Environmental Strategy
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We are an environmentally advanced company
To become an environmentally advanced company has represented Sharp’s core philosophy since 2004. For over a decade, the company has demonstrated these are not empty words.
Sharp was the first manufacturer to receive the EU Eco Label for a TV. Most Sharp multi-functional printers are awarded and certified for their energy-saving and environmentally friendly characteristics.
In the past years, hundreds of Sharp products have received international awards for their outstanding eco-friendly design, demonstrating our commitment to producing environmentally friendly products which in turn enable us to achieve our aim of becoming an environmentally advanced company.
Save Resources.
Save Energy.
Long Durability.
Maximise Recyclability.
This is Sharp's Commitment to the environment & society
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Positive action. Real investment.
From early product design to manufacturing, right through to end-of-life disposal, every area in which we directly or indirectly affect the environment is under constant scrutiny.
All of our factories and most of our offices meet the ISO 14001 standard: a framework that sets out the requirements for environmental management systems. And we actively encourage environmental management and green awareness initiatives throughout our entire organisation.
Our engineers are continually developing innovative ecological technologies to make the world a cleaner, greener place and we place a firm focus on manufacturing high quality, environmentally advanced products.
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Making greener products
Sharp’s ‘Green Product Guidelines’ govern the entire lifecycle of every single product that we produce. We strive for low energy consumption, reduced waste, less packaging, better recycling and products with a longer life.
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A pioneering history - and future
As an inventor for society, Sharp began pioneering solar technology way back in 1959. Today, our solar technology can be found in homes, farms, factories, solar parks and public buildings around the world. And that’s just one area of our expertise.
Where appropriate, our products make use of long-life LEDs which consume minimal amounts of electricity and yet have a long life span.
We’re continually developing our printer and MFPs which are energy-efficient.
Environmental responsibility is in Sharp`s DNA
The Ever Sharp pencil, invented by our founder Tokuji Hayakawa, was the product behind our name – Sharp. Since it also turned an everyday disposable item into something reusable, saving precious wood along the way, it could also be considered our first environmentally responsible product.
Green Products
Sharp calls its environmentally conscious products ‘Green Products’ (GP). The GP Guidelines, which define development and design criteria in line with seven concepts, have been in use globally across all product design departments since 1998. Similarly, we call our environmentally conscious devices Green Devices (GD) and have established the GD Guidelines, which have been applied across all device design departments since 2004.
In developing such products and devices, Sharp sets specific objectives according to the GP Standard Sheet and the GD Standard Sheet, which are formulated based on the GP Guidelines and the GD Guidelines. In the trial manufacture and mass production stages, it determines how well the actual product or device has met these objectives, with those achieving the standards being awarded GP or GD status.
The content of the GP Standard Sheet and the GD Standard Sheet - the benchmark for development objectives - is revised and made more stringent each year in order to further improve the environmental performance of our products and devices.
Green Product Concepts
Energy Saving / Energy Creating
Products with superb energy-saving / energy creating performance improve the energy efficiency and reduce the energy consumption of products; other measures
Resource Conservation
Products designed to conserve resources reduce the amount of materials used; design products that conserve resources during use; extend the life span of products; other measures
Recycability
Products designed for recycling design products that are easy to disassemble;
use easy-to-recycle materials; other measures
Safe Use and Disposal
Products that can be used and disposed of safety
Do not use substances that negatively affect people's health or the environment;
other measures
Use of Green Materials and Devices
Products that use green materials and devices
Use recycled materials / biomass-based plastics; other measures
Environment Consciousness
Pertaining to Batteries, etc.
Products that use batteries, manuals and packaging with enhanced environmental consciousness
Reduce product packaging; design products that allow easy removal of batteries; other measures
Showing Eco Information of Products
Products that show their environmental performance and information
Acquire environmental labels (eco labels); Implement LCA; other measures
Green Factories
In 2003, Sharp launched a stringent evaluation system for its factories worldwide and consciously subjected them to a strict internal inspection process. Points are awarded by meeting a range of stringent environmental practices, ranging from recycling rainwater to avoidance of landfill waste. The aim is to achieve Super Green Factory status, for which an extremely high points score is required. In 2009, all the Sharp factories in Japan were awarded Super Green Factory status, with Sharp’s high-tech factory in Kameyama coming out top. Kameyama generates most of the energy it needs for production purposes itself from one of Asia’s largest on-roof PV systems with capacity of 5.2 MW. Furthermore, the factory’s remaining energy needs are met by a cutting edge gas-fired heat and power plant, and the waste water is not only used to heat water but also to provide air conditioning.
