Paris Climate Agreement
Earlier this year, the U.S. President announced his intention to withdraw from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement – an historic pact to adopt green energy sources, cut down on climate change emissions, limit the rise of global temperatures, and cooperate to cope with the impact of unavoidable climate change. At Sekisui Diagnostics, we feel that collaboration – among companies, non-profits and governments, and across borders – is crucial to protecting our planet.
Environmental Commitment at Sekisui
For years, we have been and will continue to be committed to environmental responsibility in all of our business activities. Going back to 2013, our parent company – Sekisui Chemical Group – launched an initiative known as Environment Week in order to play a role in creating a better future.
Our global team members have whole-heartedly embraced this commitment to environmental responsibility and activities which contribute positively to conserving the environment. Sekisui is committed to environmental stewardship, and will continue to deliver products that aim to minimize the impact on the environment while working as a team to conserve, recycle and improve our surroundings.
Among our company-wide efforts, some Sekisui manufacturing facilities are working towards achieving ISO 14001:2015 certification for environmental management systems in FY17. ISO 14001 is an international standard that provides organizations with a framework of specific requirements for an effective environmental management system.
In previous years, Sekisui locations around the world have stepped up to make a real impact on our environment. Among last year’s projects:
- Our Pfungstadt, Germany facility installed a water cistern to collect rain water for toilet flushing – saving approximately 500 liters (130+ gallons) of fresh drinking water per week, or 26,000 liters (6,800+ gallons) each year.
- Our Kent, UK facility achieved Zero Emissions Site Sekisui Chemical accreditation (‘zero waste to landfill’), and replaced fluorescent light fittings with LED lighting across 90% of the site – which is expected to reduce electricity consumption by approximately 46 MWh/year
Environmental Initiatives at Sekisui
Here are some 2017 Sekisui Environment Week events & initiatives:
Kent, UK
Our team in Kent have been busy working with the Kent Wildlife Trust to design an on-site wildlife-friendly garden – a recommendation from last year’s Biodiversity Survey. Other environmental initiatives include a Kent Biodiversity-themed Environment Week during which the team will launch their first Local Greenest Person Award in tandem with Sekisui Chemical’s initiative.
The Kent facility is also lobbying the local council to have the surrounding area cleaned up more frequently, and is investigating the sources of kitchen consumables to ensure they are as Fair-trade and environmentally responsible as possible.
Lexington, MA, USA
This year, the Lexington’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) committee’s goal is to encourage “going green” throughout all aspects of their team’s lives – from using transportation methods which don’t utilize fossil fuel, changing to reusable shopping bags, and teaching our kids not to waste, to adopting reusable utensils & cups and extending efforts into the surrounding community.
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada
In September, Sekisui Diagnostics PEI achieved ISO 14001: 2015 certification. During their Environment Week celebration, different efforts were planned each day to help lower emissions, clean up the local community, and save energy.
The team launched the week with an effort to help reduce C02 emissions by walking, cycling, taking the bus or car-pooling to work. On September 14th, the team worked with the Island Nature Trust on beach clean-up.
Exton, PA, USA
Our Sales Group’s Environment Week launched with an effort to create awareness of current local Environmental Council campaigns, including a Clean Air Initiative (visit https://cleanair.org or https://www.ch4nge.com to learn more).
The Exton team also promoted the use of reusable water bottles, lunch bags, and locally-grown produce to contribute to waste reduction, and encouraged team members to pledge to make meaningful cuts to emissions on an individual level.
Rounding out the week, the team held a household hazardous waste collection in which employees brought in old household cleaners, paint products, rechargeable batteries and more for safe disposal.
San Diego, CA, USA
San Diego held a BBQ and 5S (the 5 S’s: Sort, Straighten, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain) Cleanup. Instead of adding more plastic water bottles to landfills, all employees received a Sekisui Diagnostics sports water bottle to use. In addition, old electronics were responsibly recycled.
San Diego’s Environment Week followed soon after the facility’s ISO 14001 audit – and included a number of activities. An Environmental Pledge board was set up displaying 9 different acts that have a positive impact on the environment (including eating meatless for one day, using silverware instead of plastic utensils at work, and purchasing local produce at a farmer’s market).
To give back to the community, the San Diego team scheduled a cleanup day with nine cleanup crews. Working in a 2.5 mile perimeter around the San Diego facility, the crews cleaned up bushes, roads, and sidewalks – returning with trash bags full of cigarette butts, food wrappers, bottles, cans and cardboard.
As an Environment Week-themed thank you gift to our employees for a job well done during our ISO 14001 audit, the Environmental, Health, & Safety team gave LED light bulbs and reusable bags to all employees. This helps our employees reduce energy in their own homes and gives them a reusable bag for their groceries!
Did you know?
Plastic bags are now banned in California grocery stores.
We Can All Make a Difference in Our Communities
Sekisui Diagnostics is proud of the efforts at these and other Sekisui locations around the world. We encourage everyone everywhere to join with us in being personally responsible for helping to conserve our environment by adopting green energy where possible, recycling and keeping our planet clean.