Procurement Activities
Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct
YANMAR HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
January 2023
(First Edition)
Table of Contents
Ⅰ. The Purpose of Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct
Ⅱ. Scope of Application
Ⅲ. Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct
- Respect for human rights
(1) Prohibition of unfair discrimination and harassment
(2) Prohibition of sexual harassment and power harassment (workplace bullying)
(3) Responsible procurement of resources and raw materials - Responsibilities to customers
(1) Research, development, production, and quality assurance activities
(2) Sales and services
(3) Advertisements and campaigns - Pursuit of fairness in business operations
(1) Promotion of sound and fair corporate activities
(2) Fair and free competition
(3) Conflict with personal interests - Environmental preservation
- Proper international trade
- Protection of confidential information
(1) Management of personal information
(2) Management of trade secrets
(3) Confidentiality of personal information about executives and employees
(4) Precautions for acquiring confidential information about others
(5) Enhancement of information security
(6) Creation, handling, storage, and disposal of documents - Assurance of proper, safe working environment
(1) Safety and health
(2) Execution of fair evaluations and development of worker-friendly environments - Proper accounting practices
(1) Appropriate book keeping and account recording, and compliance with accounting laws and ordinances
(2) Compliance with taxation laws
(3) Transmission of accurate information - Protection and utilization of corporate assets
(1) Management and protection of the company’s intellectual properties
(2) Acquisition of the company’s intellectual property rights
(3) Prohibition of unauthorized use of the company’s intellectual properties
(4) Prohibition of unauthorized use of corporate funds and goods
(5) Respect for intellectual property rights of others - Corporate social activities
- Compliance of social norms
Ⅰ. The Purpose of Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct
The purpose of “Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct“ is to ensure that Yanmar Group and its business partners cooperate in fulfilling corporate social responsibilities by clearly stating what Yanmar Group expects its business partners to commit to in terms of corporate social responsibility.
Ⅱ. Scope of Application
“Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct“ are applicable to all of the business partners of Yanmar Group.
Ⅲ. Yanmar Group Supply Chain Code of Conduct
We would like to ask our business partners to strive to introduce and promote the following committed efforts.
1. Respect for human rights
Respect fundamental human rights, and do not tolerate or participate in human rights violations, discrimination, or harassment, and recognize and respect the individuality and diversity of each and every person.
(1) Prohibition of unfair discrimination and harassment
Do not discriminate anyone unfairly, based on their nationality, race, ethnic background, belief, religion, gender, age, disability, illness, or social status. Also, do not treat or harass anyone in any other discriminatory manner.
(2) Prohibition of sexual harassment and power harassment (workplace bullying)
Do not commit any harassment such as sexual harassment or workplace bullying. These actions should not impair the personality or dignity of any individual employee. Do not prevent any employee from demonstrating their abilities or do not interfere with anyone’s work environment or execution of work.
(3) Responsible procurement of resources and raw materials
Promote no use of “conflict minerals,” which cause social issues in human rights, the environment, and other fields. Should any use of a conflict mineral be found, eliminate it.
2. Responsibilities to customers
Provide society with useful and safe products and services. To ensure that our customers shall be safeguarded in using products and services, conduct marketing activities in a fair manner, provide fair and accurate business-related information, and seek to enter into fair contracts.
(1) Research, development, production, and quality assurance activities
Provide safe, high-quality products, technologies, and services in a timely manner. When carrying out an activity, comply with the laws, ordinances, and internal regulations related to the activity, and pay attention to the environmental conservation of the facilities used and the safety and health of the employees and other people involved.
① Fulfill your responsibility for quality assurance and ensure product safety from the perspective of your customers at all times.
② If you obtain any information about a product incident or product safety, check its fact immediately and disclose appropriate information based on that result, preventing the damage from expanding and preventing the incident from recurring.
③ Secure supplied amounts and comply with due dates.
(2) Sales and services
For sales, marketing, information transmission, and technology services, comply with related laws, ordinances, and ethics to carry out fair business activities. Transmit sufficient accurate information about products and services to customers appropriately in easy-to-understand and timely manners, reply to inquiries from customers sincerely, and reflect the voices of customers on the improvement and development of products and services.
(3) Advertisements and campaigns
When carrying out activities to promote sales, such as advertisements and campaigns, comply with related laws, ordinances, and ethics to optimize the activities.
① Use appropriate expressions to prevent false and exaggerated expressions, social discrimination, and human rights violation.
② Maintain sound and fair relationships with advertising agencies, production companies, and media companies.
