Materiality

Materiality

Material Issues to Be Addressed by AS ONE CORPORATION

We achieved our long-standing goal of becoming a company with sales of 100 billion yen in the fiscal year ending March 2025, reaching a new stage of growth.
At the same time, the environment surrounding our company is undergoing major changes, requiring us to adapt more flexibly.

In order to continue being a company that is trusted and needed by our stakeholders, we have identified important issues (materiality) to address through the following process. These important issues have been incorporated into our new Medium-Term Management Plan (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028), and we will carry out our business activities based on defined action plans and KPIs.

AS ONE’s Material Issues

Value creation through business

Expand platform functions
Maximize value in the supply chain
Develop human resources to pursue innovation
Mitigate and adapt appropriately to climate change through business activities

Platform for value creation

Implement strong governance
Accelerate digital transformation (DX)
Nurture corporate culture

Materiality identification process

Materiality identification process Materiality identification process
STEP
1

Creating a list of social problems and
evaluating their importance

We referred to the recommendations and evaluation items in ESG disclosure guidelines published by international NPOs and rating agencies, as well as the concepts advocated in the SDGs, and compiled a comprehensive list of social issues. In addition, we identified issues faced by all stakeholders involved with our company from our own perspective.

【Guidelines referenced】

MSCI MSCI
GRI STANDARDS GRI Standards
SASB STANDARDS SASB industry-specific standards
SASB Standards SASB Standards
SDGs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
STEP
2

Considering risks and opportunities and multidimensional
evaluation of importance to extract Materiality candidates

We evaluated the significance of each issue for our Group by mapping social and stakeholder issues on the vertical axis and our function-based activities, including those of Group companies, on the horizontal axis, while considering related risks and opportunities.

Materiality evaluation matrix Materiality evaluation matrix
STEP
3

Consideration by executive management and
dialogue with stakeholders

We conducted sessions with senior management, through which we set KPIs for addressing the identified material issues. In addition, we created opportunities to hear feedback from various stakeholders regarding the relevance of the social issues extracted and their expectations for our company.

STEP
4

Confirmation of Materiality by the
Board of Directors

We held discussions involving outside directors and identified the materiality of our company.

Goals Based on Material Issues (Materiality)

Value creation through business

1

Expand platform functions

Vision (in 10 years)

Develop and promote adoption of an e-commerce purchasing system equipped with high convenient functions such as purchasing management and automated ordering
Build an industry-leading product database that contains all types of information on equipment and materials, services, and other information needed in R&D and medical care activities

▼ EC

Action plan
  • Consolidated purchasing channel (ocean) and e-commerce support site for dealers (wave)
  • Development of medical e-commerce tools
  • Improving customer experience through personalization
  • Reducing user management operations (inventory and ordering)
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Increasing e-commerce sales ratio (FYE 03/2025: 32% ⇒ FYE 03/2028: 40%)
  • Increasing e-commerce net sales (FYE 03/2025: 33.9 billion yen ⇒ FYE 03/2028: 52.6 billion yen)
  • Launching a new search engine and refining it
  • Launching Mare’s (Medical e-commerce)
  • Creating a menu of new e-commerce functions (inventory management and automated ordering)

▼ Products and database

Action plan
  • Expanding products handled and enriching product information
  • Expanding SHARE-GATE functions
  • Strengthening development of original products
  • Expanding the rental and calibration services businesses
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Products handled (FYE 03/2025: 12.4 million ⇒ FYE 03/2028: 17.0 million)
  • Original product sales (FYE 03/2025: 33.4 billion yen ⇒ FYE 03/2028: 42.0 billion yen)
  • Services sales (FYE 03/2025: 4.0 billion yen ⇒ FYE 03/2028: 5.3 billion yen)
  • Installation of information registration support functions for FAQ coordination and use of generative AI in SHARE-GATE
2

Maximize value in the supply chain

Vision (in 10 years)

Continuously optimize inventory volume and area, and delivery modes, and build a low-cost, resilient supply chain network by ascertaining and visualizing various kinds of information on the supply chain

▼ Efficiency supply chain

Action plan
  • Use of simulation tools
  • Visualization of inventories in the entire supply chain
  • Improving data coordination with overseas suppliers
  • Optimizing and increasing resilience of the logistics network
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Conducting proof-of-concept (PoC) testing of optimization tool (digital twin) and launching it
  • Design for expansion of suppliers’ inventories and visualization of dealers’ and users’ inventories
  • Full-scale operation of Kyushu DC/Improving shipping capacity of Smart DC and Hanshin DC
  • Expansion of the company’s own delivery services (FYE 03/2025: 65 routes ➡ FYE 03/2028: 74 routes)

▼ Sustainable procurement activities

Action plan
  • Optimizing inventories and reducing waste through AI-based demand prediction
  • Reducing country risk in private brand (PB) products
  • Improving engagement with suppliers
  • Creating a database of CO2 emissions by product
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Formulating measures and targets for displaying CO2 emissions in catalogs
  • Formulating a policy and implementation plan for supplier engagement
3

