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CSR Procurement

Policy

It is the policy of the Asahi Kasei Group to consider suppliers as important partners and to treat them with sincerity.
Our Mission and Vision for procurement are an expression of our ideals to apply in daily activities as we work to uphold our Procurement Policy and promote procurement practices with an emphasis on CSR.
Accordingly, we consider suppliers from an environmental aspect, including energy use and climate change, biodiversity, reducing pollution and waste, and efficient use of resources, and also from a social perspective, including discrimination, equal opportunity, freedom of association, and compliance with local laws concerning working hours and wages.
A relationship of mutual trust with our suppliers is fostered through fair and principled purchasing practices based on regulatory compliance and respect for the environment and human rights.

Procurement Principles [Mission] Contributing to the Asahi Kasei Group's value creation and sustainable growth through reliable procurement and logistics [Vision] Building a strong and a sustainable supply chain for the Asahi Kasei Group [Basic Policy] 1. Compliance, We uphold all laws relevant to purchasing transactions as well as the Asahi Kasei Group’s internal regulations. 2. Fairness and impartiality, Selection of bids and conclusion of contracts are performed in a fair and impartial manner. 3. Open door principle, We provide fair opportunities to any potential supplier, both domestic and overseas. 4. CSR-focused procurement, We perform purchasing in close coordination with our group-wide activities for CSR. 5. Partnership, We strive to deepen mutual understanding and build relationships of trust with suppliers.The Asahi Kasei Group Procurement Principles

Supplier Code of Conduct

We conduct business activities in various countries and regions around the world, and are expected to address social issues to achieve a sustainable society, including measures against climate change and respect for human rights, not only within the Asahi Kasei Group but throughout the entire supply chain as well.
For this reason, we formulate our Supplier Guidelines in 2021 as a tool for promoting CSR procurement based notably on our Procurement Policy, our Sustainability Policy, our Human Rights Policy, and our Quality Policy. In fiscal 2023, we shared the latest trends with the procurement managers of Asahi Kasei Homes, Asahi Kasei Medical, Asahi Kasei Microdevices and other companies and organized meeting feedback sessions on the direction of Group-wide activities and the content of each item. Results of the discussions were newly summarized in the Asahi Kasei Group’s Supplier Code of Conduct. To ensure that our suppliers understand and agree with our policies, we plan to disclose them on our website along with our Procurement Policy, ask suppliers to sign, and submit an agreement form. We will also monitor compliance through CSR assessments of our suppliers and cooperate to make improvements.

  • Note:The Code of Conduct was revised in September 2024.

Management Framework

Corporate Procurement & Logistics is responsible for the Asahi Kasei Group Procurement Policy, and the department cooperates with the Sustainability Strategy Planning Department to familiarize Group Companies with the content.
In fiscal 2022, we clearly defined the department responsible for sustainability promotion within Corporate Procurement & Logistics to strengthen CSR procurement activities in procurement and logistics functions. In addition, in light of recent changes in the procurement environment, we are promoting activities with the following system regarding supply chain management.

  • Supply Chain Management Framework（Management Council）President←（Reporting）Executive Officer in charge of Procurement and Logistics←（Reporting）Corporate Procurement & Logistics（Department in Charge of Supply Chain Risk Management, Department in Charge of Sustainability Promotion Department）←（Cooperation）→Asahi Kasei Group Procurement Department、Risk Management & Compliance Office, Sustainability Strategy Planning Department, Policies and Activities Related to Supply Chain Management
    Supply Chain Management Framework

Participation in the Declaration for Partnership Building system

In 2022, Asahi Kasei endorsed the Declaration for Partnership Building in support of the Council for Promoting Partnership Building to Open Up the Future, promoted by the Cabinet Office, the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, and other organizations.
In our declaration, we have specified the following:

  • We agree with the purpose of the White Logistics Movement, and based on our voluntary action declaration, we are working to improve logistics based on mutual understanding and cooperation with suppliers, logistics operators, and other related parties.
  • We have established the Supplier Code of Conduct in an effort to promote understanding and initiatives among our suppliers in areas such as human rights, labor, health and safety, the environment, and ethics.
  • We continue to provide in-house training on the Act against Delay in Payment of Subcontract Proceeds, etc. to Subcontractors.

We will continue to aim to build new partnerships by promoting collaboration, co-existence and co-prosperity with our business partners in the supply chain.

In addition to the Asahi Kasei Group, Asahi Kasei Homes, Asahi Kasei Pharma, and Asahi Kasei Medical have also announced their endorsement of the Declaration for Partnership Building.

Declaration for Partnership Building

Raising awareness of Procurement Policy and Supplier Code of Conduct

To ensure that suppliers are familiar with our Procurement Policy and Supplier Code of Conduct, we strive to raise awareness by disclosing them on the website and asking them to complete our CSR procurement questionnaires. In fiscal 2023, we held an online briefing session for approximately 200 domestic suppliers eligible to answer the CSR procurement questionnaire at the time of implementation, during which we also explained our Procurement Policy and Supplier Code of Conduct.

Evaluation of CSR at suppliers

The Asahi Kasei Group is working with its suppliers to promote CSR procurement with the aim of constructing a sustainable supply chain.
We conduct supplier surveys as part of our CSR procurement from two perspectives, 1) evaluation at the commencement of new transactions and 2) ongoing evaluation of suppliers.

Approach to new suppliers

When we start doing business with a new supplier, we evaluate, including from a CSR perspective, whether or not we can do business with them after conducting a preliminary screening based on our Procurement Policy.

  • Confirm in advance whether the transaction is considered to be a subcontracting transaction:→ Submit sets of documents from suppliers and begin applications→ Explain preliminary screening details and confirm CSR procurement policy→ Preliminary screening→ Pass→ Begin transactions→ Periodic CSR procurement questionnaires to ascertain the status of initiatives and provide supportFail→ Additional screening→ PassFail→ No transactions
    Process flow for new suppliers

If significant problems are detected during the preliminary screening, we encourage suppliers to make improvements as soon as possible. If subsequent screenings do not confirm that the issues have not been rectified, business dealings may not be possible.

Approach to ongoing suppliers

To ensure that our suppliers continue to carry out their business activities aware of their corporate social responsibilities, we conduct and disclose the results of CSR procurement questionnaires annually using the latest version of the UN Global Compact's CSR Procurement Self-Assessment Tool Set. In this way, we are improving the level of CSR by cooperating with our suppliers, and avoiding environmental and social risks in the supply chain.

Question categories

  • 1. Corporate governance related to CSR
  • 2. Human rights
  • 3.