3. Pursuit of fairness in business operations
Comply with applicable competition laws and regulations, thereby pursuing fairness in our business operations. Do not make or receive payments and/or gifts that may violate laws and ethics. Also do not have any relationship with anti-social forces that may threaten the order and security of the society.
(1) Promotion of sound and fair corporate activities
Carry out sound and fair corporate activities, strive to gain the trust of stakeholders, maintain sound relationships with the politics and administration, and do not have any relationship with anti-social forces and organizations that may threaten the order and security of the society.
(A) Relationships with stakeholders
Understanding that your relationships with stakeholders are important, disclose accurate information appropriately and impartially in an easy-to understand manner through public relations (PR) and other activities to build and maintain long-term relationships of trust that are fair and sincere.
(B) Relationships with the politics and administration
Do not entertain or bribe politicians or public servants for favors in individual countries in any form to carry out a business activity.
Also, maintain sound and transparent relationships with those in the administration.
(C) Relationships with anti-social forces
Completely dissociate yourself from anti-social forces and organizations (such as crime syndicates, right-wing organizations, racketeers, and “black journalism”) that may threaten the order and security of the civil society. Also, comply with all laws, ordinances, and regulations concerning measures against money laundering and terrorism and carry out business transactions only with trusted customers engaged in legal business activities.
(2) Fair and free competition
(A) Unfair arrangements with other companies
Do not make any arrangement with competitors in individual countries that will affect the sales price or sales conditions of a product through a business activity. Also, do not join any organization or meeting in which such an arrangement may be made.
(B) Free competition for sales
Do not impose any restriction on special agents or regular distributors for the purpose of maintaining the resale price of a product through business activities. Also, do not request the business partners to impose such a restriction.
(C) Free competition with competitors
Do not make any statement that may lead to a slander, calumny, falsehood, or misunderstanding, regarding competitors in individual countries or their products or services through business activities.
(D) Unfair restrictions on business activities carried out by business partners
Do not impose any restriction unfairly on business activities carried out by a business partner to whom your company provides a technology or with whom your company conducts a joint research or development for any purpose other than genuine purposes such as the legitimate exercise of an intellectual property right and the protection and maintenance of confidential information.
(E) Procurement of materials
When procuring any raw material, part, equipment, office supply, service, or other item required for manufacturing or other business activities, comply with related laws, ordinances, and ethics for fair transactions.
① Select business partners by transaction according to fair, reasonable standards (such as quality, guarantee, safety, environment, due date, and price).
② Strive to build better partnerships with business partners through mutual understanding and mutual trust.
③ Do not accept any personal profit related to your work from any business partner.
④ Comply with the Act against Delay in Payment of Subcontract Proceeds, etc. to Subcontractors and do not demand any unfair subcontract business condition.
(3) Conflict with personal interests
(A) Prohibition of treatment of business partners and customers through favoritism and priority of corporate profits
Do not treat any existing or prospective business partner or customer through favoritism for the reason that the partner or customer has a certain relationship with yourself, an executive or employee of your company, or their relative.
(B) Prohibition of acceptance of illegal or improper entertainment, money or goods from business partners and customers
Maintain fair relationships with business partners and customers, and do not accept, demand, or promise profits (such as money, goods, entertainment, and convenience) illegally or improperly.
4. Environmental preservation
Strive to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG), increase sustainable use of recyclable waste, conserve the natural environment, including the air and water, use resources and energy efficiently, reduce industrial wastes, build an environmental management system (EMS), and ensure the management of environmentally hazardous substances in all business activities to demonstrate corporate behaviors that contribute to environmental protection.
(For details, refer to Yanmar Group Green Procurement Guidelines.)
5. Proper international trade
Comply with internal regulations as well as applicable fair trade laws regarding partners’ countries or regions concerning the maintenance of good order in international trade, and do not become involved in any transaction that may threaten international peace and security.
6. Protection of confidential information
Properly manage and handle both your own and others’ confidential information, as well as personal data related to your customers and employees, while obtaining such information and data in an appropriate manner. Also, thoroughly execute security control of your information systems.
(1) Management of personal information
Collect, use, and manage personal information about customers and business partners according to appropriate methods and do not disclose it to external parties without their permission and without just cause.
(2) Management of trade secrets
Manage trade secrets appropriately according to the company’s regulations and rules for information security. Also, do not disclose it to external parties without just cause. Within your company, also do not disclose it to anyone other than those deemed to need to obtain such information for their work.
