Sustainability Topics (Society)

Nippon Gases Italia has obtained approval to manufacture Frutil, a plant protection product designed to promote post-harvest fruit ripening. Frutil is the company’s original blend of nitrogen and ethylene that enables unripe fruit to ripen safely and at the right time upon arrival at its destination, thereby helping to reduce food loss when delivering fruit to consumers.

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, more commonly known as LabCorp, operates one of the largest clinical laboratory networks in the world, which processes 2.5 million lab tests a week.
MATHESON supports the advancement of clinical testing by supplying dry ice for cold chain logistics and has steadily expanded its partnership with LabCorp year by year. Going forward, MATHESON will continue to strengthen this partnership by leveraging its reliable supply capabilities across more than 160 locations.

NSHD regularly convenes the Global HR Committee to share and discuss Group-wide human resource strategies and measures, and to create and functionally strengthen human resource networks by learning from each other's knowledge and expertise.
In July 2025, NSHD held the Third Global HR Committee with around 20 human resource executives and other representatives participating from Group companies worldwide. The meeting featured lively discussions and exchanges of views on the following themes:
・Sharing of each Group company's main human resource issues
・Medium-term management plans, well-being, and engagement surveys
・Promotion of diversity and inclusion (D&I)
・Global leader training
In particular, the Committee discussed the development of Group-wide guidelines and symbolic goals for D&I promotion, and conducted a workshop on defining the desired qualities of leaders for use in global leader training programs. Through these initiatives, NSHD will further accelerate Group-wide efforts to advance D&I and develop the next generation of leaders.

Workshop for global leader training

Since 2022, NSHD has been conducting engagement surveys. (For details on the engagement survey, please see here.) Reports from surveyed companies indicate that companies with high levels of sustainable engagement tend to outperform companies with lower levels. Accordingly, since 2024, we have been holding workshops for the engagement survey offices and managers of Group companies with the aim of improving their scores. The second workshop, held in May 2025, featured group discussions and case studies from Group companies with the following objectives: (1) learn how to interpret survey results and identify key issues; (2) experience the process of developing action plans in response to those issues; (3) understand the latest trends in engagement and apply them to action plans; and (4) take effective actions by learning from analysis and case studies across Group companies. By providing opportunities for Group companies to present their actual action plans and their outcomes, the workshop was an opportunity to learn from peers and share insights among participants.

Matheson hosted a roundtable-style webinar that brought together inspiring voices to share experiences, insights, and advice. The powerful stories shared by our outstanding panelists made the session truly meaningful and impactful. It served as a valuable opportunity to promote diversity, and to foster connection, growth, and a stronger future together. Women At Matheson (WAM), a newly formed Employee Resource Group, continues to expand the scope of its activities.

Participants in roundtable webinar

Since 2022, Nippon Gases Europe has been implementing an annual sponsorship program to support the career advancement of female employees. The sponsorship program is a framework for companies to support the visibility, networking, and skills development of selected employees, with the aim of enhancing their capabilities and leadership skills. Employees receiving the assistance gain opportunities to earn greater recognition within their company, build professional networks, and strengthen their leadership skills, all of which support the growth of their careers.
From its inception, this program has placed emphasis on advancing D&I, and has been developed with the aim of developing female leaders. Through its ongoing implementation, the program has enhanced internal diversity and contributed to the development of a corporate culture that fosters innovation and sustainable growth. The third sponsorship program will commence in October 2025. This round will feature new program content, with 16 female employees scheduled to participate. The program will continue to be structured around the three pillars of visibility, networking, and skills development, offering participants opportunities to grow toward realizing a future where diversity is embraced and everyone can thrive.
Looking ahead, we will continue proactive efforts to support female leaders and to foster a corporate culture where diverse perspectives drive innovation and sustainable growth.

Closing event of Sponsorship Program held last year

In the Southeast Asia & India subsegment, we launched a pilot Women’s Empowerment Working Group in April 2023, and then established a regional Women’s Empowerment Committee. Common KPIs for women’s empowerment were also established at the regional level in order to provide visibility on the state of progress on various initiatives. In FYE2025, each local affiliate formulated their own action plan for promoting women’s empowerment based on these KPIs. NSHS consolidated 76 action plans and presented them at the Annual HR Network Conference as the SEA+I Women’s Empowerment Forward Plan.

Participants at 8th Annual HR Network Conference
Advancing equitable career growth for women managers

Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation (TNSC) has commenced joint development with YMC Co., Ltd., on a full process from synthesis to refinement for difficult-to-express proteins,* which are expected to see demand in the biomedical field. As the protein market expands in the biomedical field, there is a growing demand for difficult-to-express proteins that cannot be easily expressed using traditional expression and purification techniques using live cells. Looking ahead, joint development using TNSC’s cell-free protein synthesis technology and YMC’s strengths in chromatography technology will enable them to supply customers in the drug discovery research reagent market and the biomedical market with products that are optimized for cost and quality. The two companies will strengthen their collaboration not only in the manufacture of difficult to express proteins through cell-free protein synthesis systems, but also in various other fields, such as the development of high-performance affinity columns, by maximizing their respective strengths in the process from synthesis to purification.

