Bridgestone Elevates Standards in Sustainable Procurement Practices; Launches New Policy for Suppliers and Partners

Minimum requirements strengthen existing guidelines for Respect of Human Rights, Environmental Standards and Product Quality while including additional requirements for Land Conservation and Rights, Point of Origin Traceability and Resilience

TOKYO, Feb. 5, 2018 /CNW/ -- Bridgestone Corporation (Bridgestone), the world's largest tire and rubber company, today announced a new Global Sustainable Procurement Policy to help identify and evaluate qualified suppliers, promote best practices, and serve as a communication and improvement tool for the industry. The policy reflects a company commitment to procurement programming that drives action to realize long-term environmental, social and economic benefits. The policy is applicable to all purchased materials and services, as well as all suppliers globally.

"Our new policy is a critical step in realizing the Bridgestone Group's global corporate social responsibility commitment, "Our Way to Serve," which provides a framework for how we do business, develop products, and interact with customers and communities," said Masaaki Tsuya, CEO and Representative Executive Officer, Bridgestone Corporation. "We recognize our ability and responsibility to drive change and improvements in the ways that industry interacts with the environment and communities around the world. We expect our suppliers and partners to work with us in pursuit of sustainable supply chains, efforts which are never-ending and which require collaborations with all industry players, including communicating with the various audiences in order to generate broader public awareness."

Guided by Bridgestone's "Our Way to Serve," the new policy aligns with Bridgestone's goal of using "100% sustainable materials*" in our products as the long-term vision by 2050 and beyond. It combines previous company guidelines into a single document that sets minimum requirements to conduct business with Bridgestone, as well as preferred practices that can contribute to faster realization of sustainable supply chains. As a large user of natural rubber, the policy describes Bridgestone's expectations with respect to critical issues within the complex global natural rubber supply chain. An extensive document, the policy addresses four major areas of focus:

• Transparency – including traceability and good governance;
• Compliance – adhering to laws and regulations in the countries and regions in which Bridgestone conducts business;
• Quality, Cost and Delivery (QCD) & Innovation – ensuring high quality materials and services are delivered on time and at reasonable costs, while also pursuing innovative technologies that support improvements across global communities;
• Sustainable Procurement Practices – incorporating environmentally responsible procurement, such as compliance with environmental laws and regulations, respect for human rights, water use, land use and conservation, health, safety, disaster prevention and resilience.

During the development of the final policy, Bridgestone gained insights from external stakeholders, including international consultants, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), materials suppliers, natural rubber farmers, and key customers to ensure the policy is thorough, reflects industry standards and best practices, and is supported by an effective implementation and communication plan.

Available in 12 languages, the policy will be implemented, governed and enforced regionally. As an immediate first step, Bridgestone will prioritize working closely with its employees, suppliers and customers and other industry experts to implement the policy. Over the next 18 months, Bridgestone will work with its suppliers and partners to ensure that they have received the policy and understand it. Following acknowledgment of the policy, suppliers will then receive a self assessment questionnaire. Bridgestone is currently developing an additional supplier assessment for the traceability of natural rubber and will be working to partner with the industry and other qualified experts to help support ongoing monitoring of supplier compliance.

Bridgestone is committed to working with additional external stakeholders, including universities, industry associations and NGOs, to continually review feedback which will be valuable for subsequent enhancements and revisions to the policy.

To learn more about the Global Sustainable Procurement Policy and Bridgestone's CSR commitments:

• Visit Bridgestone's Global Sustainable Procurement web page for more detail and to access the policy
• Visit Bridgestone's "Our Way to Serve" special web page and CSR web page for general information 
• Read Bridgestone's 2016 Sustainability Report for more detail on sustainability activities
• Bridgestone's recent achievements in sustainability awards and ratings "the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World)".

*The Bridgestone Group defines sustainable materials as materials that "1) that come from resources with a guaranteed continual supply, 2) that can be used as part of our business over the long-term, and 3) that have a low environmental and social impact over the lifecycle from procurement to disposal."

About Bridgestone:

Bridgestone Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, is the world's largest tire and rubber company. In addition to tires for use in a wide variety of applications, it also manufactures a broad range of diversified products, which include industrial rubber and chemical products and sporting goods. Its products are sold in over 150 nations and territories around the world.

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SOURCE Bridgestone Corporation