RATING
Outlook
Positive
SECTOR
Electronic Components & Boards
Chief Sustainability Officer
T: N/A
E-mail: N/A
Stock Exchange and Ticker
KRX: 005930
Website
Contact
T: +82 31 200-1114
E.mail: N/A
Listing
- #14 Best Brands For Social Impact (2023)
- #252 Customer Experience – All Stars (2023)
- #449 America’s Best Large Employers (2023)
- #173 Canada’s Best Employers (2023)
- #84 Best Employers for Veterans (2022)
- #1 World’s Best Employers (2022)
- America’s Best Employers By State (2022)
- #13 Canada’s Best Employers For Diversity (2022)
- #233 Best Employers for New Grads (2022)
- #14 Global 2000 (2022)
- #39 The Halo 100 (2022)
- #438 Best Employers for Diversity (2021)
- #291 America’s Best Employers (2021)
Awards
- 1st in World’s Best Employers for two consecutive years in 2020 and 2021 by Forbes
- CES 2022 Innovation Awards
- Selected as the highest rated winner (4 products)
- Selected as the winner (39 products)
- 2021 Sustainable Materials Management Electronics Challenge by the United States Environmental Protection Agency
- Sustained Excellence for SolarCell Remote
- Gold Tier for excellence in the responsible collection and recycling of electronic waste
- ENERGY STAR Awards, US EPA
- Partner of the year awards for environmental protection
- Honored with sustained Excellence nine times
- IDEA 2021 (48 products)
- iF Design Award 2021 (71 products)
- National Quality Management Awards by the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
- Presidential Citation
- Foundry Business for securing unmatched quality ness
- National Technology Awards by the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
- Presidential Prize
- Foundry Business for developing processing technology for 14nm RF and succeeding in the world’s first mass-production
- Energy Winners of the Year by Consumers Korea
- 8 prizes including Grand Prize and Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Prize
- Health-Friendly Company Certification by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare
- Minister of Health and Welfare Prize
- Certified for the operation of tailored healthcare programs, in-house clinics, the Musculoskeletal Disorder Prevention Exercise Center, healthcare-themed concerts, etc.
Revenue
$240.71B
Market Capitalisation
$275.78B
Employees
266,673
Content source
Samsung Electronics Sustainability Report
Evaluation of Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics over the last 3 years implemented various sustainability measures highlighting their willingness to tackle climate change. The company has obtained various sustainable awards and recognitions and has several certifications. The company also work together to build an ethical and sustainable supply chain, especially with regards to rare metals and other highly controversial production materials in technology. They have outlined their UN SDGs compliance properly.
However, they have been accused of greenwashing by being slow to transition to renewable energy. Their reporting was mediocre as they did not provide enough metric to show their efforts in the social impact. They have provided information in huge descriptions with loosely structured references for measuring progress in reporting.
The company has been given a C rating although they have a positive outlook.
Sustainability Scorecard
Samsung Electronics Company Activity
Samsung’s mission is to “help people achieve the impossible” (Samsung, 2021). The company strives to create products that open up new possibilities for their customers. Samsung aims to be one among the most ethical and innovative corporations in the world and continues to train its employees and mange monitoring systems, for fair and transparent business management. Samsung also aims to take the lead in technological innovations.
Samsung Electronics invests on R&D heavily, to be a forerunner in the discovery of new technologies that help people around the world to lead happier and healthier lives.
Samsung Electronics Sustainability Activity - As per company declarations
As a multinational company, Samsung works hard to make a positive impact while providing innovative products and services. Samsung’s conservation strategies and eco-friendly solutions paves the way towards more sustainable consumption. The company uses its technology and resources to support local communities and create opportunities for the next generation of innovators. Finally, Samsung is committed to build a different and inclusive workplace that enhances the contexts of origin and different points of view. The company also work together to build an ethical and sustainable supply chain, especially with regards to rare metals and other highly controversial production materials in technology.
Certificate & Labels, Standards and Frameworks
- Product Carbon Footprint Label by the Carbon Trust
- Lower Carbon Label by the Carbon Trust
- Underwriters Laboratories (UL) Certification
- Common Criteria Certification for 5G Solutions
- UL Gold Certification
- Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool Certification (US)
- Win-Win Index by Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership under the Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups
- ISO 27001
- ISO 45001
- ISO 14001
- ISO 50001
- ISO/IEC 27701
- KOSHA 18001 certification
- ISO 14064
- Energy Star
- EPEAT
- TCO
Samsung Electronics in the news: Press Reviews and Social Media
Samsung’s new sustainability measures look good, however they have certain shortcomings. The company has attained 100% renewable energy in some of their plants but its biggest plants are in Korea and Vietnam are yet to attain any significant progress.
