Environmental load information management device and environmental load information management method

Abstract

To provide an environmental load information management device and an environmental load information management method for appropriately managing environmental load information according to a status of an enterprise providing a product.SOLUTION: An environmental load information management device 1 for managing environmental load information 171 in enterprise activity of an enterprise includes: a storage unit 17 for storing environmental load information 171; an input unit 11 for receiving status information indicating change in a status of the enterprise; a disclosure range setting unit 13 for changing a disclosure range of the environmental load information on a product related to the status information out of the environmental load information 171; and an environmental load information calculation unit 14 for calculating the environmental load information 171 based on an environment BOM and public information managed by an in-house system of the enterprise.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for managing environmental load information in organizational activities such as a company. [Background technology]

[0002] Attention is now being paid to environmental issues, such as the goal of a carbon-neutral, decarbonized society. Organizational activities such as production and distribution (hereafter referred to as corporate activities) can have some impact on the environment, such as the emission of CO2. For this reason, in order to resolve environmental issues, it is necessary to manage environmental load information related to the environmental load caused by corporate activities.

[0003] Furthermore, in corporate activities, multiple companies or other organizations (hereinafter simply referred to as companies) may work together. For example, a supply chain may be built between multiple companies, and parts and other items may be exchanged, and products using these may be produced and sold. Such multiple companies are also called supply chain companies, and they share environmental impact information. When environmental impact information is shared between supply chain companies in this way, it is possible for detailed information about a company's products to be shared based on an inter-company contract, with the aim of decarbonization activities through inter-company collaboration. However, when changes occur in the supply chain, for example due to a corporate split or merger that changes the cooperative relationship between the companies, it becomes necessary to change the sharing of detailed information that was previously shared.

[0004] For this reason, Patent Document 1 aims to "provide a system capable of tabulating and analyzing environmental load information at various organizational hierarchies and various aspect hierarchies, and to provide a system capable of tabulating and analyzing one aspect into a plurality of aspects corresponding to different management purposes." To solve this problem, Patent Document 1 describes that "a server computer 100 connected to a network connecting all organizations is provided with an aspect hierarchy definition database 101, an aspect hierarchy definition interface 102, an organizational hierarchy definition database 103, an organizational hierarchy definition interface 104, an aspect database 105, a tabulation processing unit 106, an aspect hierarchy data display interface 107, and an organizational hierarchy data display interface 108." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-62471 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Here, Patent Document 1 discloses the problem that environmental aspects such as the amount of heavy oil and PFC emissions are managed individually by each department of the company being absorbed (paragraph 0006). Patent Document 1 also discloses that when multiple companies (organizations) have different methods for managing environmental load information as described above, it is necessary to integrate them into a common calculation method.

[0007] However, environmental impact information includes information that should be kept confidential within the company. In addition, the scope of disclosure and management methods, such as whether information should be kept confidential, may change dynamically depending on the company's situation and social conditions. In particular, it is necessary to take into account changes in cooperative relationships, such as corporate splits and mergers.

[0008] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to appropriately manage environmental load information in response to changes in the business situation, social conditions, and other activity conditions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention changes the disclosure range of environmental load information in corporate activities that is shared among multiple companies in accordance with changes in the activity status. More specifically, the environmental load information management device for managing environmental load information in corporate activities of a company includes a storage unit for storing, as the environmental load information, environmental load information configured for products that are deliverables of the company having a hierarchical relationship, and the SCOPE and category of the products, an input unit for receiving status information that indicates changes in the status of the company, a disclosure range setting unit for changing the disclosure range of environmental load information for products related to the status information out of the environmental load information, and an environmental load information calculation unit for calculating the environmental load information based on an environmental BOM and public information managed in the company's internal system. The present invention also includes an environmental load information management method using the environmental load information management device. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to manage environmental load information appropriately according to the situation. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining management of environmental management information in a supply chain company according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a system configuration diagram of an environmental load information management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 1 is a functional block diagram of an environmental load information management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing environmental load information used in one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing disclosure scope definition information used in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing company information used in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of implementation of an environmental load information management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 is a flowchart showing a process flow in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9A] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a framework for closing within a corporate group in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9B] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a semi-open (semi-closed) framework in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9C] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a completely open framework in one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In this embodiment, supply chain companies will be described as an example of multiple companies that share environmental management information. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining management of environmental management information in a supply chain company of this embodiment. In FIG. 1, a set manufacturer, a supplier (Tier 1), and a supplier (Tier 2) are presented as supply chain companies. The set manufacturer is a company that manufactures products using materials or parts (deliveries) provided by the suppliers (Tier 2 and Tier 1). The supplier (Tier 1) produces deliveries to the set manufacturer based on materials and parts from the supplier (Tier 2). Furthermore, the supplier (Tier 2) delivers parts and the like to the supplier (Tier 1). The set manufacturer, the supplier (Tier 1), and the supplier (Tier 2) may form a so-called corporate group, or may be separate groups. These examples will be described later. Furthermore, there may be multiple corporate groups.

[0013] Although not shown in Figure 1, supply chain companies may also include OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) manufacturers that manufacture products under the brand name of a set manufacturer. As described above, supply chain companies include companies involved in the product's life cycle from upstream to downstream. In other words, they may also include raw material acquisition companies, distribution companies, waste disposal companies, etc.

