To realize our Management Philosophy that we contribute to the world by fighting disease and improving health with advanced technology, and create a fulfilling life for our employees, Nihon Kohden strives to earn the trust of our customers, shareholders, business partners, and society in all aspects of products, services, technology, financial position, and employee quality.
In recent years, activities aimed at achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals have been promoted in order to respond to various cross-border social issues. The medical care we are involved in is becoming more and more complex due to various problems such as the aging society in developed countries, rising medical costs, lack of basic medical care in emerging countries, and widening medical disparities.
Under these circumstances, Nihon Kohden defined sustainability key issues (material issues) to be addressed through business and corporate activities. The Company also incorporated these non-financial targets into the previoius Three-year Business Plan, BEACON 2030 Phase I, in order to contribute to addressing global social issues and the SDGs. In particular, as addressing climate change is one of the most critical social issues facing global society and one of the most significant management issues for us, Nihon Kohden expressed its support for the recommendations by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) in May 2022 and disclosed related information in July 2022. Going forward, we will continue to promote climate change measures aimed at achieving the material issues for sustainability outlined in the Three-year Business Plan, BEACON 2030 Phase II, including “Realize carbon neutrality” and “Promote circular economy.” Additionally, we will work on expanding information disclosure in line with the TCFD recommendations.
We aim to realize a sustainable society and increase our corporate value by further strengthening the coordination between our business strategy and sustainability strategy, and creating both economic and social value.

Governance

To promote sustainability, Nihon Kohden has established the Sustainability Promotion Committee and Sustainability Promotion Meeting. In July 2021, Nihon Kohden also established the Advisory Board consisting of external experts to incorporate outside perspectives on sustainability activities including measures to address climate change. The Sustainability Promotion Committee holds a meeting twice a year and formulates the policies and directions including measures on climate change. The president, who is the chairman of the Sustainability Promotion Committee, has the authority to evaluate and manage measures to mitigate climate change, and regularly reports to the Board of Directors about the progress and evaluation of the annual plan. The Board of Directors supervises the Company’s measures on climate change. The Sustainability Promotion Meeting is held four times a year to establish and promote annual plans based on the policies and directions formulated by the Sustainability Promotion Committee and reports on the progress of those plans to the Sustainability Promotion Committee. 
Based on its Three-year Business Plan, Nihon Kohden’s management has set material issues and KPIs related to sustainability and assigned departments for each materiality. Members of the Sustainability Promotion Meeting, who represent the departments in charge of each material issues, report on the progress of material issues and KPIs activities and exchange opinions with other members at regular meetings. 
The Advisory Board Meeting is held twice a year to discuss and advise on overall sustainability promotion, including actions on climate change.

Strategy

To understand the impact of climate change on business activities in Japan and internationally, Nihon Kohden has analyzed risks and opportunities mainly by management and members of the Sustainability Promotion Committee and Sustainability Promotion Meeting. In October 2024, we re-evaluated risks and opportunities related to climate change, mainly by management and members of the Sustainability Promotion Committee and Sustainability Promotion Meeting. The short-term (to FY2023), medium-term (to FY2026), and long-term (to FY2029) timeframes were revised to short-term (to FY2027), medium-term (to FY2030), and long-term (to FY2050), and we have calculated the business impact of risks and opportunities under the 1.5°C/2°C scenario* and the 4°C scenario*.

  • 1.5°C scenario is to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
    2°C scenario is to limit the global average temperature increase to 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
    4°C scenario estimates the global average temperature increase to be 4°C above pre-industrial levels.

Assumption of each scenario analysis

1.5°C and 2°C scenarios

4°C scenario

Society dimensions

We assume that social changes, as part of a global carbon-free initiative which limits the average temperature increase to 1.5 to 2°C, will result in changes in laws and regulations, and technological innovation, affecting our business.

We assume that extreme disasters and infectious diseases will increase and affect our business due to a 4℃ increase in the average temperature, even though the Paris Agreement and various policies to reduce greenhouse gases will be implemented.