Develop human resources to pursue innovation

Vision (in 10 years)

An organizational culture that encourages employees to take on new challenges will promote independent learning and growth
Utilize internal and external networks to continuously pursue creation of new systems, products, and services

▼ Career development support and employment

Action plan
  • Enhancing training programs by level (junior employees, middle-ranked employees, and managers)
  • Promoting cross-boundary learning
  • Expanding hiring of mid-career employees and professionals
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Number of training programs conducted/Number of correspondence course participants

▼ Pursuing innovation beyond the organization

Action plan
  • Implementation of new cross-organization business projects
  • Investment in and collaboration with start-up companies
  • Pursuing alliances and industry-academia collaboration
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Number of participants in projects, teams, and taskforces
  • Number of Borderless Work participants (FYE 03/2025: 29 ➡ FYE 03/2028: 60)
  • Net sales of new businesses (regenerative medicine, lab interior finishing supervision, etc.)
    (FYE 03/2028: 800 million yen)
4

Mitigate and adapt appropriately to climate change through business activities

Vision (in 10 years)

Employ various kinds of ingenuity and optimization throughout the entire range of business activities, including procurement, sales, and delivery, to help protect the global environment
Accelerate initiatives aimed at decarbonization of the scientific and chemistry equipment industry by visualizing CO2 emissions throughout the supply chain

▼ Carbon neutrality

Action plan
  • Increasing the renewable energy ratio (Scope 2)
  • Refining calculation methods (Scope 3)
  • Strengthening sales promotions of environmentally friendly products (contributing to reduction in emissions)
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Acquisition of primary data on main suppliers
  • Collection of information on main products (weight, electricity consumption)
  • Verification of the financial impact of climate change risks and opportunities

▼ Resource recycling

Action plan
  • Reduction and recycling of packaging materials
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Use of the company’s own delivery services and milk run collection (use of foldable containers)

▼ Disaster prevention and mitigation measures

Action plan
  • Disaster prevention and mitigation measures, extreme heat precautions
  • Coordination with municipalities
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Expanding handling of products related to extreme heat, disaster prevention, and disaster mitigation

Platform for value creation

5

Implement strong governance

Vision (in 10 years)

Proceed with separation of supervision and execution in management and achieve both business growth and a higher level of governance
Disclose highly transparent financial and non-financial information and build relationships of trust with stakeholders

▼ Strengthening risk management

Action plan
  • Thorough compliance
  • Strengthening sustainability management
  • Strengthening investment governance
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Ratio of outside directors on the Board of Directors (over 50%)
  • Zero serious incidents
  • Strengthening the reporting and monitoring system for sustainability initiatives
  • Monitoring of investments by the Investment Committee

▼ Enhancing information disclosure

Action plan
  • ESG data
  • Information disclosure materials in English
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Building a system for disclosure according to Sustainability Standards Board of Japan (SSBJ) Standards
  • Creation of a mirror website in English

▼ Strengthening information security

Action plan
  • Cyber countermeasures
  • Education of employees and staff of cooperating companies
  • Improving security in Group companies
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Zero security incidents
6

Accelerate digital transformation (DX)

Vision (in 10 years)

Use DX to make radical changes to operating processes and continually improve work productivity
Achieve labor-savings at suppliers and dealers through the provision of our operating system and establish a strong position for AS ONE as a (wholesale) hub

Action plan
  • Promoting effective use of AI
  • Promoting use of no-code/low-code tools
  • Improving company-wide IT literacy
  • Promoting projects to improve operating efficiency
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Operating profit per employee (FYE 03/2025: 20 million yen ➡ FYE 03/2028: 25 million yen)
  • New RPA operating hours (per month) (FYE 03/2025: 693 hours ➡ FYE 03/2028: 5,192 hours)
  • Number of IT Passport holders (FYE 03/2025: 113 ➡ FYE 03/2028: 200)
  • Online ordering ratio (FYE 03/2025: 83% ➡ FYE 03/2028: 86%)
7

Nurture corporate culture

Vision (in 10 years)

Establish a psychologically safe and pleasant workplace environment, operate a fair evaluation system, and employ various kinds of engagement activities to make AS ONE a company where employees who have diverse opinions can work with a shared sense of values and high motivation

▼ Improving engagement

Action plan
  • Enhancing internal communication
  • Pursuing the AS ONE Career Design Program
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Holding internal events such as “AS drinking” and “AS ONE Café”

▼ Promoting diversity

Action plan
  • Establishment of flexible career course and wage systems
  • Taking positive action
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Ratio of women in management positions (FYE 03/2025: 9.4% ➡ FYE 03/2031: 20% or more)

▼ Improving the working environment

Action plan
  • Practicing ASsisT health and productivity management
  • Shortening work hours
KPI (FYE 03/2026 - FYE 03/2028)
  • Reducing total work hours (FYE 03/2025: 1,964 hours ➡ FYE 03/2031: 1,865 hours)

Sustainability

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