This article explains about the new environmental policies of Samsung Electronics.
This article also explains about Samsung Electronics’ new sustainable process which increase circularity and reduce GHG emissions.
This article points out that Samsung’s carbon emissions rise despite their sustainability measures. They are accused of greenwashing as they are slow on transitioning to renewable energy and rely heavily on coal power.
Similar to the article above, this article also accuses Samsung of greenwashing as they have not introduced short term plans to renewable energy transitions in their plants in Korea and Vietnam which is their largest energy consumption plants (80%).
This article claims that Samsung’s new climate measures falls short although they are welcomed. The company has been termed Greenwashing Champion as they do not act fast on renewable energy measures.
Highlights from Samsung Electronics Sustainability Report
Achievements
- 31% increase of use of renewable energy compared to 2020
- EHS management system at Samsung’s production sites are 100% certified
- 96% of manufacturing waste is recycled
- 5.07 million tonnes of discarded electronic goods were collected (cumulative sum, 2009-2021)
- 9,903,186 is the total employee volunteer hours (cumulative sum, 2012-2021)
- Number of beneficiaries of Samsung’s CSR activities – 22,150,865 (cumulative sum, 2012-2021).
- Number of beneficiaries of the Smart Factory Support Program – 2812 (cumulative sum, 2015-2021)
- 4th (ICT sector) in 2021 Digital Inclusion Benchmark
- In-house consulting cases on privacy had a 9.7% increase from 2020
- Ranked 1st Among companies benchmarked by Global Child Forum (electronics sector)
- Samsung’s production sites are 100% ISO 45001 certified
- 68% of suppliers rated outstanding in the comprehensive supplier evaluation
- All smelters and refiners in Samsung’s supply chain are 100% RMAP certified
Weaknesses and Setbacks
- The sustainability report was not transparent enough
- The report could have included some metrics regarding the social impact
Targets vs Progress Reported
| Target | Results reported |
|---|---|
| Environment | - 6.41 million tonnes GHG reduction - 31% increase of renewable energy use (5,278) - 334 million tonnes GHG reduction in the product use phase (cumulative 2009-2021) - 5.07 million tonnes of e-waste collected (cumulative from 2009) - 96% waste recycled from manufacturing sites GHG emissions reduction activities in 2021: - 44% expanded use of renewable energy sources - 43% eco-conscious treatment of gas used in manufacturing process - 12% manufacturing process efficiency improvement - 1% equipment operation efficiency improvement - 0.1% others |
| Expansion of renewable energy use | Korea - Equipped 1.9MW and 1.5MW-capacity photovoltaic power generators at Suwon and Giheung business sites, respectively - 0.4MW-capacity photovoltaic power generator and 200RT-capacity geothermal power generator equipped in Pyeongtaek business site - Installed a 0.08MW-capacity photovoltaic power generator Onyang business site in 2021 - Plans to install an additional 0.2MW-capacity photovoltaic power generator at the Onyang business site and a 0.15MW-capacity photovoltaic power generator at the Gumi business site Central and South America 100% renewable energy use in business site in Campinas, Brazil - Business site in Manaus, Brazil is powered by 92 % renewable energy - Share of renewable energy in business site in Mexico increased to 71% in 2021, up from 4% in 2020 Southwest Asia - Chennai business site achieved 53% conversion to renewable energy - A total capacity of 0.7MW photovoltaic power generators were installed in parking lots and pedestrian passages at Noida business site, India |
| Product Efficiency | - In 2021, the annual energy consumption of Samsung’s products was reduced by an average of 33% compared to 2009 through the implementation of the high-efficiency heat exchangers for air conditioners, enhanced cleaning power for washers, and highefficiency driver ICs for TVs - Samsung’s AI based solution SmartThings Energy allows more energy-efficient use of connected home appliances |
| Maximizing Resource Circularity | Recycled Materials - In 2021 alone, Samsung used 33,000 tonnes of recycled plastic from discarded electronic goods, fishing nets, and plastic bottles, reaching a cumulative sum of 310,000 tonnes from 2009 - The Galaxy S22 series smartphones and Galaxy Tab S8 series tablets are built with parts that contain ocean-bound plastic. Samsung plans to apply recycled plastic to the entire Galaxy series Eco-Package Displays and Home - Appliances: Samsung uses recycled expandable polystyrene (EPS) cushions in the packaging for their major TV models and plans to include them in the packaging for all of their products from 2022 onwards - Mobile Devices: The packaging for Galaxy S22, Galaxy Tab S8, and other flagship models are made with 100% recycled paper, while film screen protectors are made with 100% recycled PET bottles. Samsung are replacing the plastic materials used for DLC bands and APS covers with paper to achieve plastic-free packaging by 2025 - Semiconductors: All paper packaging for Samsung’s products are made with 100% sustainably sourced paper, and they are working to apply paper packaging to more products |
