Panasonic Environment Vision 2050
On 5 June 2017 – World Environment Day – Panasonic announced its new Environment Vision for 2050.
Ever since the company’s founding in 1918, Panasonic has been implementing business activities based on its corporate philosophy of improving lives and society as a whole. Protection of the environment and sustainability have always been central to the group’s activities. ….
Panasonic currently focuses on four business areas: consumer electronics, housing, automotive, and B2B, under the brand slogan “A Better Life, A Better World.” For us, working towards a “Better World” means tackling various social challenges including environment, energy and safety, as we contribute to realising a sustainable society by resolving such challenges.
Focus on innovation for green energy
As a company, we have been working steadily towards our Green Plan 2018 goals. Now, with environment and energy issues becoming increasingly serious at global level, we are considering our contribution as we head into the company’s next century.
For the next 50 years, the focus is now especially on clean energy. The reason for this is that we aim to help implement both “a better life” and “a sustainable society” by making full use of our technologies in all business areas. Against this background, we have now formulated the Panasonic Environment Vision 2050, a long-term vision for environmentally sustainable management.
Energy generated by Panasonic will exceed the amount of energy used
As an overall objective, we at Panasonic will work towards the creation and more efficient utilisation of energy which exceeds the amount of energy used. In this context, energy “used” or consumed means the energy used in our business activities (manufacturing), and energy used during the lifetime of Panasonic products. Energy “created” or generated means so-called clean energy, energy that is generated and/or made available by products and services from Panasonic, such as photovoltaic power generation systems, storage batteries and energy solutions.
Currently, relative to the amount of energy used by Panasonic, the amount of energy “created” is merely one-tenth. In order to reduce the energy consumption, we are developing technologies for enhanced product energy performance, and innovating manufacturing processes. With regards to the energy generated, we are expanding our energy-generation and storage businesses as well as contributing to social systems such as a hydrogen society, increasing the amount of clean energy generated.
But that’s not all. We at Panasonic have always seen the company as a contributor to the prosperity of society as a whole. As both a part of society and a major manufacturer, we are looking at two key areas when it comes to implementing our 2050 Environment Vision.
Panasonic is creating a safe and secure society with clean energy
At Panasonic, we are heavily involved in designing eco-conscious, smart living spaces and infrastructure where energy is generated from electricity and/or hydrogen. Such living spaces not only have the means to generate their own energy, but energy generated there can also be transported. And “living spaces”, do not just mean private homes, but all kinds of space needed for work, study, and leisure. In short, all kinds of buildings you can think of when it comes to improving the social environment.
Look at energy creation, for example. We are developing fuel cell technologies which use next-generation solar cells, and hydrogen derived from clean energy as energy sources. When it comes to energy storage, Panasonic is working with technology related to storing and/or supplying hydrogen, and storage batteries. This will enable us to increase the possibilities for using clean energy within society.
At the same time, we are also working on developing environmental technology for eco-conscious, smart travel and transport. As the technology for storage battery systems in electric vehicles develops, we are contributing to promote the shift from fossil fuels to clean energy. And for a safe, mobile society, support systems for autonomous driving using IoT technology are being further developed. This is how we aim to implement next-generation logistics and transport solutions to help contribute to decreased traffic congestion and pollution.
Panasonic is promoting businesses aiming for a sustainable society
As part of our efforts to promote effective utilisation of resources, Panasonic is aiming for the sustainable use of resources through the reuse of parts and materials and product recycling.
For example, in the company’s quest to create factories with zero CO2 emissions, the switch of lighting to LED is planned to be completed by the end of FY 2019 at all suitable sites. At the same time, the use of advanced energy-management systems such as FEMS (Factory Energy Management System) and smart manufacturing is being expanded. Additionally, we are aiming to complete the adoption of photovoltaic power generation systems in all appropriate business sites by 2020.