Sustainability

Environmentally Conscious Activities

Environmentally Conscious Activities

Taking into account all stages
of a product life cycle, we pursue activities
to minimize its environmental impact

Taking into account all stages of a product life cycle, we pursue activities to minimize its environmental impact

We have pushed ahead with diverse environmental initiatives for each stage of the value chain to minimize our environmental footprint across the entire product life cycle, from product development to purchasing, manufacturing, distribution, use, and disposal.

Environmental Management System and Environmental Certifications

Samsung Electronics is certified to the international standards for environmental management and energy management systems. As of 2021, all our worksites have attained ISO 14001 (environmental management system) and ISO 50001 (energy management system) certifications.

The environmental performance of our released products are certified through various certification programs (e.g., US’ EPEAT, Korea’s Green Technology and Eco-Label, etc.) that assess a product’s environmental aspects.

Assessment of Environmental aspects for Products

Samsung Electronics performs life cycle environmental assessments on its products using its own assessment system. To gain public confidence on this system, we have adopted the certification criteria of Korea’s Eco-Label, United States’ EPEAT ¹⁾, ENERGY STAR and AHAM ²⁾’s sustainability standards. Moreover, to analyze the environmental impacts throughout the entire life cycle of product manufacture, use and disposal stages, we perform the life cycle assessment (LCA) on our main products, evaluating the results across ten potential environmental impact categories ³⁾. In particular, we analyze the impact on global warming in each stage and strive to develop products with minimal GHG emissions based on the results.

  • Footnote ¹⁾ EPEAT: Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool
  • ²⁾ AHAM: Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers
  • ³⁾ Environmental Impact Categories: abiotic resource depletion, global warming, acidification, eutrophication, ozone depletion, photochemical oxidation, human toxicity, freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity, marine aquatic ecotoxicity, Terrestrial ecotoxicity
See LCA cases

Managing hazardous and chemical substances in products

We’re continuing to reduce sensitive substances

Under the principle of “no compromise on environmental issues" Samsung Electronics closely manages environmentally sensitive substances.

A photo of managing the environmentally sensitive substance A photo of managing the environmentally sensitive substance

Environmentally sensitive substance management history

    We are implementing
    the Eco-Partner certification
    system to closely manage
    the supply chain

    Samsung Electronics assesses all suppliers that provide products or components with its Eco-Partner Certification system to strictly ensure that products and components do not contain environmentally hazardous substances. Suppliers must submit a product environmental report disclosing the use of all substances of concern, along with data from their suppliers providing raw materials. Samsung Electronics then makes a thorough assessment by visiting the suppliers’ manufacturing sites to verify the submitted documents. To maintain the Eco-Partner certification, suppliers are audited every two years, and those that fail to pass the audit are excluded from the supply chain. In these ways, we are striving to incorporate our suppliers in our green management initiatives. Rather than a one-time assessment, we provide continuous management and evaluation of all supply partners to ensure sustainable supply chain management.

    Eco-partner certification process

    • 01

      Raw materials providers

      • 1. Precision analysis data
      • 2. Raw material composition table (MSDS)

    • 02

      Components suppliers

      • 1. Product environmental warranty letter
      • 2. Precision analysis data
      • 3. Raw material composition table
      • 4. Sample parts for approval

    • 03

      Samsung Electronics

      • 1. Verification of submitted documents and samples
      • 2. Assessment of environmental management system

    • 04

      Eco-partner certification

    Running the Eco-Life Lab to Analyze Health and Hygiene-related Elements

    To meet the evolving expectations of consumers, Samsung Electronics has been researching and investing on identifying and addressing the cause for odour and microbes.
    In 2004, we founded the ‘Environmental Analysis Lab’ to analyze the six major restricted substances identified by EU RoHS which was expanded in 2007 to include volatile organic chemicals produced from products. The Environmental Analysis Lab was renamed to ‘Eco-Life Lab’ in 2020 and is equipped with exclusive chambers for odors and precision analysis instruments for analytical capabilities on major odor compounds. In addition, we recruited microbial experts with masters and doctorate degrees for microbial analysis which is like uncharted waters in electronics.
    We also run the lab to verify microbes with new infrastructure including the temperature and humidity chambers along with analytical instruments.
    With its specialized analysis system, the Eco-Life Lab’s expertise and credibility in substance analysis have been recognized through attaining official certifications as a laboratory from Korea Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (KOLAS) and TÜV Rheinland, an international certification body.

    History of Eco-Life Lab.

    Since 2004

    • 2004~
      Precision analysis
      of environmentally restricted substances
      (Pb, Cd, Hg, Cr(VI), PBB, PBDE, phthalate, etc.)
    • 2007~
      Precision analysis
      of odor compounds
      (styrene, xylene, etc.)
    • 2020~
      Performance analysis of antibiotic,
      antifungal and antiviral effectiveness
      (E.coli, staphylococcus aureus, etc.)

    • 2020 ~

      Microbial analysis lab founded

      Performance analysis
      of antibiotic, antifungal (’20)
      and antiviral (‘22) effectiveness

    • 2019

      Precision analysis of odor

    • 2007

      Precision analysis of VOCs

    • 2006

      Qualified as test lab for harmful
      substance precision analysis

      KOLAS Certification
      Precision analysis of flame retardants

    • 2005

      Certified by UL official
      testing site

      UL Certification
      Precision analysis
      of RoHS substances

    • 2004

      Environmental
      Analysis Lab founded

    We apply strict standards for safe use of chemical substances onsite

    To ensure safety, Samsung Electronics systematically manages the entire process involving chemical substances from purchase to disposal.
    Employees that handle chemicals are allowed to purchase them only after requesting the expert group for prior evaluation and having the chemicals deemed to be appropriate for use.
    In addition, once chemicals are stocked, all processes are monitored to keep track of the precise usage and inventory until final disposal.
    All chemicals used in Samsung Electronics’ sites are heavily restricted in their use based on each country’s chemical substance regulations and our in-house restricted substance list.

    Support Biodiversity Preservation Activities

    Preserving the ecosystem and protecting nature are critical elements to keeping the global environment healthy

    All members of Samsung Electronics take part in activities to promote a healthy ecosystem. We run campaigns to share the basic principles of biodiversity preservation activities and emphasize its importance while actively encouraging the engagement of our management and employees.

    Samsung Electronics’ biodiversity conservation policies

    Philosophy

    Samsung Electronics recognizes the benefits and the importance of the ecosystem and of biodiversity. To minimize effects detrimental to biodiversity, we actively engage in ecosystem preservation initiatives.

    Action plans

    • · All employees recognize the preservation of biodiversity as one of eco-management's key values.

    • · Assess and analyze a product’s impact on the ecosystem and biodiversity throughout its life cycle and strive to minimize any negative effects.

    • · Prioritize regions with high biodiversity value across all worksites in Korea and abroad, and undertake biodiversity conservation activities that cater to local needs.

    • · Continuously communicate with employees, local communities, NGOs, and other stakeholders and contribute to enhancing the biodiversity conservation efforts of local communities.