| Empowering Communities | - 9,903,186 is the total employee volunteer hours. It’s a cumulative sum from 2012-2021 - Number of beneficiaries of Samsung’s CSR activities – 22,150,865 (cumulative sum, 2012-2021) - Number of beneficiaries of the Smart Factory Support Program – 2812 (cumulative sum, 2015-2021) Samsung Innovation Campus - A total of 39,182 students in 28 countries received technological training in 2021. In Turkey, in particular, 86% of Samsung Innovation Campus graduates succeeded in being recruited, and some started their own businesses Samsung SW Academy for Youth - A total of 2,785 trainees from the first through fifth entrance classes have graduated from SSAFY - Among them, 2,326 have succeeded in landing jobs in diverse fields including IT and finance, recording an employment rate of 84% as of April 2022 - In 2022, about 1,700 trainees of the sixth and seventh entrance classes are being trained at SSAFY Samsung Smart School - Samsung has reached out to 193 classrooms at 98 schools in Korea since 2012 - In 2021, Samsung selected ten excellent Smart Schools in Korea and India respectively, and offered remodeling services of two classrooms per school - Each Smart School classroom was given three Samsung Flip products, one tablet for each student, and one Samsung Chromebook for every two students. Additionally, they were provided with online class equipment, printers, and tablet charging stations - Samsung also provides teacher training and expert consulting to Smart Schools to help improve teacher’s capacity to utilize smart devices in classroom |
| Digital Responsibility | - 4th (ICT sector) in 2021 Digital Inclusion Benchmark - In-house consulting cases on privacy had a 9.7% increase from 2020 Privacy Protection Training - 90,821 employees completed privacy protection training in 2021 compared to 86,455 in 2020 Samsung Privacy Site - The Samsung Privacy Site provides users with comprehensive information on how their personal information is managed. Users can access and delete data being processed in their Samsung products and services connected to their Samsung Account Samsung Knox - Samsung Knox is securely built to protect the chipset, OS, and app against hacking attempts and unauthorized access. Saved user data are protected in real time while the devices are booted and used |
| Labor and Human rights | - Samsung complies with and advocate for international human rights standards including the UNGPs, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), International Bill of Human Rights, and OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises - In 2021, a combination of small-scale offline training and online training was offered for overseas subsidiaries that had to postpone their training efforts due to the pandemic, enabling 92% of the target employees to complete the training - In 2021, third-party assessments were conducted on nine business sites in Korea, Brazil, India, and China using the Validated Assessment Program (VAP) of RBA - Driven by ILO Equal Remuneration Convention initiative, Samsung’s gender pay gap in Korea improved by 3.1%p in 2021 compared to 2019 - Ranked 1st Among companies benchmarked by Global Child Forum (electronics sector) - Samsung’s production sites are 100% ISO 45001 certified |
| Responsible Supply Chain | - In 2021, Samsung added ESG risk diagnosis items to the evaluation to more effectively evaluate their suppliers’ environment and social responsibility performance - The 2021 comprehensive evaluations for those companies that have been in Samsung’s supply chain for more than one year were conducted on 93% of their suppliers. The results showed that 68% were rated outstanding and 2.3% required improvement - Based on RBA’s criteria, Samsung developed a self-assessment tool that consists of 85 items and is used by all of their suppliers to perform annual self-assessments. In 2022, Samsung reflected RBA’s updated criteria in this tool to facilitate self-assessment - Samsung prohibits forced labor and the collection of recruitment fees from their suppliers' migrant workers through the Supplier Code of Conduct. Based on this policy, a total of USD 389,921 was reimbursed to 1,199 migrant workers from nine countries recruited by their suppliers from 2017 to 2021 - In 2021, Samsung established the Responsible Recruitment Procedure training course to improve their suppliers’ understanding of the procedure, help them eliminate relevant risks, and offer a self-diagnosis tool - Highest Index Rating for 10 Consecutive Years in Win-Win Index - Operated for 3 years in CDP supply chain program - 100% of smelters and refiners are validated by the Responsible Minerals Assurance Process of the Responsible Minerals Initiative |