(3) Confidentiality of personal information about executives and employees
Respect the privacy of executives and employees, handle their personal information confidentially, and do not disclose it to external parties without their permission, except when its disclosure complies with a law or ordinance. Within your company, also do not disclose it to anyone other than those deemed to need to obtain such information for their work.
(4) Precautions for acquiring confidential information about others
When acquiring confidential information from any third party other than your company, customers, and business partners, obtain it directly from the third party with their permission as well as legally and appropriately.
Also, if a third party offers to provide you information suspected of being information about someone other than the third party, obtain it according to a legitimate method.
(5) Enhancement of information security
Appropriately manage not only corporate computers, personal computers, smart devices, and other internal information processing systems, but also paper documents in offices, chemical substances in factories, and conversations in public spaces, and do not use them for any unintended purpose.
(6) Creation, handling, storage, and disposal of documents
Create, handle, store, and dispose of all documents, including those stored in electronic media, appropriately according to laws, ordinances, internal regulations, and other standards.
7. Assurance of proper, safe working environment
Comply with applicable laws against forced labor and child labor, and ensure a healthy and safe working environment.
(1) Safety and health
Comply with laws, ordinances, and internal regulations concerning safety and hygiene, and strive to ensure safety management and hygiene management to eliminate work-related accidents, prevent diseases, and maintain and promote good health. Also, consider the health and safety of workers while maintaining and improving good work environments.
(2) Execution of fair evaluations and development of worker-friendly environments
Evaluate the work performance of employees fairly, promote a good balance between the work, social life, and private life of employees, and develop a worker-friendly environment where employees can use all of their strength to work.
8. Proper accounting practices
Perform proper accounting practices and report accurate financial information on a timely basis by observing applicable accounting rules and standards.
(1) Appropriate book keeping and account recording, and compliance with accounting laws and ordinances
Provide accurate information about your company’s transactions in account books and records according to related accounting laws and ordinances as well as accounting principles, accounting practices, and internal regulations that are generally deemed to be fair and appropriate.
(2) Compliance with taxation laws
Always investigate, research, and comply with laws and ordinances concerning taxation in individual countries through corporate activities.
(3) Transmission of accurate information
Disclose corporate information such as business details and business activity status at appropriate times in appropriate methods. Disclose it to stakeholders appropriately, as required, and strive to maintain and improve mutual understanding and trusted relationships through open, fair communications.
9. Protection and utilization of corporate assets
Properly manage and utilize corporate assets including tangible assets and intellectual property rights and other such intangible assets. Also, respect the intellectual property rights of others.
(1) Management and protection of the company’s intellectual properties
Understand that intellectual properties derived from research, development, production, sales, and other operations (such as patents, utility models, designs, trademarks, written works, knowhow, and business secrets) are important properties of your company, and maintain, manage, and operate such properties appropriately. Also, respond to any infringement by others appropriately.
(2) Acquisition of the company’s intellectual property rights
When you acquire any intellectual property that is within the scope of your company’s business, handle it appropriately and promptly, such as reporting it to the company without delay. As for any intellectual property owned by your company, file a patent or make registration appropriately and promptly with the company to acquire its right.
(3) Prohibition of unauthorized use of the company’s intellectual properties
Record and manage the intellectual properties of your company appropriately and do not disclose or leak their information to anyone improperly or without following specified procedures. Also, do not use any intellectual property of your company for yourself or others, regardless of whether you still work for the company or have left it, unless you follow specified procedures.
(4) Prohibition of unauthorized use of corporate funds and goods
Use funds, goods, and other properties of your company only to fulfill your assigned work, and do not embezzle or use them for yourself or any third party. Do not claim improper expenses and do not make profits for yourself or any third party improperly by using your position or authority at work. Comply with internal procedures for using properties of your company if such procedures are specified.
(5) Respect for intellectual property rights of others
Respect intellectual property rights of others and do not obtain any invention, design, knowhow, or business secret of others in an improper method. Also, do not improperly use such property without the permission of its right holder in your own development, production, sales, or other operations.
10. Corporate social activities
As a good corporate citizen, actively engage in social contribution activities with a full understanding of the culture and customs of each country and region as you conduct your business operations.
11. Compliance of social norms
Comply with applicable laws of each country and region as you conduct your business operations, observing high ethical standards in all of your business activities.
Ⅳ. Record of Revisions
- First Edition January 2023
If you have any inquiries regarding these guidelines, please use the contact form below. When making an inquiry, please specify the relevant department/responsible person.