 Brother Industries, Ltd. [Japan]
Cutting CO2 emissions by about 410 tons annually with solar power generation systems and energy-saving measures
Transparent panels for natural lighting embedded in the roof
A fan used for the air circulation system |
In FY2008 (April 1, 2008-March 31, 2009), new buildings (Manufacturing Facility Buildings Nos. 4 and 5) were completed on the premises of the Kariya Manufacturing Facility, which undertakes operations such as R&D and production of industrial sewing machines and machine tools as well as indirect services. These buildings embody various energy-saving measures.
<Major energy-saving measures at the Kariya Manufacturing Facility>
- •Insulated walls and insulated windows are employed, and the roof is coated with insulating paint, to keep indoor temperatures low when outdoor temperatures go up.
- •The roof is embedded with transparent panels for natural lighting.
- •Inverter-driven compressors are used.
- •A system has been introduced to circulate air with fans installed on the ceiling or in high locations on the wall. This system is designed to prevent warm/cool air created by air conditioners from rising and to stabilize indoor temperatures so as to maintain precision in assembly and processing.
Next to the new buildings is located a solar power generation system with the capacity of about 100 kW. This system is expected to reduce about 410 tons of CO2 emissions per year at this manufacturing facility. Meanwhile, a solar power generation system of a comparable capacity has been running at the Mizuho Manufacturing Facility since 2002.
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Brother Logitec Ltd. [Japan]
Curbing fuel consumption by increasing truck loading efficiency
Brother Logitec Ltd., a group company in charge of logistics operations for Brother products in Japan, has been working to cut CO2 emissions on an ongoing basis. Measures include loading more products in a well-organized manner on each truck, efficiently allocating trucks and setting up delivery schedules to meet varying transportation quantities, optimizing transportation routes, and thoroughly requiring drivers to ensure eco-conscious driving and turn off their engines when stopped. In FY2008, we successfully improved fuel economy by 19.5% from FY2007 (April 1, 2007-March 31, 2008), achieving substantial results.
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Brother International Corporation (Japan) [Japan]
Efforts to reduce delivery distance
To improve the efficiency of sales logistics operations in Japan, the Brother Group built a new logistic center in the Kanto area in August 2005 and another one in the Kansai area in August 2006, adding to the conventional distribution base in the Chubu area. This upgraded logistics network has enabled us to directly unload products shipped from manufacturing facilities outside Japan (including those in China and ASEAN countries) at the Port of Tokyo and the Port of Osaka, which are closely located to large market areas. Establishment of this network eliminated truck transportation from Nagoya to Tokyo or Osaka, achieving significant reduction in delivery distance.
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Brother International Corporation (U.S.A.)
[North and South America]
Reduced energy consumption due to greater efficiency of power use
When energy conservation became an issue, Brother Tennessee chose to strengthen their environmental management system as a whole rather than just treat the symptoms. From FY2006 (April 1, 2006-March 31, 2007), they took steps to reduce power consumption by sequentially replacing burned-out lighting with energy efficient lighting. Then, in FY2007, they got involved again with reducing power consumption and made improvements by introducing a new condenser bank. The new condenser bank allowed them to stabilize voltage for cooling and air-conditioning systems, which successfully reduced power usage. Moreover, a survey was launched to evaluate the effectiveness of solar power for its future introduction.
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Brother Industries (U.K.) Ltd. [Europe]
14% less emissions by recycling toner cartridges
In FY2007, in cooperation with a government-supported environment consultant firm named Envirowise, Brother Industries (U.K.) Ltd. did a study into the amount of CO2 emitted in the recycle of toner cartridges. After analyzing hoards of data, they identified CO2 emissions by deriving and graphing the energy consumption associated with the transport and production of recycled toner cartridge parts and materials. As a result, recycled toner cartridges emit 14% less CO2 than non-recycled products. This data was verified by Envirowise and officially certified.
In FY2008, the company worked on reducing power consumption. Specifically, fluorescent lamps were replaced with highly efficient inverter models. Unnecessary lamps were turned off whenever possible at night and on holidays in order to eliminate wasteful power consumption. Energy use rules were set for employees, and educational programs were offered.
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Brother U.K. Ltd. [Europe]
Energy-saving action plan adopted to reduce CO2 by 35 tons a year
Brother U.K. Ltd. adopted an energy-reduction action plan in FY2007 in cooperation with Carbon Trust, a governmental organization involved in reducing CO2 emissions. The plan called for the introduction of high efficiency lighting and control units, upgraded gas boilers and insulation for some building roofs, which together had a CO2 reduction effect of 34.7 tons a year. This action plan has been implemented in line with an energy policy, which was established to improve awareness amongst management and the workforce, and requires accurate measurement. Parallel to this reduction in facility energy consumption, Green Power (qualified for Climate Change Levy deductions) is used to provide 82% of facility power.
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Brother France SAS [Europe]
Taking advantage of railway transportation to promote CO2 emissions reduction
A container loaded with Brother products
|
In cooperation with a logistics company, Brother France SAS makes highly efficient arrangements for long-distance transportation. Containers loaded with products are delivered by truck to a railway station, where the containers are transshipped onto freight train trailers. Double-decker truck trailers (with two-tier loading space) also achieve high loading efficiency. These efforts help reduce CO2 emissions.
