Contributing to the Realization of a Sustainable Society
by Promoting Sustainability Management with the Aim of Becoming a Business
That Continues to Grow with Society
Inheriting Management Policies to Further Enhance Corporate Value
I assumed the position of President of Shin-Etsu Polymer on June 23, 2023. I feel honored and privileged to take over this important role from Chairman Ono, our former president, with the start of the new medium-term management plan, Shin-Etsu Polymer Global & Growth 2027 (SEP G&G 2027). Over the last 10 years, as the General Manager of the Sales Unit, I have promoted the growth of our business by strengthening product development capabilities to meet the quality standards desired by our customers and developing a global production system to ensure a stable supply. Moving forward, we will continue enhancing our corporate value by providing high value-added products that take advantage of our basic technologies, while focusing on relationships of trust with our customers.
Since our establishment in 1960, Shin-Etsu Polymer has been dedicated to the development and application of basic technologies such as materials and composition, design, manufacturing processes, and evaluation and analysis of various resins including silicone rubber as the resin processing manufacturer of the Shin-Etsu Chemical Group. Currently, we are meeting a wide range of customer needs by combining compounding and processing technologies for silicone rubber and various plastics to provide high value-added products.
In addition, based on its Corporate Mission Statement, the Shin-Etsu Polymer Group strives to be a business that continues to grow with society by putting safety and fairness at the forefront of its management. For this purpose, we will continue to pursue better product development by striving for energy conservation, resource efficiency, and reduced environmental impact in our business activities and proactively incorporating global challenges such as the SDGs into our goals.
In fiscal 2022, there were challenges such as soaring raw material prices and disruptions in international logistics due to the situation in Ukraine, resulting in declining sales volumes in some of our businesses. Nevertheless, we avoided a significant downturn, and overall performance improved due to increased demand in the automotive-related business and sustained high demand in the semiconductor business. Meanwhile, as the company with the top domestic market share for semiconductor-related containers, we need to secure production capacity that can constantly respond to market demands. Regardless of the current situation, we will continue to expand our facilities and improve market confidence from a medium- to long-term perspective, while striving to fulfill our role as a globally operating resin processing company in ensuring a stable supply of products.
Strengthening the business foundation to support sustainability management
In May 2023, our Group announced the Medium-Term Management Plan SEP G&G 2027, which covers the period from FY2023 to FY2027. To keep operating in the current rapidly changing social environment, it is crucial to build a robust corporate foundation that supports our cornerstone of sustainability management. In the Medium-Term Management Plan, we have set key issues and targets in each of the ESG areas to further clarify the issues that we need to tackle. We will continuously strive to resolve these issues, including climate change and our failure to meet the statutory employment rate of persons with disabilities, while focusing on timely information disclosure to stakeholders.
In particular, we recognize that reducing CO2 emissions is one of our major challenges. In our medium-term management plan, we have set a goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. We are examining measures to achieve carbon neutrality, with a focus on switching to renewable energy sources, including the introduction of solar power generation and energy storage facilities.
We will also continue to strengthen our sustainability management system to fulfill our social responsibility. The Group has established the Sustainability Committee to deliberate on CO2 emission reduction targets and climate change actions. In addition, the Compliance Committee is responsible for comprehensive risk management and the development and operation of a compliance system for the entire Group, including subsidiaries. We will actively promote the activities of both committees, while also engaging in constructive dialogue with shareholders and investors.
Furthermore, in March 2023, we formulated the Multi-Stakeholder Policy as a guideline for building relationships with various stake¬holders, including employees and business partners. We will continue to work toward appropriate collaboration with all stakeholders as an open company.
Developing human resources to promote creativity and innovation
To achieve sustainable growth in the future, it is important to secure and develop human resources who can drive creativity and innovation in the company. Based on this idea, we have set the development and growth of our employees as one of our top priorities and will focus on developing human resources who can demonstrate a high level of expertise and ability. We promote workplaces that encourage employees to learn, play a more active role, and advance their careers and support them in reaching greater heights. Specifically, we are creating environments that facilitate continuous learning by establishing an on-site experience learning cycle that emphasizes OJT, while building a human resource system that makes it easy for each employee to take on new challenges. In addition, to create an environment where employees can play an active role regardless of gender or age, we have proactively implemented measures such as establishing a re-employment system that allows employees to continue working after reaching the mandatory retirement age, promoting women’s participation and advancement, and expanding systems to help employees balance work and various life events like childcare and nursing care. Our entire Group will work together to achieve further growth by embracing people with diverse experiences and values to revitalize our organization and develop our business.
The products we offer are seldom seen by the public eye, but they support our current society and meet demands for the creation of a future society in a variety of ways. In the ever-changing market and social environment, we will strengthen our corporate foundation by promoting sustainability management, fulfill our responsibilities as a global company that aims to solve social issues through our business, and contribute to the realization of a sustainable society.
