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Konica Minolta Commits to Net-Zero Emissions by 2050

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On April 13th, Konica Minolta of Japan announced that it’s set two new environmental goals. First, the company aims to achieve net-zero C02 emissions in Scope 1, 2 and 3 by 2050. Second, it aims to manufacture its products from more than 90-percent circulated resources (recycled materials and biomaterials) also by 2050.

EcoVision 2050 Plan

The firm explained that when it published its EcoVision 2050 plan in 2009, the targets were in line with what were strict standards for the time. However, as the climate-crisis has exacerbated, it says these targets are no longer appropriate. It’s therefore committed to setting stricter climate-protection targets to minimize its ecological footprint.

Net Zero by 2050: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions through Energy Saving

The firm stated that it’s committed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and considers Climate Action as the most urgent area for action. The company is continuously working to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions throughout the product life cycle and to eliminate waste. In 2005, it recorded 2,067 thousand tons of CO2 emissions; in 2021, the figure was 790 thousand tons of CO2, which is a reduction of 61 percent. In 2050, the company aims to reach the net zero target in Scope 1, 2 and 3.

The company’s previous CO2 reductions and its net zero goals will be achieved through energy savings, including: 

  •  Avoid and reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
  • Substitute GHG-emitting power sources with renewable energy.
  • Compensate for unavoidable GHG emissions.

Konica Minolta Printers Use Less Energy

The firm noted that the energy consumption of its printers has continuously decreased over the last few years. It explained that printers in general use the most energy, over 60 percent, when fusing toner to paper. However, with the company’s polymerised Simitri V toner used by Konica Minolta’s latest bizhub printer/MFPs, the fusing temperature is reduced by about 15 °C compared to previous models. Combined with a new fixing device, this lower fuser temperature helps to significantly reduce energy consumed and the TEC Value. The reduction in power consumption has resulted in the MFPs producing up to 25-percent less CO2 emissions in operation compared to previous models.

Use of Renewable Energy

Konica Minolta also aims to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy, as burning fuel to generate electricity produces significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions. That’s why the company has been a member of RE100 since 2019 and is committed to using 100-percent renewable electricity by 2050, and 30 percent by 2030.

Subsidiaries, Factories Use 100-Percent Renewable Energy

As of its 2021 fiscal year, Konica Minolta sources 8.3 percent of its electricity from renewable sources worldwide. Konica Minolta’s European Headquarters and 11 subsidiaries already use 100-percent renewable electricity. Two of its factories in China also already use 100-percent renewable electricity, which means that more than 50 percent of Konica Minolta MFPs and all its production printing devices for the European market are produced with renewable electricity. In addition, Konica Minolta’s European toner factory in France also uses 100-percent renewable electricity.

In Europe, the company compensates for non-avoidable emissions and supports climate-protections projects aiming to replace fossil fuels by using renewable energy, such as wind parks, with its partner Climate Partner. All projects must meet the Gold Standard VER criteria.​ Gold Standard VER projects are said to go beyond climate aspects because they also fundamentally take social aspects into account​. With the Enabling Climate Compensation programme, Konica Minolta also offers its customers the ability to offset unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions for office and production printing devices. Since 2015, it’s compensated for more than 50,000 tons of unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions.

With its visual Remote Service AIRe Link, which was introduced in 2020, Konica Minolta has been able to save around 310,760 kilometres in 8,900 customer visits across Europe from 2020 to 2022, which equates  to 140 ton of greenhouse gas emissions.

Transportation Strategy

 Where possible, the company is trying to shift transport across Europe from air and road, to rail or water. Ninety percent of its goods transported from Rotterdam in the Netherlands to its main warehouse center in Emmerich, Germany, are carried out on the Rhine River with barges. Forty percent of transport from Emmerich to Italy is already done by rail.

Towards Zero Natural Resources: Minimize Waste and Consumption of Natural Resources

Konica Minolta aims to use more than 90-percent circulated resources for its products by 2050. These resources are recycled materials and biomaterials. With that goal in mind, the company aims to enable the reuse and recycling of materials as many times as possible to minimize waste and the consumption of natural resources.

As of today, Konica Minolta MFPs already use up to 44 percent recycled materials, while its production printing systems use up to 15 percent recycled materials. The company’s oner bottles use up to 61 percent recycled materials.

In Europe, some countries also offer refurbishment programs for MFPs to be refurbished according to strict standards. Some of the collected toner bottles and cartridges are refurbished and refilled throughout Europe.

In its 2021 fiscal year, Konica Minolta took back 11,200 tons of end-of-life office equipment. Of this, 99 percent were recycled. As part of the Clean Planet Program, Konica Minolta discarded consumables are collected and recycled across Europe.

The company noted that styrene foam is widely used, but has a poorer environmental performance than other materials. Therefore, Konica Minolta has been looking for packaging solutions to replace it. For transport from its factories to Europe, in 2019 Konica Minolta developed a new air-cushioning material for packaging and transporting MFPs and production printing devices. By using the lighter, more compact air pillows, the company was able to reduce the weight of shipments by 75 percent and packaging volume by 99 percent. In addition, it’s also committed to the use of cardboard. Units shipped from its European warehouse in Emmerich to its European customers are simply shrink-wrapped on pallets.

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