Message from President
Building Social Infrastructure through Logistics
For more than 60 years since our founding, at Sagawa Express we have offered a logistics business mainly through use of trucks and put our efforts into building a form of social infrastructure.
Since the year 2000s, with the spread of the Internet leading to rapid growth in e-commerce, demand for deliveries to private homes has risen substantially. Further, the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed the structure of the economy and individual lifestyles, and delivery needs are higher than ever before.
As a company that upholds economic activity, it is our mission to ensure smooth and reliable delivery of the packages we have been entrusted with. To create the infrastructure necessary to do so, in addition to ensuring efficiency in anticipation of future increases in the volume of goods, we will work to build a sustainable supply chain while considering both resilience and risk.
Environmentally Friendly Logistics (Environmental Initiatives to Date [1])
To reduce GHG emissions from our transportation and delivery operations, we are promoting a modal shift in our long-haul transportation and proactively introducing environmentally friendly natural gas and hybrid vehicles for last one-mile deliveries. We are also promoting deliveries that do not use vehicles from our smaller hubs, such as our Service Centers. Elsewhere, GOAL®—our advanced logistics project team—is working to optimize the vehicles required for delivery and shipping. By streamlining logistics for our customers, we are proposing a business that ensures both environmental and economic value.
Environmental Protection at the Forest of Takao 100 years (Environmental Initiatives to Date [2])
At the Forest of Takao 100 years, our company-owned forest, we are working with various individuals to protect the area, which acts as a carbon sink for the greenhouse gases emitted through our business activities. While the forest would deteriorate if left alone, thinning the trees, and cutting the undergrowth as necessary can bring more sunlight into the forest and in turn promote the absorption of carbon dioxide. At the same time, nurturing the ground to promote the development of animals and plants can help protect biodiversity. We will continue with forest protection activities such as these moving forward.
The Forest of Takao 100 years is also used by various individuals for this purpose as a platform to teach children of the next generation about the environment. In addition to forest protection, we will link these activities to the development of personnel who are interested in environmental issues and who can contribute to the creation of a sustainable society.
Sustainability Management
The Japanese government has committed to reducing GHG emissions by 46% compared to 2013 by the year 2030. At the same time, global action aimed at decarbonization and the achievement of the SDGs is gathering momentum. In line with these social conditions, we too are redefining our conventional approach to CSR, adopting a more long-term perspective for our business as we aim to achieve sustainability in three areas: the environment, society, and the economy. In particular, as a company that operates using a large number of trucks, the reduction of GHG emissions—one of the major causes of global warming—is an important, urgent issue that we must address. Approximately 70% of our greenhouse gas emissions come from our vehicles, and so we understand that decarbonizing our vehicles is an immediate challenge. We will seek to do so through the introduction of EVs and FCVs, both of which are expected to grow in popularity, and the use of biofuels. Further, we must also seek to decarbonize the upstream processes when sourcing power for these vehicles. Regarding the introduction of EVs and FCVs, while there are still many hurdles to overcome, including charging operations, we are working with the relevant companies and steadily moving forward with preparations.
Finally, it is essential that we operate so that the employees who uphold our business really feel as though they are contributing to society. People are at the center of the majority of our work. Creating an environment where employees can continue to work over the long term with peace of mind is the very essence of sustainable management. Reinforcing and building strong, long-term relationships with employees and other stakeholders is therefore essential. While ensuring our business is at one with society, and confronting the challenges that society faces, we will make forward progress with our stakeholders to achieve sustainability for the future.
Masahide Motomura
President
SAGAWA EXPRESS CO., LTD.