Beijing Nokia Mobile Telecommunications (BNMT) was the first of Nokia's factories in China to get an ISO 14001 -certificate. The cross-functional team lead by Quality Manager Chen Min began its work in 1998 under the quality organization and in June 1999 the factory received the certificate.
"There was a need for the environmental management system," says Ren Shuifang, Quality System Engineer, who was building the system. "Laws and regulations, as well as competition put pressure on us. We saw also possibilities for savings and improved reputation which this system would bring."
In China, environmental awareness is growing all the time. "The government has put emphasis on environmental issues," said Chen Min. "For instance, the state organises an Environmental Protection Day and Beijing's target is to be the 'Green City 2008', when the Olympic Games might take place in China."
"The environment is getting better in Beijing. When I came here two years ago the air was very polluted. Now its is significantly better," explains Antti Wdre, Vice President, China, Customer Operations, Nokia Networks. Antti added that Nokia aims to be 'a Good Citizen of China' and EMS helps that, as do environmental campaigns like the tree planting carried out by Nokia's employees and customers.
EMS has brought savings for BNMT, especially in packaging costs. "Recycling has also increased income. For example, the recycled paper is sold to a local paper mill," says Chen Min.
One of the future challenges is the auditing of recyclers and suppliers. As well, moving to a new factory provides work for the EMS team: The environmental aspects should be taken into account in the new factory, where the certification scope expands and energy savings should be gained when building new facilities and choosing tools.
"There is also a lot to do with raising the awareness of our people, although we can see their interest in environmental issues is growing," says Ren Shuifang. "The training should be deeper in order to make people realise and accept their responsibilities."