Themes and Policies
| Theme |
Resource circulation 
|
|---|---|
| Policy | Amid concerns over the tight supply and demand for resources and energy, efforts to sustainably manage natural resources, make efficient use of resources, and drastically reduce waste are urgent issues.The Ricoh Lease Group will contribute to the realization of a recycling-oriented society by promoting the reuse and recycling of facilities and equipment for which the lease contract has been terminated, and by realizing the reduction through sharing of rental equipment. |
Ricoh Leasing Group’s goal of resource circulation
The consistent collection of leased equipment is an important responsibility of leasing companies. Our strength lies in our system for steadily promoting the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), including the Comet Circle, the Ricoh Group’s system for reducing environmental impact. We aim to prevent illegal dumping and improper disposal at properties where leasing or renting agreements have terminated, and to contribute to the realization of a recycling-oriented society by reducing waste generation through the effective use of resources. After a lease expires, customers can select either to re-lease the equipment (reuse), which allows them to continue using it, or return the equipment. Returned equipment is consigned to an appropriate and fair partner company for proper disposal (recycling). We have set "74% equipment collection rate" and "100% PC reuse/recycling rate" as non-financial targets in our Mid-term Management Plan. As a result of working with suppliers, the equipment collection rate for FY2024 was 68.9%. Meanwhile, the reuse/recycling rate for PCs was 99.4% as a result of working with businesses dealing in reused equipment.
Percentage of leased equipment recycled at the end of the lease contract
For Ricoh products, the implementation of Comet Circle, a system to reduce the environmental impact of products over their life cycles, has allowed us to maintain a high recycling rate. Currently, we are actively promoting collection activities for leased equipment other than Ricoh products, and the overall recycling rate for fiscal 2024 was 89.1%. We will continue to address logistics issues such as driver shortages by establishing collection points for leased equipment and eliminating waste. In fiscal 2024, we also participated in the Joint Recovery Demonstration Project for End-of-Lease Property implemented by the Japan Leasing Association to reduce CO2 emissions.
Recycling rate of equipment after end of leasing contract (unit basis)
| Fiscal year | Recycling rate (%) | Recycling rate breakdown (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of equipment re-leased, sold or reprocessed※into parts and materials, excluding equipment not yet collected | Reuse | Reuse of components and recycling | |
| 2021 | 90.8 | 97.4 | 2.6 |
| 2022 | 89.7 | 97.0 | 3.0 |
| 2023 | 89.3 | 97.0 | 3.0 |
| 2024 | 89.1 | 97.2 | 2.8 |
- ※"Reprocessed" refers to the reuse of parts and materials from collected equipment that has been recycled through Ricoh’s recycling process.
PC reuse/recycling rate
As the number of shipments of IT equipment such as PCs, servers, and smartphones has increased in recent years, there is public demand for safer and more secure final disposal of IT equipment that contains confidential data. In response to these social needs, we provide value-added services to properly erase important data on IT equipment.
In fiscal 2024, we established a system to promote the 3Rs at a higher level of quality by strengthening our operational methods, including reuse of PCs, and by holding discussions with partner companies.
Selection of appropriate and fair partners
The Ricoh Leasing Group conducts business with companies involved in logistics, including transportation and storage, sales, and disposal. We carry out regular on-site inspections of these companies to ensure that they understand our approach to sustainability, and that they are conducting appropriate and lawful business activities. Once we have confirmed that they meet our rigorous standards, we conduct business with them through fair competition. We will continue to contribute to the realization of resource circulation by collaborating with our partners through sincere business activities.