Transshipping containers onto a freight train trailer |
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Zhuhai Brother Industries, Co., Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Power consumption reduction efforts cut 42,900 kWh per month
Zhuhai Brother Industries, Co., Ltd. has turned off lights during lunch, introduced high efficiency lighting systems and taken other steps in the past to reduce facility energy consumption, but new efforts have been pursued to improve production efficiency by 20% from 2006 to 2008 because of the rise in energy consumption that increased production has incurred. The company's efforts ranged from using fluorescent lamps equipped with inverters, lowering ceiling temperatures with a rooftop sprinkler system, replacing air conditioners with inverter models, introducing total heat exchangers to taking measures against air leakage and lowering pressure settings for the compressors. As a result, monthly energy consumption was reduced by 42,900 kWh.
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Brother Sewing Machine Xian Co., Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Promoting a shift to energy-saving equipment by 2010
Brother Sewing Machine Xian Co., Ltd. is deeply involved in energy-saving in order to reduce CO2 emissions by a minimum of 8% off the FY2006 level in 2010, which the company has set as a target. In FY2007, compressors were replaced with high efficiency inverter-drive models and high efficiency lighting was introduced on some production lines. Plans to replace all lighting with high efficiency systems, update older air conditioners and make other changes by the end of FY2009 (April 1, 2009-March 31, 2010) are sequentially being adopted to reduce facility power consumption. In FY2008, a campaign was promoted to eliminate air leakage, which is effective towards saving energy consumed by compressors.
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Brother Technology (Shenzhen) Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Commended by the Environmental Protection Bureau of Shenzhen City for various activities to mitigate environmental impact
In FY 2008 (April 1, 2008 - March 31, 2009), Brother Technology (Shenzhen) Ltd. (BTSL) focused on reducing the consumption of (i) power for air conditioning, lighting, and molding machines, (ii) consumption of heavy fuel oil by employing solar energy/heat utilization systems, and (iii) consumption of water at manufacturing facilities. These efforts produced substantial results. For example, power consumption was reduced by 9.1% (1,001,000 kWh/year) from the previous fiscal year.
BTSL's accomplishments in mitigating environmental impact in FY 2008
(in comparison with FY 2007)
| | Reduction volume | Reduction
rate | Cost effectiveness |
| Power consumption | 1,001,000 kWh/year | 9.1 % | JPY 14,487,388/year |
| Fuel consumption | 11 kl/m3/year | 3.4 % | JPY 12,469,015/year |
| Waste disposal | 12.1 t/year | 1.4 % | JPY 516,968/year |
| Water consumption | 16,289 t/year | 15.0 % | JPY 554,949/year |
| Indirect material consumption | 3 t/year | 15.0 % | JPY 1,101,495/year |
BTSL was commended for these accomplishments by the Environmental Protection Bureau of Shenzhen City as a "Leading Waste Reduction Company in FY 2008." BTSL is continuing to develop various environmental activities to deliver even greater results.
Commendation ceremony |
Testimonial |
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Brother Industries (Shenzhen) Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Developing energy-saving activities - improving lighting equipment and ensuring power management
In FY 2008, Brother Industries (Shenzhen) Ltd. (BISZ) replaced all fluorescent lamps with power-saving models, and minimized the number of fluorescent lamps, aiming to reduce power consumption by 290,000 kWh each month. Meanwhile, "on/off" marks were clearly indicated on the switch panels for fluorescent lamps to encourage staff to promptly turn on/off the fluorescent lamps depending on the weather (fine, cloudy, etc.). The coolant for air conditioners was replaced by an alternative product with high cooling efficiency, and inverters were introduced for pumps to deliver water for drinking and other day-to-day purposes. In December, the manufacturing facility stopped private power generation and switched to public utility services offered by the city, in expectation of reducing CO2 emissions by 320 tons every month. In addition to these exhaustive energy-saving efforts, the managers patrol the manufacturing facility once a month to see if power management is appropriate. By continually strengthening these activities, BISZ succeeded in reducing CO2 by 17% in FY 2008 compared with FY 2007 (April 1, 2007-March 31, 2008).
These efforts helped BISZ win the commendation as a "Leading Waste Reduction Company in FY 2008" (under the auspices of the Environmental Protection Bureau of Shenzhen City).
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Taiwan Brother Industries, Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Reducing air conditioners in warehouses, and replacing compressors
Taiwan Brother Industries, Ltd. CO2 emissions cutting measures comprise reducing the number of air conditioners in the warehouses, replacing compressors with energy-saving models, managing the open/close timing of compressors, and eliminating unnecessary lighting equipment. Measures in FY2008 included setting office temperature at 26C° and replacement of molding machines and air compressors with energy-saving models.
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Brother Industries Technology (M) Sdn. Bhd.
[Asia / Middle East]
Successfully reduced power consumption by 3% via various energy-saving efforts
Brother Industries Technology (M) Sdn. Bhd. has been working to reduce air conditioning power consumption. Energy-saving steps for air conditioners include using temperature sensors to control temperatures, raising temperature settings, and improving air curtains. Other measures include installing reflector plates for fluorescent lamps, introducing high-efficiency lighting equipment, covering cylinders of injection molding machines with insulation materials to reduce heat loss, replacing hydraulic injection molding machines with electric models, employing inverter compressors, and managing power usage with multi-power meters that indicate power consumption and other data. Thus far, these efforts have reduced power consumption by 3%.
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Brother Industries (Vietnam) Ltd. [Asia / Middle East]
Cutting CO2 emissions through simple but practical activities
Brother Industries (Vietnam) Ltd. has been working on reducing CO2 emissions through simple but practical activities. Stickers were affixed near air conditioner switch panels to encourage employees to save energy. Exhaustive efforts were made to turn off lighting equipment during breaks and reduce the number of lamps to the bare minimum.
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Brother Industries, Ltd.
