Supply Chain Management (Business Partners)

Basic Concept

In order to perform high-quality manufacturing and contribute to a sustainable society, the Tsubaki Group is working to strengthen our cooperation with partner companies (suppliers). Based on fair and equitable dealings, and through procurement activities that take into consideration our social responsibilities including environmental conservation, the respect of human rights, and compliance, we will continue contributing to realizing a sustainable society and strengthening partnerships.

Basic Procurement Policy

Cooperation with Suppliers

The Tsubaki Group has fulfilled its social responsibilities as a company while simultaneously advancing company-wide efforts to solve social issues by strengthening our response to a variety of business continuity risks and promoting technological innovation. Going forward, we will aim to be a company that meets the expectations of all stakeholders, and contribute to the resolution of societal challenges through our business endeavors while working to achieve the higher goal of contributing to the construction of a sustainable society.
At the same time, with the globalization of corporate activities, our supply chain has expanded across the world for procurement of products, raw materials, and other materials, highlighting the limits of what can be achieved by the CSR activities of a single company alone. For this reason, the Tsubaki Group is carrying out a wide range of activities in collaboration with our suppliers, including measures to combat climate change and initiatives for respect of human rights.
Regarding conflict minerals, our policy is defined in the Basic Procurement Policy, and in accordance with guidance manuals on investigating conflict minerals, we request that the suppliers concerned carry out investigations, and we complete and publish a Conflict Minerals Reporting Template.

Principal Initiatives

1. Initiatives for Sustainable Procurement

In order to realize a sustainable society, it is essential that sustainability activities be carried out throughout the supply chain. The Tsubaki Group established the Tsubaki Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines in 2020 in order to further carry out these activities in cooperation with our suppliers. These Guidelines are distributed to our major suppliers, who we ask to engage in sustainable procurement throughout the supply chain.

Flow of Sustainable Procurement Activities

Distribution of Sustainability Guidelines for Suppliers

We have collected and distributed the sustainability items that we want our suppliers to observe in the Tsubaki Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines. The contents of these Guidelines are also explained at procurement policy briefings and other opportunities.

• Number of Sustainability Guidelines issued (cumulative total)

  	FY 2022	FY 2023
  Number of Sustainability Guidelines issued (cumulative total)	1050	1509

  Supplier Sustainability Guidelines

• 

Sustainability Activities, and Training and Evaluation Activities Related to Respect for Human Rights

We conduct online and offline seminars to introduce the sustainability activities required of a corporation, an overview of the Tsubaki Group Supplier Sustainability Guidelines, initiatives for respect of human rights that corporations should observe, and other matters.
Beginning from FY 2023, we are conducting an online survey to check the status of sustainability activities and initiatives for respect of human rights at major suppliers (self-assessment questionnaire (SAQ) for sustainability activity status and due diligence regarding respect for human rights). The results from the FY 2023 survey did not uncover any matters of serious concern, and we confirmed that our suppliers are actively carrying out sustainability activities.
We will gradually expand the number of suppliers surveyed in the future, and will carry out support for activities aimed at resolving any issues discovered by the survey.

• Number of companies responding to the SAQ and survey for due diligence regarding human rights

  	FY 2023
  SAQ (survey of sustainability activity status)	171 (69.5%)
  Due diligence regarding human rights	191 (77.6%)

  * Figures in parentheses ( ) are response rates.

• Online training materials

  

2. Carbon Neutrality Initiatives

The Tsubaki Group recognizes that addressing climate change is an important issue for all of humanity, and is carrying out CO₂ reduction activities aiming to achieve carbon neutrality in 2050. These initiatives also require that CO₂ emissions throughout the supply chain be made visible, and that activities to reduce them be carried out.
For years, the Group has communicated information to suppliers and identified the status of their activities. In the future, we will take further steps and collaborate with our major suppliers in their reduction activities, and will reinforce the activities aimed at achieving carbon neutrality.

Communicating Information Related to Carbon Neutrality

At procurement policy briefings and other opportunities, we introduce the global situation related to carbon neutrality and our activities for reducing CO₂ emissions. We also provide online videos explaining how we calculate CO₂ emissions, effective reduction activities, and other matters, and provide support for the activities of major suppliers.　

Introduction of CO₂ Emissions Investigation (Scope 1 + 2) and Reduction Activities (Plant Tours)

We have been conducting CO₂ emissions surveys since FY2023 for suppliers with high energy consumption, such as material manufacturers and metal processing manufacturers.
We also collaborate with our suppliers, who are among the highest CO₂ emitters surveyed, on CO₂ reduction efforts. As one part of these activities, we conduct plant tours aimed at introducing our company’s CO₂ reduction activities. In the future we will expand these activities and work to identify and reduce CO₂ emissions in the supply chain.

Promotion of Green Procurement

We established our Green Procurement Guidelines in 2006 and have worked together with suppliers to promote activities for purchasing materials and components with low environmental impact. We revised these guidelines in April 2019 in order to take a more active approach to emissions reduction initiatives. We have requested that suppliers proactively observe them and carry out continual improvements.

3. Implementation of Sustainable Training for Procurement Staff

At the Tsubaki Techno School, level-specific training, and training sessions at Group companies, we formulate programs and carry out education on topics that include approaches to sustainability (CSR and CSV), demands from international society, and Group initiatives.

4. Endorsement and Participation in Initiatives

Endorsement of the Declaration of Partnership Building

We have been registered in the Declaration of Partnership Building, which is sponsored by the Cabinet Office, The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, the Keidanren (Japanese Business Federation), and other government agencies. The Declaration of Partnership Building aims for partnership, coexistence, and coprosperity across the supply chain.
In this system, a declaration is issued in the name of the representative to encourage coexistence and mutual prosperity throughout the entire supply chain and to adhere to recommended and preferred transaction practices. The declaration by the Tsubaki Group encompasses aspects like enhancing information security, reducing CO₂ emissions, fortifying partnerships, and augmenting value across the complete supply chain.

Portal Site of the Declaration of Partnership Building

Click here for the Tsubaki Group’s Declaration of Partnership Building (PDF) *Japanese version

Participation in the Global Compact Network Japan

In April 2022, we signed the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and took part in the supply chain section meeting of Japan’s local network, the Global Compact Network Japan (GCNJ).
The GCNJ is a platform for member companies and organizations to jointly promote sustainability initiatives. In the supply chain section meeting, participating companies across industries are able to strengthen their horizontal business ties and work to spread sustainable procurement in society.