AU Optronics today announced it has completed the carbon footprint verification on its 32-inch LCD TV set according to international carbon footprint standard PAS2050: 2008. Succeeded in the third party verification by SGS, AUO's 32-inch LCD TV is the worldwide first LCD TV set gaining carbon footprint verification, which establishes the benchmark on the carbon footprint management for consumer electronic products, the company said.
The 32-inch LCD TV is also included in the UKAS PAS2050 pilot project by United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). AUO is the only IT company in this project and will bring its experiences on the carbon footprint management for instituting the international verification standard, the panel maker said.
Based on the definition of the life cycle of ISO14044, the carbon emission calculation of AUO's 32-inch LCD TV carbon footprint project includes each stage of the product life cycle from raw material, manufacturing, delivering, consumer using, discard, or recycling. Through the indicator of carbon calculation, consumers will know well how the environmental impact is caused by the electronic products they use in the future.
"We are proud that AUO's 32-inch LCD TV successfully completed the first carbon footprint verification on LCD TV set in the world. It truly demonstrates AUO's continuous efforts on implementation of green solutions," L J Chen, president and CEO of AUO, said. "Since the manufacturing process of electronic products is very complicated and detailed, there are hundreds of suppliers in the whole supply chain. AUO conducted several suppliers' trainings to launch the carbon footprint management, and developed a carbon database management system to increase the carbon calculation efficiency. From here, AUO successfully builds up a flawless program of carbon footprint management for the supply chain. When developing the next generation of eco products, the carbon database system with detailed carbon data of the supply chain will lead AUO to the leading position in low carbon products innovation."
AUO's 32-inch LCD TV set completing the PAS 2050 verification consumes 30% less of the electricity compared to the other same-size products. The product not only conforms to EuP regulations in 2010 but also complies with Energy Star 3.0 in U.S. In addition, the cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFLs) are diminished from 16 straight tubes to 4 u-shape tubes. Substantially decreased 82% of the mercury level, the product reduces the environmental impact significantly, it said.
