Initiatives with Our Suppliers
ESG Action Plan 2021-2023
Based on The Advantest Way and our corporate purpose & mission of "Enabling Leading-edge Technologies", Advantest is actively working to contribute to solving social issues through our business. The "ESG Promotion Basic Policy" formulated in 2021 outlines our social responsibilities as a global company and the roles we should fulfill for our stakeholders, and the "ESG Action Plan 2021-2023" disclosed in conjunction with the policy sets specific themes, targets, and KPIs to promote company-wide activities.
In the supply chain, we are working together with our business partners in order to promote CSR procurement, with the goal of realizing a sustainable society by promoting activities for climate change, respecting human rights, occupational safety, fair trade, and observing compliance.
Initiatives towards Human Rights Due Diligence
We closely monitor cases where our suppliers or other business partners may have contributed to any action with adverse impacts on human rights. In case these adverse impacts are directly linked to the Advantest Group's business activities, we will work on encouraging respect for human rights through dialogue and consultation to ensure that the Advantest Group Human Rights Policy is understood.
With the aim of incorporating human rights due diligence into our procurement process, we disclose a clear procurement policy to our suppliers, who are important members of our value chain, and provide guidance on human rights, labor, and health and safety in the "Advantest CSR Procurement Guidebook."
Implementation and Monitoring the CSR Questionnaire
Advantest conducts a CSR Questionnaire for business partners who account for 85% of the transaction value of all Advantest Group companies. The contents of the questionnaire mainly refer to the "Supply Chain CSR Promotion Guidebook" in line with international norm and initiatives such as the RBA Code of Conduct*. We also confirm the awareness and status of respect for human rights, including the elimination of child and forced labor and the implementation of occupational health and safety practices, as well as the prevention and detection of bribery and corrupt practices.
Advantest believes that the CSR Questionnaire serves to achieve mutual growth with our suppliers not only by building fair and sound partnerships, but also by promoting sustainability-oriented business activities such as the introduction of renewable energy and reporting of GHG emissions as a response to climate change.
In FY2022, we were able to obtain responses from all of the 56 companies that received the questionnaire. Although no significant risks related to human rights were found, we not only provided each supplier with materials summarizing the results of their responses to enable them to address social issues throughout their supply chain, but also provided feedback on points that were highly rated and points that require improvement. We also organize individual seminars to suppliers on specific themes.
In Japan, we also evaluate the QCD* of our business partners every quarter aimed to ensure the stable supply of products while maintaining and improving quality. On a global basis, we also conduct annual evaluations of our major suppliers, including their technology, quality, and procurement measures.
FY2022 Implementation of CSR questionnaire (Global)
| Survey period | March 2023 |
|---|---|
| Implementation of seminars | March 2023 |
| Feedback to business partners | July 2023 |
FY2022 Business Partner QCD Evaluation (Japan)
| Evaluation period | Quarterly (July/October 2022, January/April 2023) |
|---|---|
| Feedback to business partners who require improvement |
Quarterly (August/November 2022, February/May 2023) |
* RBA Code of Conduct: A code of conduct pertaining to social responsibility advocated by the Responsible Business Alliance.
* QCD: An acronym of Quality, Cost, and Delivery.
Assessment for New Business Partners
We ask new business partners to understand and cooperate with our social initiatives including labor (human rights), ethics, safety and health, and environmental initiatives of reducing environmental impact, as stated in our procurement policy.
One new business partner joined in FY2022.
Establishment of a Contact/Reporting Window
We ask our business partners to report cases where our employees may be subject to any suspected violations of the Advantest Code of Conduct, business contracts, laws and regulations, etc., using a dedicated compliance hotline on our website, when completing the CSR questionnaire. There were no complaints filed (no cases) in FY2022.
Note that Advantest will not subject the whistleblower, nor the whistleblower's company, to any disadvantage. If an investigation finds any issues, the relevant action shall be stopped and measures shall be taken to prevent recurrence.