The Sharp factory in Alsace, France, which manufactures more than one million standard and multifunctional printers a year, achieved this status in July 2006. One of the factory’s core eco-strengths is its stringent approach to sorting waste. Since 2004, all waste materials – batteries, plastic, neon strips, paper, glass or wooden pallets – have been collected and separated., The factory has also made progress in its supply chain and logistics.By switching to a new kind of cardboard, it has reduced the volume of its packaging by half and the weight by about a third, which in turn reduces transport capacity requirements and fuel consumption.
Sharp’s environmental efforts at its factory in Wrexham, North Wales, have also made the headlines. In 2008, the factory was presented with the Wales Business and Sustainability Award in recognition of the solar power and microwave factory’s ambitious steps towards an eco-friendly and sustainable future. The new production processes introduced at the factory focus on the efficient use of resources as well as taking back and recycling old products.
Certification / Label
Environmental Label
A set of different eco labels are available to emphasize varying degrees of environmental consciousness of a product. The requirements to successfully apply for a label are tough. Needless to say many Sharp products are carrying eco labels, such as the “Blue Angel”.
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Blue Angel
The Blue Angel recognises products that are environmentally friendly across a number of criteria include reduced energy consumption, low chemical emissions, low noise levels and an environmentally friendly product design. For a full list of certified products, please visit
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Nordic Swan
The Nordic Swan is the leading environmental label in Nordic countries - Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Denmark - and the equivalent to the Blue Angel in Germany. The complete lifecycle of products is taken into account when awarding this label. The requirements are similar to those for the Blue Angel.
Many Sharp copiers and multifunction printers are part of this discerning scheme. You can find Sharp equipment bearing the Swan label at:
Regulations
As a matter of course Sharp undertakes strong endeavours to comply with legal requirements throughout Europe, such as chemical registration obligations of „REACh”, waste of electrical and electronic equipments „WEEE“, and the restrictions of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment „RoHS“.
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REACh
REACH, a European Union Regulation (EC 1907/2006) on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals, entered into force on June 1, 2007.
One objective of this regulation is to improve, within the overall framework of sustainable development, the protection of human health and the environment from the risks of chemical substances. Sharp supports this objective and, under the Sharp Code of Conduct, is taking a proactive approach to comply with the regulations.
For more information on please refer to the following website:
SDS (Safety Data Sheet)
SDS (Safety Data Sheet) describe the properties of a chemical substance as well as emergency measures for dealing with that chemical—or a product containing that chemical—in the event of an accident. This helps ensure that the chemical's properties are correctly understood and that products containing that chemical can be used safely.
For more information on Sharp SDS please refer to the following website:
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RoHS
The use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment is regulated by the RoHS Directives 2002/95/EC and 2011/65/EU, which restrict the usage of heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium and flame retardants.
For more information please refer to the following website:
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Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment
This symbol displayed on your product means that when the product reaches the end of its life, it should be disposed of separately from the ordinary household waste. The black bar signifies the product was put on the market after 15th August 2005. This is an EU legislation requiring proper treatment, recovery and recycling of such waste to minimise waste going to landfill. Please therefore help us protect the environment by disposing of the waste correctly to ensure it is managed rightly and prevent potential negative effects on the environment and human health that could otherwise arise.
If your used electrical or electronic equipment has batteries or accumulators, please dispose of these separately beforehand according to local requirements.Your electrical waste may be disposed of via your local authority, your local civic amenity or your local retailer if you intend to purchase a similar new one.
Countries outside the EU: Please dispose of according to your local and national regulations.
Regarding the disposal and treatment of Sharp toner cartridges and other consumables from Sharp multifunctional devices, please take note of the following:
Such waste shall be treated according to legal requirements in your area. We recommend addressing competent service providers for this (e.g. waste recycling companies), and asking local authorities for support, where necessary.
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Batteries
Batteries are products used daily which can have a severe environmental impact when not properly collected and recycled at the end of their life. Valuable materials can be generated from recycled batteries, providing a resource to production and products manufactured in Europe.
For more information please refer to the following website:
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EU Voluntary Agreement
Sharp is an environmentally minded company with a long track record of environmental improvements of its products. As such, Sharp is committed to participating at the European "Industry Voluntary Agreement on Imaging Equipment". Thus Sharp contributes to the EU Action Plan on Energy Efficiency by improving environmental attributes of its products especially with regard to resource and energy efficiency.
Customers benefit not only from even more environmentally advanced products, but are also able to make more sustainable purchasing decisions based on information on the environmental performance of the products. Such information is provided on the product page of each country in “Support & Downloads” by means of an Environmental Declaration according to the ECMA370 standard.