In the procurement of raw materials and parts, MITSUBA has established three procurement policies: “Promotion of improvements in consolidated material costs and establishment of global governance of a procurement function,” “Strengthening of sustainable procurement and risk management,” and “Maximization of procurement power based on global ordering policy.” We implement measures in the procurement area in conjunction with our Medium-term Management Policy.
MITSUBA Group has established the "Mitsuba Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines" with the aim of fulfilling its social responsibility throughout the supply chain. Based on our corporate philosophy, we engage in procurement activities that emphasize five areas: “Safety and quality,” “Human rights and labor,” “Environment,” “Information Disclosure,” “Compliance,” and “Risk management.”
Moreover, our basic transaction contract also reflects our cooperation in sustainability activities.
(*) Compliance with laws and regulations:
- Laws and regulations related to the environment (laws and regulations related to air, soil, etc.)
- Laws and regulations on human rights and labor standards (including laws and regulations on freedom of association)
- Compliance with related laws and regulations (including laws and regulations concerning conflicts of interest)
Based on our corporate philosophy, MITSUBA Group has established the “MITSUBA Group Green Purchasing Guideline” and strives to procure materials and parts that have low environmental impact. Moreover, we work with our suppliers to reduce environmental burdens based on life cycle which consists of procurement, including production, use, and discharge.
MITSUBA Group requires its suppliers to take the following three measures:
Procurement Policy Meeting
MITSUBA holds a “Procurement Policy Meeting” for major suppliers at the beginning of each fiscal year. At the meeting, we ask participants to deepen their understanding of MITSUBA’s management policy, business policy, production function policy, quality function policy, and procurement function policy, as well as to explain carbon neutrality and request that we strengthen our efforts about sustainability. This meeting serves as an important opportunity for information sharing to implement CSR activities that are in step with the entire supply chain.
Plant visit
MITSUBA held its first “Carbon Neutrality Plant Visit” in December 2023 to support the CO₂ emissions reduction activities of our suppliers. A total of 18 people from 10 suppliers participated, and the Niisato Plant's carbon neutral initiatives were introduced on-site. One of our suppliers commented, “I realized that ‘Karakuri’ can lead to carbon neutral activities.”
MITSUBA submitted and announced a “Declaration of Partnership Building” to small-sized and medium-sized enterprises in March 2022. Moreover, three new declarations were added in May 2024: “We will consult with subcontractors at least once a year,” “We will determine the transaction cost after taking appropriate actions as stated in the guidelines for labor cost,” and “We will aim to pass on the full amount of the appropriate increase in cost in case of increase in raw material or energy cost.”
MITSUBA has established a reporting and consultation desk for suppliers in the event that MITSUBA Group executives, employees, etc. violate the Subcontract Law or related laws and regulations.
In order to conduct fair procurement activities, MITSUBA conducts education and training in the “Procurement Basic Course” for personnel newly assigned to the Procurement Department. Through this, the knowledge of “Ethics required of buyers” and “CSR related to procurement activities” has been acquired.
Moreover, e-learning courses are provided for MITSUBA Group employees on “Sustainability and regulations on environmentally hazardous substances,” “Subcontract law,” “Competition law,” and “Security trade” to deepen their understanding of sustainability activities and legal compliance.
Furthermore, MITSUBA Group distributes a booklet of “How We Should Act” to all employees of MITSUBA Group, and the Procurement Department is always conscious of fair and wholesome transactions.
Based on the ““Mitsuba Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines,” MITSUBA Group will request from the supplier to do “Initiatives not to use raw materials or products derived from conflict minerals (tin, tantalum, tungsten, gold)” in order to act responsibly for human rights issues.
Moreover, since 2013, we have been conducting surveys on conflict minerals since 2013 and have received responses from all surveyed suppliers regarding their usage condition. Furthermore, as part of our due diligence measures on conflict minerals, we require our suppliers to use smelters certified by the Responsible Minerals Initiative (RMI). If our suppliers are using a non-certified smelter, we will require them to submit a plan for switching to a certified smelter and take actions based on that plan.
MITSUBA Group sets and operates the evaluation criteria for new suppliers in the “Group Procurement Management Regulations.” We use a Group-wide evaluation sheet to determine acceptance or rejection based on globally common criteria.
We also evaluate sustainability aspects by including items such as environmental management system acquisition status in our criteria.
Moreover, MITSUBA plans to conduct self-evaluation of its suppliers using a questionnaire in order to continuously understand and evaluate the status of their efforts based on the “Mitsuba Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines”.
As a result, we will conduct interviews if necessary. For any risks identified in the self-evaluation or interviews, we will request suppliers to make improvements and, if necessary, provide support for the improvements.
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