*Difficult-to-express proteins: Proteins that are difficult to produce in a form that functions correctly

“Minna Gas Shiru” (“Everyone Knows Gas”) is a package of services supporting autonomous safety activities. The name of the service expresses our desire for everyone who handles high-pressure gas to know more about gases. Centered on safety education videos about high-pressure gases, the service comprises hazard experience courses to give people responsible for safety management a real sense of the danger from inappropriate handling of gases, as well as an online salon providing comprehensive safety education. The service is available at a reasonable price depending on the number of participants. In April 2023, the service was officially released, and we started paid provision for customers. From April 1, 2024, we started providing the service for free to universities, vocational colleges, and industrial high schools. The provided package of services can all be used online and is customized for universities, vocational colleges, and industrial high schools to support self-directed safety activities around high-pressure gases. The package is centered on learning about high-pressure gas safety through watching videos, and also includes experiences of the hazards that arise from improper handling as well as various seminars to encourage noticing and reflection to promote the development of an organizational safety culture.

"Gas Shiru Learning" homepage screen 

Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation established the Diversity & Inclusion Office in April 2024. The focus of the office has been widened from promotion of women’s active participation to include promotion of active participation by diverse human resources, and it is working on training to eliminate unconscious bias and to develop female leaders, as well as improving systems that facilitate working while parenting. With the three pillars of the action policy for FYE2025—Action, Support, and Promotion—and under the leadership of a female executive officer, the office is expanding the scope of training programs, holding townhall meetings, and promoting stronger collaboration with the HR Division.

Nippon Sanso Holdings Singapore Pte. Ltd. (NSHS) hosted the 5th Annual Learning Festival 2023 for our workforce in Southeast Asia and India on August 4, 2023. The theme was “Mentoring and Coaching: Building the Next Generation of Leaders.” The event began with a speech by Helder Teixeira, President & CEO of NSHS, who shared his valuable experiences in two mentorship programs in Nippon Gases. External speakers were also invited to share their insights on coaching and mentoring. With regard to coaching in particular, NSHS aims to cultivate a coaching culture through training on coaching techniques for middle management. The company will continue to hold regional events, aiming to cultivate regional Group companies into open, collaborative, and adaptable organizations.

Most of our employees take part in an engagement survey that measures whether employees feel motivated to contribute toward achieving targets, whether this motivation is sustained by a productive work environment and mental and physical well-being, as well as whether they have a sense of belonging to the organization. Greater engagement offers various benefits to both employees and the Company. We therefore analyze the information obtained from the survey for each operating company, and utilize the results in the formulation of action plans to improve our organization, such as enhancing productivity, job satisfaction, and diversity. We will continue to conduct the survey in order to make our action plans more effective.

At Nippon Gases Euro-Holding (NGE), we have introduced a development program called GOL: Growing Our Leadership. It is divided into 3 stages, and the middle step, called GOL II, is a nine-month training aimed towards managers. The first edition took place in 2020, and it covered several fields and business topics, working towards an all-round development on leadership skills and organizational support capabilities through productivity projects. In September 2022, out of all the projects that were presented, one team was chosen per region to attend the final event in Segovia, Spain. At this international session, among other activities and presentations, all participants explained their productivity projects which were judged by directors in the meeting. The winning project for this edition was on power management to achieve savings. To this date, over 250 managers have participated in the GOL II training, resulting in the implementation of 37 productivity projects that have led to significant cost savings. Since 2022, GOL I has taken place on a yearly basis for the company’s young high potentials; and GOL III, for senior leaders, is about to start.

Euroholding and IT team were awarded with the best project

Nippon Sanso Holdings Singapore held the 6th SEA+I HR Network Meeting on July 1, 2022 to discuss plans for the empowerment of female employees and the implementation of an engagement survey. Under the theme "Make Female Empowerment A Reality", the meeting started" with opening remarks from the management, emphasising that leadership can make a significant contribution to women's empowerment by supporting and promoting the advancement of its female employees. The subsequent keynote address outlined the company's policy and commitment to support women's empowerment in the region.. This followed two dialogue sessions held by the SEA+I HR Community of Practice (SEA+I HRCoP) to address the organisation's challenges regarding women's empowerment and employee engagement, and practical approaches were proposed to promote common initiatives. It was a great learning experience as participants shared their company's challenges and solutions for women's empowerment and employee engagement.

Participants in the 6th SEA+I HR Network Meeting 2022