ABSTRACT
As there have been an increasing number of diff erent abnormal weathers reported, more responsible exertions are required in all industrial activities to improve the environment. Japan is facing an even higher challenge for environmental issues as an advanced country in order to meet the carbon dioxide emissions reduction targets that are based on the Kyoto Protocol and the government’s statement of 25% reduction of carbon dioxide emissions in 1990 by 2020. Several legislations are underway, such as Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) and revised Energy Conservation Law. Also, several systems are under discussion such as domestic trading for carbon dioxide emission credits, introduction of fixed price purchasing system of renewable energy and prevention tax of greenhouse gas (environment tax). In corporate management, efficient
management to intensified international competition as well as the environmentally friendly corporate activities such as the process development involving environment, safety and health [5,6] are becoming more important. Likewise, the most important issue in the manufacturer’s future is the environment issue. Therefore, building manufacturing engineering systems to reduce energy consumption, CO2 emissions and water consumption are highly demanded.