Reference

Transition risks:

IEA (International Energy Agency): STEPS (The Stated Policies Scenario), NZE (Net Zero Emissions by 2050), SDS (Sustainable Development Scenario)

Physical risks:

IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), SSP2 (Shared Socioeconomic Pathways), RCP4.5, RCP6.0, RCP8.5

(Time period is 2030 to 2050)

The outlook with 1.5°C and 2°C scenarios – Potential impact of climate change on our business

In the medical industry, demand for environmentally friendly products and digital health solutions will increase because of strengthening laws and regulations and increasing customer awareness of the need to realize a carbon-free society. Costs are expected to increase as a result of the need to meet this demand, but further business opportunities are expected if our response is handled properly.
In our analysis of the 1.5°C and 2°C scenarios, we made assumptions about how the strengthening of decarbonization policies in each country and region in response to climate change would affect the industries we are involved with.
With the development of a carbon-free society, we can expect tighter regulations in each country and region, including carbon taxes and emissions trading. Since our medical equipment manufacturing is mainly assembly line production, we do not emit a large amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) on our own, but our suppliers do emit a certain amount of GHG in their parts manufacturing process. If carbon pricing and environmental labeling, including parts, become mandatory in the future, and the impact of such labeling expands, there is a risk that it will become difficult to provide medical equipment to customers at stable prices. In particular, the intensification of these initiatives in Europe may affect our ability to achieve the 45% overseas sales ratio targeted in our Long-term Vision, BEACON 2030.
In addition, as we work to reduce CO_{2} emissions, we plan to introduce equipment and technologies using renewable energy and energy conservation, as well as relocate to high-efficiency offices. We expect the corresponding costs to continue to increase. On the business front, we expect an increase in R&D and capital investment to realize digital health solutions with low environmental impact, as well as higher prices for raw materials such as resins used in product housings and restrictions on the use of certain substances. In addition, there is a risk of lost sales opportunities if the development of environmentally friendly products, for which demand is expected to grow in the future, is delayed, or if we are unable to meet the conditions for tender on medical equipment from an environmental perspective.
On the other hand, the increase in the cost of dealing with a carbon-free society is expected to be temporary, and therefore costs are expected to decrease in the long-term perspective. For example, cost reductions from reducing part counts, optimizing components, improving productivity and shortening lead times can all be expected. As one of our material issues and KPIs for sustainability, we have set a target to achieve a sales ratio of environmentally friendly products of 22.5% or more (cumulative total for three years from FY2024), and are strengthening the development of environmentally friendly products. We believe that by expanding our efforts to realize carbon neutrality, we can avoid worsening financing conditions and divestment by financial institutions and investors.

The outlook with a 4°C scenario – Potential impact on our business due to climate change

In a society where decarbonization policies are not progressing well and extreme natural disasters are intensifying, it is expected that the healthcare system will need to be strengthened, especially in the areas of disaster medicine and emergency medicine. On the other hand, the procurement of parts, the supply of products, and sales and service activities may be disrupted significantly.
In our analysis of the 4°C scenario, it is assumed that decarbonization policies will not be strengthened in each country and region in response to climate change, average temperatures will continue to rise, and physical risks will increase as natural disasters become more severe.
The Nihon Kohden Group operates its business activities throughout Japan and around the world. In the event of natural disasters and shortage of water or other resources associated with climate change, or the spread of infectious diseases in each region, the procurement of parts, the supply of products, and sales and service activities may be disrupted, which could have a profound impact on the operating results and financial condition of the Nihon Kohden Group.
On the other hand, in the medical field where we provide our products and services, the importance of disaster medicine and emergency medicine is likely to increase even further due to the increase in natural disasters and infectious diseases caused by climate change. Society demands that medical equipment, which is vital to human life, continue to be supplied smoothly and operate stably even in the event of a large-scale disaster. We have contributed to enhancing healthcare systems around the world by providing defibrillators that are robust and durable even in times of disaster, telemetry systems and ventilators that contribute to infection control. In recent years, by providing IT system solutions and promoting the Digital Health Solution vision, we have been working to improve productivity in clinical practice and reduce indirect CO_{2} emissions through the effective use of medical resources.

