Supply Chain Management

We have established a basic policy for procurement of purchased goods and promote green procurement based on our own guidelines.

Basic Procurement Policies

NHK Spring procures supplies based on three basic policies for procurement: "Building long-term partnerships based on mutual trust," "Fair and open procurement," and "Compliance and confidentiality". In addition, from the perspective of conducting business activities that take sustainability into account throughout the supply chain, we have established the “NHK Spring Group Sustainable Procurement Guidelines” and the “Green Procurement Guidelines” and are making these known to our suppliers.

Basic Policies for Purchasing Supplies

POLICY Building long-term partnerships based on mutual trust

We aim to build long-term relationships of trust as the best partner and grow together, through mutual efforts and fair transactions.

POLICY Fair, equitable and open procurement

We are open to all suppliers, regardless of country of origin, size, or affiliation, and select suppliers based on comprehensive consideration of quality, price, delivery, service, technology, and development capabilities.

POLICY Compliance and confidentiality

All our procurement activities are premised on compliance (adherence to laws and regulations, work rules, corporate ethics, and social norms). We do not make any unauthorized disclosures to third parties of any confidential information we may acquire through our business partners.

NHK Spring Group Sustainability Procurement Guidelines

We believe that, for the sustainable development of society, it is essential for companies to address sustainability challenges, such as environmental conservation and respect for human rights, not only within their own operations but also across the entire supply chain. To further strengthen these efforts and enhance their effectiveness, we revised our CSR Procurement Guidelines into the Sustainability Procurement Guidelines in 2025, reflecting recent changes in the external environment and societal expectations.
Specifically, the revised guidelines were developed with reference to international standards and industry association guidelines relevant to NHK Spring’s businesses, and with the aim of strengthening sustainability initiatives across the supply chain in collaboration with suppliers.
Going forward, we plan to hold briefing sessions and implement self-assessments with our key suppliers to ensure a thorough understanding and adoption of these Guidelines.

Green procurement

Having established the "Green Procurement Guidelines" based on our Basic Policies for Purchasing Supplies, we strive to procure products with low environmental impact from environmentally conscious companies. In collaboration with our business partners, we promote the management of environmentally hazardous substances throughout all stages of product design, production, and disposal, and strive to mitigate environmental impacts, including wastes. In line with the growing importance of supply chain communication of chemical substances and compliance with overseas laws and regulations, we partially revised the contents in December 2024.

Initiatives to Respect Human Rights in the Supply Chain

Against the backdrop of growing global interest in sustainability, there is a strong demand for companies to consider human rights in their business activities. 
In September 2022, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry established the “Guidelines for Respecting Human Rights in Responsible Supply Chains, etc.” and began requiring that companies consider human rights throughout the supply chain.
In light of such changes in the external environment, we established the “NHK Spring Group Human Rights Policy” in August 2024, and are promoting initiatives to respect human rights in the NHK Spring Group supply chain.

Addressing Responsible Mineral Procurement

NHK Spring has formulated a policy on conflict minerals in response to the issue of such minerals being mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and surrounding countries. Based on this policy, we ask our business partners to engage in responsible procurement of resources and raw materials, and we conduct a survey of conflict minerals using the CMRT and EMRT once a year.

Further Promotion of Proper Transactions

取引適正化の更なる推進

In the 2026 Medium-Term Management Plan, one of the Group's Basic Policies is defined as “Purchase appropriately, Manufacture accurately, Market and sell properly". 
With regard to "Purchase appropriately," as a member of the Japan Auto Parts Industries Association (JAPIA), NHK Spring is working with the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association to promote the following initiatives to ensure fair trade in accordance with the Automobile Industry Fair Trade Guidelines, which were formulated by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as part of its efforts to promote fair competition and strengthen competitiveness in the automobile industry.

Strengthening Engagement with Suppliers

Between February and March 2024, under the name of our President, we sent a letter entitled “Regarding the NHK Spring Group's Efforts to Realize Fair Trade” (hereafter, “this letter”) to all of our business partners with whom we do business. By communicating that NHK Spring is working to promote fair trade and pass on appropriate prices, we aim to share and strengthen awareness of our stance on fair trade. From now on, based on this letter, we will gradually reflect the increased costs of labor, raw materials, energy, etc. in transaction prices. In addition, we held webinars in February and August 2024 with the aim of raising awareness among procurement staff within the NHK Spring Group, and more than 350 people attended. We will continue to encourage the entire Group to review and appropriately adjust transaction prices with our business partners.

Bearing of Bank Transfer Fees by the Company

NHK Spring switched subcontractor payments to cash transfer at the end of November 2022, and undertook to uniformly bear transfer fees from October 2023. Through these activities, we are working to support the business activities of our subcontractors.

Development of the Group’s Internal Structure and Mechanism

In addition to the regular audits conducted by the Internal Audit Department, the Procurement Department also conducts audits of the Subcontracting Act and other regulations. As with other audits, we follow up until the issues raised are resolved, and we confirm that appropriate subcontracting transactions are being carried out.

Holding Purchasing Committee Meetings

Meeting_on_Purchasing
Awareness-raising conducted for purchasing and procurement personnel at the Group Purchasing Committee Meetings

The NHK Spring Group Purchasing Committee has held meetings since 2012 with the aim of strengthening Group's purchasing power and communications. Procurement managers from each Group company participate in this meeting, which is held once a year to discuss procurement methods, price analysis and reduction methods, etc., as well as to share information on steel prices. We also set aside time in each meeting to explain the Subcontracting Act and the Act on the Promotion of Subcontracting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, and we work to ensure compliance across the entire NHK Spring Group by sharing information on changes to the law and audit findings.

BCM Initiatives

We believe that one of our social missions is to quickly restore operations and provide a stable supply of products in the event of disasters. However, to achieve this, not only our company but also our suppliers need to work together for early restoration. We have introduced safety confirmation service to all of our employees to rapidly assess the impact on our supply chain and help us achieve quick recovery and secure stable supply in the event of large-scale natural disasters.