Furukawa Electric Group has established the Risk Management Committee, chaired by the President, vice-chaired by the General Manager of the Risk Management Division, and composed of members from the management level. This committee deliberates on issues related to the Group's risk management, internal controls, and compliance, and has adopted a system for supervision and promotion.
The Risk Management Committee provides a bird's-eye view of risks by assessing risks from the management and operational perspectives, and determines important risks that must be addressed on a company-wide basis and prioritized for action. In addition, we have established special committees to focus on the management of risks that are considered highly important, such as quality control, health and safety, environment, and disaster prevention and business continuity management (BCM). We are working to strengthen our risk management system related to business activities. When important decisions are made by the Board of Directors, the Management Committee, or through the approval process, etc., the risks anticipated from such matters are clearly stated in documents, etc., and decisions are made based on an awareness of these risks.

Our Risk Management Committee evaluates risks from the management and operational perspectives to identify important risks that must be addressed on a company-wide basis, and prioritizes countermeasures. In each area, the committee promotes risk management related to business activities through the activities of various specialized committees, such as the Environment, Quality, Safety, and Disaster Prevention.

In the event of a crisis such as a large-scale disaster, Furukawa Electric Group will establish Emergency Response Headquarters, headed by the president, and Site Response Headquarters that defines each department's roles and clarifies them as necessary. We have prepared an initial response manual, stockpiled necessary supplies, and established a system for communication and safety confirmation, and conduct periodic drills.

Furukawa Electric Group, fully aware of its social responsibility, has formulated a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and works on Business Continuity Management (BCM) based on the following basic policy in order to minimize damage and continue business activities even in the event of unforeseen risks such as natural disasters and infectious diseases, etc.

The Group is deeply aware of its social responsibility to protect human life and safety from disasters such as fires and earthquakes, and to continue its business operations. We place the highest priority on respect for human life, and continuously make efforts to mitigate damage and prevent secondary disasters as well as compliance with laws and regulations. We aim to clarify the roles of all employees, from management to staff, and to raise the level of our fire and disaster prevention activities in cooperation with the entire Group.

In order to strengthen the business continuity activities, we are actively working to obtain ISO22301 certification, the international standard for the business continuity management systems (BCMS). So far our “laser diode products business” (Chiba Works), “copper wire products business” (Mie Works), and “copper and copper alloy products (the original products) business”(Nikko Works), have acquired the certification.

In the event that a business site suffers extensive damage due to a natural disaster, etc., it is necessary to smoothly coordinate with the head office's emergency response headquarters and work as a team to achieve business restoration as quickly as possible. To prepare for such events, we conduct an annual drill to ensure coordination between the head office (emergency response headquarters) and business sites (affected areas). In FY2023, we conducted an exercise by connecting the site and the head office remotely, on the assumption that an earthquake caused an information and telecommunications network failure in the Copper Foil Division. The emergency headquarters in the affected area, the plant, the emergency response headquarters(head office), and the Marketing and Planning Departments participated in the exercise to verify the effectiveness of the current recovery process, concerning the investigation of the cause of the information and telecommunications network failure, measures for early recovery, and alternative production in the event of a prolonged failure. We will steadily improve the issues identified in the exercise and promote employee training to further strengthen the resilience of critical business continuity.

Information security is considered one of the highest priority risks Furukawa Electric Group has to handle. Therefore, all related divisions are working together to address it from the perspectives of information systems, intellectual property protection, and information management.

As a technical measure against cyber security risks, which are becoming more sophisticated and serious every year, we introduced an EDR system^*1 in FY2021, which monitors the behavior of PCs and other terminals and blocks unauthorized external communications, in place of conventional anti-virus software. As an organizational measure, in FY 2017 we began the activities of the "Furukawa Electric CSIRT^*2" to promptly respond to incidents, large and small, of the Group. In preparation for a situation in which Group companies and supply chains are targeted and damage expands, we are exploring ways to respond to incidents involving Group companies. In FY2023 continuing from FY2022, we conducted cyber incident response training in collaboration with the CSIRT organizations of several domestic affiliates. In the future, we intend to expand the training to other major group companies, aiming to establish a global cyber security system for the Group.

Regarding the obligation to report to the Personal Information Protection Commission stipulated in the revised Personal Information Protection Law, we brought this to the attention of employees again at the information security awareness month (February 2024) as well as established in the relevant internal rules. In addition, the entire Group is taking measures to comply with overseas personal information regulations in China and Vietnam. In China, the Personal Information Protection Law went into effect in November 2021, and we have alerted our offices in China, provided guidance on how to respond, and took action when personal information is transferred from the local site. Subsequently, we confirmed the compliance of personal information in and out of China regarding the Standard Contracts for Cross-border Transfer of Personal Information and related guidelines finalized in March 2024, and we are taking action on this matter at the Company and local offices. In Vietnam, after confirming the implementation of the Personal Data Protection Decree enacted in June 2023, the Group formulated a policy to comply with the decree in March 2024, and our local group companies are currently responding to it.

Following our international business development, risks that the Group faces are becoming more diversified and complicated each year. We particularly recognize that risks inherent in overseas operations― mainly in emerging countries―and risks from the supply chain standpoint are our top priority issues as well as addressing geopolitical risks and economic security, and we will strengthen our countermeasures against them. While assessing changes in the environment in the future, we will implement necessary countermeasures in a prompt and flexible manner.

In the Furukawa Electric Group Medium-term Management Plan 2022-2025 (2025 Medium-term Plan), we set a sustainability indicator and target of “building a governance system to strengthen risk management/group governance.”