Latin America. Ricoh Latin America forecasts a 41% reduction in its direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by March 2021. This goal is linked to the fact that the company has received re100 certification, a global collaborative initiative launched in 2014 by Climate Group to bring together companies committed to the supply of 100% renewable electricity.
To achieve this, Ricoh has undertaken numerous initiatives related to energy saving, and has switched to electricity sources with higher proportions of renewable energy, among other actions.
Sustainability efforts are part of the company's support for the 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) of the UN that it announced in 2017, concentrating on 8 of them. Specifically, the actions that will be promoted as a result of obtaining the RE100 certification in Latin America support objectives 13 (Climate action) and 7 (Clean and affordable energy).
The actions that will be undertaken to achieve the objective of reducing 41% of direct greenhouse gas emissions in the region are:
- Expansion of the use of electricity derived from renewable energy sources in all offices of the company's subsidiaries in the region.
- Energy-efficient products: Thanks to innovations such as Quick Start-Up technology, low-power sleep mode, short recovery time from sleep mode to operating mode and reduced toner melting point, many of the products are market leaders in energy efficiency.
- Energy management software and tools: Products include integrated and complementary functions that are designed to enhance energy efficiency. Weekly Timer: Turn off devices at night and during weekends, reducing energy consumption by up to 40%.
- Eco Night Sensor: Turns off devices when it detects darkness.
- EcoMode: The most energy-efficient timer setting, which puts devices into sleep mode quickly.
- Paper and energy consumption visualization tools: They report on the paper and energy consumption of individual users.
- diagnostic software @Remote: Tracks the performance of fleet devices with respect to sustainability objectives, as well as their sustainability performance with respect to key performance indicators related to sustainability.
- Electric vehicles: any vehicle that is purchased will be electric, to reduce the use of fossil fuels.
- Lighting: The lighting of the company's offices in the region will migrate to LED lights, to reduce traditional energy consumption.
"In line with our founding values and our acceptance of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we are very proud to receive this RE100 certification that will support our drive to help materialize the sustainability of Latin American societies through concrete actions. Helping to solve social problems through business is vital for the prosperity of all in the near future," explains Julio Urrutia, Director Consulting Strategy Office at Ricoh Latin America.
Global goals: zero carbon emissions by 2050
In April 2017, the Ricoh Group set its environmental goals, which included reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2022 and 100% by 2050. These targets were based on the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels and approved by SBTi (Science Based Targets Initiative). Such initiatives will enable the Group to remove GHG emissions from its value chain by 2050 and achieve the goal of a zero-carbon society.
