Olympus Adopts Policy for Socially Responsible Procurement

The Olympus Group, led by Olympus Corp., a major Japanese manufacturer of precision instruments, has established a new procurement policy in favor of suppliers who not only meet the traditional requirements of quality, price and delivery, but also give due consideration to compliance with laws and regulations, human rights, labor standards and the environment. The group has been calling on its domestic and global suppliers to support the new policy since December 1, 2005.

The new policy specifies the group's basic principles concerning the procurement of materials and services needed to manufacture its products, such as building fair relationships with suppliers and putting importance on compliance with laws and regulations, respect for human rights, consideration for labor standards and the environment when selecting its suppliers. The policy also encourages suppliers to jointly implement corporate social responsibilities (CSRs), aiming to help them incorporate CSR into their business operations.

The group uses the slogan "Social INs" as a corporate philosophy that governs its business activities. Under this concept, the group aims to promote people's health and well-being by practicing three kinds of "IN": INvolvement, being involved as a member of society; INsights, sharing insights with society; and INspiration, proposing new values through its business activities.

The group has been promoting CSR activities in accordance with its new corporate conduct charter and code of conduct, both of which were established based on the "Social IN" management philosophy. Aiming to become a global company that contributes to the sustainable development of society, the group participated in the United Nations Global Compact in October 2004, and declared its commitment to the compact's 10 principles in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption efforts. The establishment of the new policy is part of the group's efforts to implement these principles in its business activities.

http://www.olympus.co.jp/en/news/2005b/nr051206shizaie.cfm

Posted: 2006/04/07 06:46:14 AM
Japanese version