Risk Management

The Board of Directors is responsible for establishing basic policies concerning risk management in the overall Group business operations and ascertaining the improvement and promotion status of the Group-wide risk management framework. The Risk Management Supervisory Division is tasked with improving and promoting the overall risk management system of the Nihon Kohden Group. The risks present in the execution of business activities have been classified into nine types, and the Risk Management Divisions and Risk-Related Committees have been assigned to each risk type. The Risk Management Divisions provide training and support to operating divisions and subsidiaries with regard to their assigned risk types and report the system improvement and promotion status to the Risk Management Supervisory Division. The Risk-Related Committees report to the Board of Directors and Management Council on matters including assessments of management system appropriateness, validity, and effectiveness for related risk types. Additionally, focusing on significant risks identified by the Risk Management Committee, we collaborate with risk management officers in each department to periodically evaluate risks and review response measures. The Internal Auditing Department reports to the Representative Directors and the Board of Directors on risks discovered during audits.
A cross-organizational TCFD response project was initiated and has been operated since October 2021 to identify and assess climate change risks affecting the Nihon Kohden Group. Climate change risks and response measures identified in the TCFD response project have been discussed and approved by the Sustainability Promotion Committee and its progress has been managed and reported to the Board of Directors.
Nihon Kohden considers the risk of losses due to interruption of operations caused by disasters or accidents and the risk of losses due to occurrence of environmental pollution, etc., caused by insufficiency in reduction of environmental impact or prevention of environmental pollution to be its business risks. In the event of natural disasters and shortages of water or other resources associated with climate change, terrorism, war, or the spread of infectious diseases in each region, the procurement of parts, the supply of products, and sales and service activities may be disrupted, which could have an impact on the operating results and financial condition of the Nihon Kohden Group. We procure raw materials and parts used for our products not only in Japan but also around the world. In the event of a supply issue at a supplier, we take measures, including the consideration of alternative parts, to ensure that the production of our products is not affected. In addition, we have formulated a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and conduct periodic company-wide education and training to ensure the continued supply of products and services in the event of a large-scale earthquake.

Metrics and Targets

In the Three-year Business Plan, BEACON 2030 Phase II, to realize carbon neutrality, which is one of the material environmental issues for sustainability, we have set KPIs for “Group-wide CO2 emissions,” “Number of models and sales ratio of environmentally friendly products,” and “Reduce CO2 emissions in corporate activities,” and are promoting initiatives accordingly.
To reduce CO2 emissions, we have set targets of a 44% reduction in CO2 emissions in FY2026 compared to FY2020, and a 56% reduction in CO2 emissions per unit of sales (Scope 1 and 2 within ISO 14001 certified sites). In FY2024, we achieved a 45.6% reduction in CO2 emissions and a 51.8% reduction in CO2 emissions per unit of sales compared to FY2020, achieving our targets.
As part of our efforts to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions, we have been gradually switching to renewable energy at our offices in Japan since FY2017. In FY2024, approx. 47% of our offices in Japan introduced renewable energy. We aim to switch to 100% renewable energy at all of our offices in Japan by 2030.
At the Advanced Technology Center, we introduced an energy management system (EMS) to optimize energy use. In particular, electricity consumption decreased even during summer and winter peak periods. On an annual basis, we achieved an approx. 2% reduction compared to the previous fiscal year, and we were able to confirm the effectiveness of our energy-saving measures.
Furthermore, we are continuing to update facilities with consideration for energy-saving, such as switching to LED lighting and high-efficiency air conditioning systems, and introducing hybrid company vehicles. In addition to reviewing the operation of production facilities, we are also focusing on promoting energy-saving measures at each office and on awareness-raising activities for employees.
Moreover, to reduce flood risk at our offices and improve energy efficiency, we relocated three offices in Japan in FY2024. At production sites, we are promoting water use efficiency by reducing toilet water flow and other measures. At the new plant in Tsurugashima, scheduled to start operations in FY2026, we are preparing to introduce solar panels and utilize rainwater.
As part of our social contribution through business activities, we are engaged in developing energy-saving, compact, and lightweight products that are environmentally friendly, aiming for a cumulative sales ratio of 22.5% for environmentally friendly products over three years. In FY2024, we achieved a sales ratio of 20.8% for environmentally friendly products. Regarding the amount of waste from disposal of products and parts, we aim to maintain the amount of the products and parts retirement in FY2026 at or below the same level as the FY2023 results. In FY2024, we achieved a 17.3% reduction compared to FY2023.
We will continue to provide environmentally friendly products and collaborate with our supply chain. We will aim to identify our environmental issues and promote measures to obtain SBT certification.

External Evaluation on the Environment

Click here for External Evaluation on ESG, including the environment.

Nihon Kohden Environmental Report

We integrated our Environmental Report 2015 into our CSR Report 2015. Please see our Environmental Report before 2014, CSR Report in 2015 and 2016, and Integrated Report from 2017 in the following downloads page.