North America
In the U.S., Sony Corporation of America, Sony DADC, Sony Electronics and Sony Pictures Entertainment came together to purchase more than 143 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually for 2011, which is enough green power to meet an estimated 49 percent of these entities electricity use. In addition to its green power purchase, Sony is using various on-site solar installations as part of its shift away from traditional sources of electricity generation toward cleaner, renewable energy alternatives.
Additionally, in 2010, both Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Electronics were awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certifications from the U.S. Green Buildings Council for recently completed construction projects. SPE earned its certification for the studio’s Lot and Office Transformation (LOT) Project, which included the construction of two new 100,000-square foot office buildings and a parking structure located at the heart of the studio’s historic lot in Culver City, California, while Sony Electronics earned its certification for its new U.S. headquarters building in San Diego, California.
Asia
Sony EMCS (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. – Kuala Lumpur TEC is working with its packaging manufacturers to recycle cardboard waste. Approximately 4,014 tons of this waste is reprocessed annually into new cardboard cartons for BRAVIA LCD televisions, while approximately 817 tons are recycled into cushioning materials for DVD Players and Blu-ray Disc Players.
Sony EMCS (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. ¨C Kuala Lumpur TEC and Sony Technology (Thailand) Co., Ltd., in Ayutthaya and Chonburi have installed systems that convert food waste into biogas. This not only reduces quantities of food waste being disposed in landfills, but also lowers the carbon footprint of these facilities by reducing the amount of liquid propane gas (LPG) needed for cooking. In total, approximately 115 tons of food waste and approximately 19 tons of CO2 have been reduced annually.
Sony Group companies in China have implemented various initiatives to purify, reduce consumption and recycle water, in order to preserve water resources. For example, in 2009 Sony Digital Products (Wuxi) (?SDPW?) installed a system to treat sewage for reuse in toilets at the site. In 2010, SDPW also introduced a recycling system which purifies industrial wastewater resulting from the manufacturing processes to a level that can be reused for manufacturing. While production in China increased significantly, Sony Group companies in China reduced their water use by approximately 800,000 tons during a five-year period, a reduction of approximately 42% over that period of time.
Sony Korea Corporation has started a Zero Electronic Waste Program campaign in collaboration with the Korean Government and recycling companies, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Council of Green Consumers Network in Korea. To enhance this campaign, Sony Korea also developed educational programs for students and their mentors, enrolling students from 100 schools to collect electronics waste for recycling purposes, and to communicate the importance of recycling to their friends and surrounding communities.
Japan
In Japan Sony has focused on the introduction of eco-conscious products and the development of environmental technologies. In 2009, Sony introduced its BRAVIA V5 series, the industry?s first consumer LCD TV incorporating a presence sensor, and has since incorporated this feature in many subsequent models. In 2011, Sony introduced BRAVIA EX52H, using SoRPlas, a Sony-developed original recycled plastic material containing over 99% recycled materials, for the TV bezel. While Sony has continued to provide a wide variety of eco-conscious products for consumers around the world, the Company is also committed to developing next-generation energy technologies, including dye-sensitized solar cells and bio batteries. In 2009, Sony started mass production of mercury-free alkaline button batteries and, in April 2011, announced shipments of energy storage modules using rechargeable lithium-ion batteries made from olivine-type phosphate.
Since April 2011, Sony has been working on a new range of initiatives to achieve the targets set forth in its Green Management 2015 (GM2015) program, the successor to its GM2010 plan. The GM2015 targets correspond with Sony’s Road to Zero global environmental plan which includes the long-term vision of achieving a zero environmental footprint by 2050 and have been calculated back from 2050, to determine specific mid-term environmental targets for the next five years in line with that goal. Furthermore, specific targets have been set for each stage of the product life-cycle, from R&D to product recycling, to ensure the achievement of the next set of Sony mid-term environmental goals.
