ALFRESA HOLDINGS CORPORATION Non-Financial Strategy
Initiatives to Reduce Environmental Impact
The Alfresa Group's main sources of CO2 emissions are the electricity used at offices, factories, and logistics centers and the fuel from vehicles used by marketing specialists and delivery people when visiting medical institutions and delivering pharmaceuticals. These sources account for nearly 90% of the Group's overall energy use.
Switching to Environmentally Friendly Vehicles (Eco-Cars) and Promoting Ecological Driving
To reduce environmental impact, the Group is promoting the | We are also working to reduce CO2 emissions and raise |
introduction of fuel-efficient vehicles, such as switching to | awareness of safe driving by installing designated fuel-efficient |
mini vehicles and hybrid vehicles, and working to reduce its | tires and promoting ecological and safe driving practices, such |
number of vehicles to an optimal level. | as gradual acceleration and constant-speed driving. |
Environmentally Conscious Pharmaceutical Delivery Compliant with PIC/S GDP
Promoting Energy-Saving Initiatives and Switching to Renewable Energy
In addition to raising awareness about electricity use and power savings, Meisho Co., Ltd., has replaced all lighting with LEDs. We have installed motion sensors on LED lights at our headquarters and logistics centers, and lights automatically go off when nobody is present. In addition, in fiscal 2021 we installed a solar power generation system on the roof of an extension wing of our headquarters. This system helped us reduce the use of external electricity by around 11%, from 2,404 megawatt-hours in fiscal 2021 to 2,140 megawatt-hours in fiscal 2022. Going forward, the Alfresa Group plans to continue its efforts to contribute to a sustainable society by installing solar power generation equipment and promoting a switch to renewable energy.
3Rs: An Initiative to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
Reduce: Aim for Zero Pharmaceutical Waste
Tohoku Alfresa Corporation actively implements initiatives to reduce the disposal of usable pharmaceuticals by having branches return products that have not been in demand for a certain period of time to logistics centers. Upon order (receipt), these products are then delivered to customers after ensuring their understanding. This effort aims to minimize pharmaceutical waste and reduce environmental impact from the perspective of utilizing medical resources effectively.
Reuse: Donate to Food Bank Stockpiles
Alfresa Pharma donates expired items from disaster stock- piles, such as natural mineral water, rice cookies, and portable rice balls, to local children's cafeterias, food banks, and
To make its pharmaceutical deliveries environmentally conscious and compliant with PIC/S GDP, Alfresa Corporation (Alfresa) jointly developed an electric vehicle for pharmaceutical deliveries with ITE Co., Ltd., and Kirix Lease Co., Ltd., and launched a field test in May 2022.
In this test, operations were conducted in a hot and humid summer environment to mimic actual operations and make sure temperatures inside the electric vehicle could be maintained between 15°C and 25°C.
Electric vehicle for delivering pharmaceuticals
Base vehicle: e-NV200 (Nissan Motor); passengers: two; maximum payload:
350 kg; temperature control functions in the cargo area: separate from the driver's seat, a refrigeration unit and Ice Battery® (coolant using patented technology) installed in the cargo area. An external power source charges the vehicle and simultaneously runs the refrigeration unit to freeze the Ice Battery®.
Solar power generation system on the roof of an extension wing of our headquarters
Introducing a Solar Power PPA* Model
Alfresa Pharma Corporation has installed 1,000 kilowatt- class (megasolar) panels on its Okayama Plant and three
nonprofit organizations in the company's area of operation before they are disposed of.
Recycle: Shift from Shredding to Dissolving Paper Waste to Allow for Reuse
Alfresa Medical Service Corporation is working to promote the reuse of paper from confidential document collection boxes by switching from shredding, which makes it difficult to reuse paper, to dissolving it. Unlike shredded paper, dissolved paper can be reused because the paper fibers remain undamaged. Also, the time and effort required for shredding
Reducing CO2 Emissions through More Efficient Distribution
Alfresa has collaborated with Yamato
Transport Co., Ltd., a business partner
since July 2020, to develop a system using big data and AI to forecast health-
care product delivery volumes, as well
as a delivery vehicle dispatch system. The systems were first installed and
became operational in August 2021.
The delivery work volume prediction system uses big data and AI to analyze data on sales, logistics, products, and demand trends, which is collected by
Alfresa to formulate a prediction of delivery work volume for each customer.
The delivery vehicle dispatch system, meanwhile, automatically creates vehicle dispatch plans based on data obtained from the delivery work volume prediction system. In addition to the logistics and vehicle dispatch know-how of Yamato Transport, the system uses road information (on traffic jams, etc.) to efficiently and reliably create vehicle dispatch plans. Furthermore, the addition of Alfresa's package delivery service, which eliminates the need for inspection at the time of delivery to medical institu- tions, should significantly reduce the time required for face-to-face work at medical institutions.
These systems are expected to improve delivery productivity by up to 20%, reduce travel distance and CO2 emissions by up to 25%, and decrease face-to-face time at medical facilities by up to 20%. The systems were first introduced in 2021 at Alfresa's branches in the Tokyo metropolitan and Kansai areas. They are currently being gradually rolled out to other Company branches, with fiscal 2024 as the target completion date.
wings of its logistics center, using a solar power PPA model. The system became operational in January 2023. By using renewable energy, Alfresa Pharma expects to cut annual emissions by 410 t-CO2 and reduce its electricity fees.
- PPA (power purchase agreement): A PPA model is one that involves a contract between a PPA operator (power provider) and a user of electric power. Under this model, the power provider installs, operates, manages, and maintains the solar power generation equipment on the roof of the user's building or structure. The user pays a monthly service fee to the power provider for the amount of electricity used by the solar power generation system.
Panels installed on the roofs of the
Okayama Plant and logistics center
are eliminated, leading to improved operational efficiency.
66 | Alfresa Group Integrated Report 2023 | Alfresa Group Integrated Report 2023 | 67 |
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Alfresa Holdings Corporation published this content on 24 October 2023 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 24 October 2023 08:21:33 UTC.
