TOKYO, January 13, 2004-Fuji Xerox's 14 sales and office operations in 12 Asia-Pacific countries/regions acquired ISO 14001 certification after successfully demonstrating adherence to environmental management standards. They were certified in November and December 2003, adding to seven manufacturing-related sites in the region that acquired the certification between 1997 and 2001. Out of those 14 operations, seven companies/organizations in six countries were certified within 10 months through a group audit, which was performed among different countries for the first time.
Aiming to undergo a series of audits in an efficient manner, Fuji Xerox's Corporate Environment Management divided 14 non-manufacturing operations into two groups, where each group was comprised of seven operations in six countries/regions* (see list on page 3). Group 1 adopted a group audit conducted by the Japan Audit and Certification Organization for Environment and Quality (JACO) and completed the entire process within 10 months, two months faster than an average, which resulted in cost saving of 30 percent.
"Fuji Xerox and its affiliates are proactively promoting ISO 14001 certification acquisition to develop an environmental management infrastructure based on our environmental strategy," said Akira Sasahara, general manager of Fuji Xerox's Corporate Environment Management.
"As of today, our 69 domestic and overseas affiliates and operations have been certified. To realize a sustainable society, we will continue our global environmental conscious efforts toward achieving world-class environment management."
During the audit process, Group 1 shared basic environmental management manuals and internal audit guidelines, enabling them to focus on their individual policies, objectives/goal, internal management/implementation programs and organizational structure. Fuji Xerox leveraged its experience in Japan, where 31 sales subsidiaries acquired ISO 14001 certification in 2002, to carry out the audit procedures. As a result of efforts beyond borders, Group 1 could successfully achieve ISO 14001 certification on December 25, 2003, overcoming regulatory and cultural differences in six countries.
"Acquiring the certification is a big advantage in many countries, especially for sales to multinational companies," Sasahara said. "By doing this audit now, we are looking to the future when environmental factors will become more important in contracts for office equipment, confident that we already meet all the standards required."
The seven operations in Group 2 were audited individually, benefiting from the experience of their manufacturing sites that had gone through the process previously.
"This is a good example of our global initiative to pursue environmentally conscious business management everywhere we do business," Sasahara said.
