CSR and Sustainability Promotion Structure

Message from an Executive Officer Responsible for Sustainability Promotion

Promoting CSR and ESG/SDGs initiatives

Guided by the SUMCO CSR Policy, the Company has been committed to CSR and sustainability promotion activities, considering it our corporate social responsibility to value all stakeholders, including customers, shareholders, suppliers, employees, and all of society including the global environment.

SUMCO CSR Policy
  1. Supported by its cutting edge technology, SUMCO shall steadily provide products and service with excellent quality, ability and safety, shall win customers' satisfaction and trust, and shall contribute to the sustainable development of society.
  2. SUMCO shall produce legitimate profits, grow corporate value, proceed with timely and appropriate disclosure to the public, and aim at returns to its shareholders and investors.
  3. SUMCO shall comply with law and regulations, international rules, and social norms, shall implement risk management, and shall maintain business continuity.
  4. SUMCO shall choose its suppliers by fair and rational standards, establish mutual confidence, and prosper together.
  5. SUMCO shall manage environmental activities, make use of resources and energy efficiently, and control emission.
  6. SUMCO shall maintain safe, healthy, comfortable and appropriate workplaces for everybody working in SUMCO, shall have a high regard for human rights, ability and personality, and shall realize fair and diverse ways of working.
  7. SUMCO shall respect various cultures and histories, and shall interact with society and local communities.

Based on the belief in valuing and respecting these multiple stakeholders, “ESG” refers to areas of investor demands on corporations, while the “SDGs” set out goals and targets to be aimed for by society and the world, the objects of this belief, and ask corporations to contribute proactively to their realization. Accordingly, engaging with ESG issues and the SDGs can be seen as leading to the promotion of CSR and sustainability, which is aimed at contributing to multiple stakeholders.

SUMCO's Initiatives and Framework

SUMCO provides high-quality silicon wafer products of use in solving issues for the environment and society, while also conducting sustainability promotion activities that address issues for the environment, society, and corporate governance in our own business processes. In such ways we are devoting efforts to the SDGs in pursuit of global sustainable growth. Toward further accelerating these initiatives, in 2021 we launched the ESG/SDGs Council (renamed to “the Sustainability Promotion Council” from 2023) and appointed an Executive Officer Responsible for ESG and SDGs (renamed to “an Executive Officer Responsible for Sustainability Promotion” from 2023).
Made up of members of Executive Officer level and above, the Sustainability Promotion Council meets (twice a year in principle) for reporting and deliberation on activities related to sustainability promotion in each division. It then reports a summary of the proceedings to the Board of Directors, where lively discussions take place involving also the outside directors.

Structure of the Sustainability Promotion Council

Structure of the ESG/SDGs Conference

Of the numerous sustainability promotion activities that are undertaken under this structure, introduced here are initiatives on behalf of carbon neutrality and in the area of diversity and inclusion, with a special focus on gender equality.

Carbon neutrality: Decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation

Carbon neutrality can be seen as a prime example of an issue to which contributions are being made both in our product provision and on the business process front.
One of the 169 targets included in the SDGs is endeavoring “to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation.” As this implies, the SDGs are based on the philosophy of achieving both solutions to issues for the environment and society and economic growth, of which carbon neutrality is a representative undertaking. Today when CO2 emissions are seen as the greatest threat to the environment, we are asked not only to reduce the rate of emissions per unit (emission factor) but to reduce the absolute emission amounts, while maintaining economic growth. Having a major role in the semiconductor industry with its ongoing growth, we are directly confronting this difficult demand, resolving to go ahead with various initiatives toward carbon neutrality while carrying out our business processes in a way that reduces other environmental impacts resulting from our business activities.
We will also contribute toward carbon neutrality on the business end by providing high-quality semiconductor silicon wafers essential for power management in electric vehicles and renewable energy, and for making data centers more energy efficient.

Diversity & Inclusion

The promotion of diversity & inclusion (hiring, training, and promoting the active involvement of diverse human talent) is essential to the Company’s growth and continued existence. To meet the demands of leading-edge semiconductor manufacturers worldwide while continuing to grow, we need to keep on hiring diverse, outstanding personnel and empower them to make full use of their abilities. An important element of this, which is also a key goal of the SDGs, is gender equality; and here we will step up our efforts to achieve this equality in the form of greater involvement of women. Along with making the Company a better place for women to work in, we will create the opportunities and means for excellent people to shine regardless of gender, aiming for the continued growth of employees and the Company.

Fulfilling our role

Even more than previous UN initiatives, the SDGs are a call to corporations and individuals to contribute to the world by becoming more proactively and energetically involved in solving issues for the environment and society. In our own role, including the supply chain, we will continue being one of the “good corporate citizens” working to solve these issues. For my own part, I too intend to devote a maximum effort to this end, together with people inside and outside the Company.

Relationships with Stakeholders

SUMCO endeavors to fulfill its responsibilities to stakeholders, who support our business activities.

Relationships with Stakeholders