After the front end process, semiconductor chips are resin sealed into packages at the backend process and finalized after inspection.  Encapsulating multiple chips into a single body package in stead of into multiple packages allows material consumption and production energy to decrease.  

Furthermore, by consolidating stacked chips into one, single package, surface mount area can be also reduced. 

We, Akita Elpida, will continue to work on further improvement and betterment of the environment not only for our customers but also for the society through our high production efficiency that leads to less energy and less material consumption, and through our resource-saving technologies that achieve “smaller, thinner, more stacked” packages.

Thanks to various improvements such as the factory’s enhanced production efficiency, upgraded performance of the air conditioning equipment, increase in stack package production, and higher bit integration, our CO2 emission per product (Production Volume Unit: gC02/piece) has been on the decrease.  The Production Volume Unit of FY 2010 was 48% down from that of FY 2007 by our reduced energy consumption and increased high integration products.

Akita Elpida is successfully pursuing resource saving by focusing on chip stacked packages such as Multi Chip Package (MCP).  To cite one of our achievements, resin use per chip can be reduced down to half or 1/3 of that used for a single layer product.

FY 2010’s resource efficiency rate (the number of produced packages divided by the number of chips used therein) shows we were able to save 36% from FY 2007. 

Through further expansion of stacked package production, our pursuit toward recourse saving will never stop.

To balance the environment and the economy, Akita Elpida is also promoting waste valuation. Metal and paper waste, and waste plastics are sold to recycling businesses for material recycling.  This leads to effective resource use and saving, and at the same time, to reduction in waste disposal expenses.  After the global financial crisis in FY 2009, the plastic recycling market shrank and made waste valuation difficult.  But since FY 2010 we have started to see signs of recovery, and the amount of valued waste has slightly increased. In order to effectively utilize resources around us, which are never infinite, we are committed to continuing to promote waste valuation.

As one of the community-based initiatives for environment awareness promotion, we offer a handicraft workshop to recycle used polypropylene band (PP band).  PP band is a material commonly used when packing and binding carton boxes.  Usually, after taken off the boxes, PP band is collected for recycling as plastic resources.  But at the workshop, the shipping band is reborn as fancy handiwork material. We have received many positive comments from the participants. In particular, at the children’s hall, the workshop is so popular as an educational, hands-on recycling course that we are repeatedly asked to offer more frequently. This activity is sure to help us further deepen our relationship with the community.

One of our voluntary services to the public is plastic bottle cap collection. 　In Akita, people actively participate in this project where the collected caps are sold to recycling business, and proceeds from the sales are used for purchase and donation of vaccine products for children in developing countries.

We donated about 79,467 caps to the organization coordinating this project from June, 2008 to March, 2011, which accounted for about 100 vaccine products and 626 kg reduction in CO2 emission.  This company-wide activity will continue as one of our employee involvement campaigns for social service and recycling promotion.

Akita Prefecture designates April as "Akita Clean Month," and the second Sunday of April as Akita Beautiful Sunday for its environmental improvement project.  In tune with this prefecture-wide project, Akita Elpida volunteers to clean up the roadsides in front of our building and neighboring areas.

Each time, a greater number of employees participate, including repeaters and newcomers, this precious environment-related activity has been steadily recognized and gaining growing support in the company.

Community environment is created and supported by its people.  To help develop human resources who take such an important role, we offer environmental education classes at local elementary schools.  Students learn about environmental issues at lectures first, and understand better the issues through later presentation and discussion, being guided to come up with their unique ideas and solutions.  In FY 2010, the lectures were focused on fifth graders, all ended with active discussions.  Students of nearby Akita International University served as instructors and educational supporters for the classes.  Those who taught and those who were taught both saw their personal growth through these precious occasions and also created bonding with each other.  For further promotion of exchange with the community and creation of future community leaders, Akita Elpida will continue to offer education opportunities like this.

As members of the community, Akita Elpida employees participated in local volunteer services in pursuit of more beautiful, nature-rich environment.  Akita people are proud that the prefecture has collective forest area of approx. 82 ha (202 acres)　which ranks itself at the 7th of the nation.  This is one of the reasons why they actively work on forest maintenance and conservation work.  In 2010, Akita Elpida employees joined in tree thinning to enhance young tree growth

And also Akita City organizes cleanup events along the Omono River to enhance its people’s awareness of river protection and conservation.  In 2010, Akita Elpida employees joined in the cleanup on the Hamadahama Beach close to the estuary.  They found a surprisingly large amount of waste collected there. This occasion was a fresh reminder of the environment problems we are facing.  Our cooperation and support to the local environmental activities will continue.