Product assessment reviewer training

Mindful that enhancement of environmental awareness and knowledge is essential for environmental management, OMRON emphasizes providing employees with environmental education and opportunities to raise their ecological awareness.

The environmental e-learning program, launched in fiscal 2004, offers nine courses such as "Kyoto Protocol and Global Warming Issues" and "Outline of Chemical Substance Survey Manual." In four years, more than 8,220 employees have completed the program.

To enhance employees' environmental awareness, OMRON has continued to organize Environmental Month seminars in June of each year and solicit employee ideas for environmental proposals and slogans. OMRON also encourages employees to use a household eco-accounting book ("Eco-Life Sheet") that keeps track of home energy use to promote energy-saving efforts at home.

In fiscal 2008, as part of the global celebratory event for its 75th anniversary, OMRON will aggressively promote employees' participation in environmental conservation and volunteer activities with the "Eco-Volun" initiative.

FY2007 Environmental Education Program Participants (in Japan)

OMRON has designated June as the month to promote environmental conservation activities, and has been working to enhance the environmental consciousness of employees through a seminar and other initiatives. The Environmental Month seminar drew some 100 employees from the Head Office administrative divisions, business companies and Group companies along with the OMRON President, directors and officers.

At the seminar, an external expert gave a speech on the theme of simultaneous enhancement of ecology and economy, for the purpose of accelerating OMRON's efforts to achieve its goal of environmental management. Before the seminar, the participants listened to a case study of a company that reduced losses incurred from waste disposal through the implementation of material flow cost accounting.^*

In agreement with the objective of the seminar, all participants were requested to wear Cool Biz style attire with no jackets or ties.

* Material Flow Cost Accounting (MFCA) is a type of cost accounting methods that identifies the flow of materials including resources, products, waste and other emissions in the manufacturing process, and analyzes overall costs which include the cost of raw materials, labor, depreciation and other processing, as well as waste cost (the cost of negative product). MFCA seeks to reduce costs through waste reduction, thereby contributing to resource productivity and energy efficiency as well.