Mitsubishi Monitor 0310 COMMUNITY

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' move across Tokyo this spring proved a godsend for 35 charitable organizations. The company donated some 440 desks and 370 chairs, along with numerous other items of furniture, to the charities.


	Have a seat.

Four Mitsubishi companies have moved some or all of their headquarters functions to two new buildings in Tokyo's Shinagawa district (Mitsubishi Monitor, August/September 2003). Completing the move quickly and smoothly was a top priority for all of the companies.
Management at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries determined that buying new furniture would be simpler and more cost-effective overall than moving the company's old furniture and that it would reduce the output of carbon dioxide from moving trucks. Members of the moving task force identified still-serviceable furniture for donating to charities and for transferring to some of the company's other work sites in Japan. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries earmarked seriously worn furniture for recycling.
Among the organizations that received furniture were the Boy Scouts, Y.M.C.A. and Doctors without Borders. Another beneficiary was the nation of Jamaica, which received the donation through its embassy in Tokyo. Overall, the donations included 230 cabinets, bookcases and lockers and 150 wagons, as well as the 440 desks and 370 chairs.


Masks became common on faces in China as people there struggled to cope with the SARS outbreak. Chinese authorities announced this summer that they had checked the spread of SARS. And peracetic acid from Mitsubishi Gas Chemical helped turn the tide against the outbreak.

Peracetic acid supplied by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical helped municipal agencies in China contain the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) that terrified the world earlier this year. The company donated 20 tons of its Diapower peracetic acid to municipal governments in China to use in disinfecting hospitals, factories and other sites. Peracetic acid is effective at ordinary temperatures in killing viruses, bacteria and fungi. The shipment contributed by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical left Yokohama in mid-June and rendered service in the Sichuan Province city of Chongqing and in Inner Mongolia.

Peroxide roots
Mitsubishi Gas Chemical is an industry leader in developing, manufacturing and marketing peracetic acid products. Hospitals, dairies, breweries, food processors and numerous other users employ the acid to disinfect their systems and facilities. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical is especially strong in the medical sector. U.S. authorities turned to the company for peracetic acid to help combat the threat of anthrax that arose in 2001.
Peracetic acid is a derivative of hydrogen peroxide, a core product for Mitsubishi Gas Chemical. Among the diverse applications for hydrogen peroxide, it is especially valuable in cleansing semiconductor devices. The substance is an environmentally sound alternative to fluorocarbon cleansers, which appear to deplete the protective ozone layer of the atmosphere. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical has used its hydrogen peroxide technology to produce peracetic acid since the 1960s.