a total of 623 locations). The project to realize “One Fujitsu” moved step by step toward joint certification via fine teamwork among the three organizations despite the ongoing difficult challenges.