Announcement of the Declaration of Partnership Building
Advantest and Advanfacilities Co., Ltd. have agreed to and endorsed the Declaration of Partnership Building and announced our framework on Declaration of Partnership Building* in the fall of 2021.
The Declaration of Partnership Building declares, in the name of the representative of the company, that it will build new partnerships by promoting further collaboration and prosperous coexistence with business partners in the supply chain and encourage businesses that create value. The following are few examples of matters to observe for the promotion of partnership building.
- Leveraging information technology to promote operational efficiency throughout the supply chain
- Working together with suppliers and vendors to improve quality and productivity, aiming for mutual development
- Working together towards the realization of a decarbonized society throughout the entire supply chain, including Advantest.
* The Declaration of Partnership Building was founded by the Council on Promoting Partnership Building for Cultivating the Future, which consists of representatives from business circles and labor organizations including the Chairman of Keidanren, the Chairman of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Chairman of the Japanese Electrical Electronic & Information Union as well as related ministers (Cabinet Office, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism).
Examples of ESG promotion with our business partners
Advantest supports the philosophy of the Declaration of Partnership Building and promotes various ESG activities together with our business partners.
Introduction of environmentally friendly palettes
The Gunma Factory introduced environmentally friendly pallets for parts storage in 2022 in response to a proposal from Alps Logistics Co., Ltd., to whom we outsource parts warehousing. These palettes are made from a blend of marine plastic waste, with logos of "Plastics Smart" printed on the sides, an initiative to reduce marine plastic waste lead by the Ministry of the Environment. Using these pallets represent our commitment towards our contribution in combating marine plastic debris from a logistics perspective.
Awarded from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government for eco-driving
Musashiseki Unyu Co., Ltd., our freight forwarder who transports our products via eco-drive technology, was awarded the highest rating of "three stars" for the second consecutive year in the 2022 "Tokyo Freight Transportation Evaluation System" (evaluation of efforts, such as eco-driving, of freight forwarders based on actual driving fuel efficiency and consumption), and was also selected as one of the top five highest rated forwarders. Advantest has set the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions throughout the value chain as one of its key themes. We believe that the fact that our business partner won such an outstanding award shall be a further driving force for ESG promotion, as we continue to promote efforts to reduce supply chain emissions.
Implementation of activities and educational campaigns to promote the Pink Ribbon Movement
Advantest Japan supports the Pink Ribbon Campaign, an international campaign to raise awareness about breast cancer and promote early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease. During the Pink Ribbon Month in autumn, 2022, we conducted educational and promotional activities ((1)on-demand streaming of a seminar on breast cancer awareness, (2) two walking events, and (3) fundraising) in collaboration with one of our business partners.
During the walking event, pink towels (original towels with ADVANTEST and business partner's logos), symbolizing the Pink Ribbon Movement, were created and distributed to all participants. Fundraising activities made a total of ¥93,752 which we donated to J.POSH, an authorized NPO. In addition, we created original pin badges for the Pink Ribbon Campaign, made from eco-friendly biomass resin, and gave them to those who donated over a certain amount as souvenirs.
Examples of consultations on business continuity and SDGs activities
In November 2021, Meisei Corporation, a partner company of Advantest, consulted Advantest about their business continuity plans and SDGs initiatives. We shared our initiatives and opinions regarding the global trends, with a particular emphasis on the promotion of initiatives that match the company's collective goal. After thorough discussion within Meisei Corporation, which stimulated their willingness to engage in contributions for the world, they drew out the following initiatives.
- Participate in the CoCoLo Project* to promote decarbonization and contribute to society by introducing solar power generation on factory roofs
- Disclose SDGs Declaration
- Promote female leader development education to for better tapping the high ratio of women
* CoCoLo Project: A project initiated by the West Group, which converts the environmental value created by companies into credits through the J-credit system* and utilizing them for various donation activities as efforts to promote the reduction of CO2 emissions and regional revitalization.
* J-credit system: A system in which the government certifies the amount of CO2 emissions reduced through the introduction of energy-saving equipment and the use of renewable energy, and the amount of CO2 absorbed through appropriate forest management as credits.