[0014] In Figure 1, when a supplier (Tier 2) carries out its own business activities, various information related to the business activities is handled in the company's internal system. For example, the energy consumption, which indicates the amount of business activity, and the manufacturing BOM (Bills of Materials), which is used to manage deliverables, are updated. In addition, environmental load information in the business activities is created based on the energy consumption. In addition, an emission intensity DB, which comprehensively indicates environmental load information such as CO2 associated with the deliverables of the business activities, may also be used.

[0015] The supplier (Tier 2) then uses its own internal system to generate an environmental BOM for each deliverable, which shows environmental information about each deliverable, based on this information. The environmental impact information for each deliverable from the supplier (Tier 2) that makes up the environmental BOM for each deliverable is then registered in a shared database. During this registration, the disclosure scope is specified for each disclosure content of the environmental impact information. Here, the disclosure content refers to the environmental impact information itself, and the disclosure scope refers to the companies to which the environmental impact information will be disclosed.

[0016] As a result, the supplier (Tier 1) will use its own internal system to refer to the environmental impact information for each delivery item of the supplier (Tier 2). Note that this referencing is subject to the condition that the supplier (Tier 1) is included in the disclosure scope specified by the supplier (Tier 2). The supplier (Tier 1) will also reflect the results of the referencing in its own environmental BOM for each delivery item. This is because the supplier (Tier 1) will manufacture its own deliverables using the deliverables of the supplier (Tier 2). In other words, it will be taken into consideration that the environmental impact information for the deliverables of the supplier (Tier 1) will include the ingredients and constituents of the deliverables of the supplier (Tier 2). Note that, although not shown in Figure 1, the supplier (Tier 1) and the assembled product manufacturer will also handle internal systems and various information in the same way as the supplier (Tier 1).

[0017] The supplier (Tier 1) then uses its own in-house system to register the environmental impact information for each of its deliveries in a shared database. At this time, the content and scope of disclosure are specified, just like the supplier (Tier 2).

[0018] As a result, the set manufacturer will use its own internal system to refer to the environmental impact information for each delivery item of the supplier (Tier 1). Note that this referencing is subject to the condition that the set manufacturer is included in the disclosure scope specified by the supplier (Tier 1). The set manufacturer will also reflect the results of the referencing in its own environmental BOM for each delivery item (product). This is because the set manufacturer will manufacture its own products using deliveries from the supplier (Tier 1). In other words, it will be taken into consideration that the environmental impact information for the set manufacturer's products will include the ingredients and constituents of the deliveries from the supplier (Tier 1).

[0019] The assembled product manufacturer then uses its own in-house system to register the environmental impact information for each of its deliveries (products) in a shared database. At this time, the contents and scope of disclosure are specified, just like for suppliers (Tier 2) and suppliers (Tier 2).

[0020] As described above, the environmental load information of each supply chain company is registered in the shared database. The disclosure range of the environmental load information is managed. However, depending on the merger or acquisition of supply chain companies (including withdrawal from a corporate group), the disclosure range may need to be changed. For example, since the companies are initially in the same corporate group, the environmental load information of a certain company is within the disclosure range. However, if the company withdraws from the corporate group, it becomes necessary to suppress the disclosure of the corresponding environmental load information. In this way, it is necessary to dynamically change the disclosure range according to the situation of the company. In this embodiment, a process for this purpose is disclosed. In addition, when the situation of the supply chain changes as the situation of the company, it becomes necessary to update (recalculate) the environmental load information. For example, when a business partner is changed, the delivered goods may also be changed. Therefore, in this embodiment, as a more desirable mode, updating the environmental load information when the situation of the company changes is also described. In the following, this embodiment is described by dividing it into <Configuration and Information>, <Processing Flow>, and <Application Example (Modified Example)>. In addition, the environmental load information can also be calculated based on the activity amount of the business activity in the business activity.

[0021] <Configuration and Information> First, the configuration of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 2 is a system configuration diagram of the environmental load information management system in this embodiment. In Fig. 2, each company 2 is connected via a network 3. That is, the in-house systems 22 of a supplier (Tier 2) 2-1, a supplier (Tier 1) 2-2, a set manufacturer 2-3, and an OEM manufacturer 2-4 are connected to each other via the network 3.

[0022] An environmental load information management device 1 that manages environmental load information is also connected to the network 3. The environmental load information management device 1 receives environmental load information, which is the content to be disclosed, and the scope of disclosure from the in-house system 22 of each company 2 via the network 3, and manages the environmental load information. Specifically, the environmental load information management device 1 stores environmental load information in a shared database 10, receives a disclosure request from the in-house system 22, and controls access to the environmental load information according to the set scope of disclosure. The environmental load information management device 1 may also be realized as a transaction support device that supports transactions between each company 2.

[0023] Here, the environmental load information management device 1 and the in-house system 22 can be realized by so-called computers. The configuration of the environmental load information management device 1 will be described in detail later with reference to Figs. 3 and 4. The in-house system 22 can be realized by so-called servers, each of which is connected to an employee terminal device group 21 used by employees and the like via an in-house network. Then, the in-house system 22 executes information processing for various tasks, such as acquiring information on transaction support and corporate activities, in response to instructions from the employee terminal device group 21. Also, as explained with reference to Fig. 1, the in-house system 22 also specifies the disclosure contents and the disclosure range to the environmental load information management device 1. In response to this, the environmental load information management device 1 registers these in the shared database 10. Incidentally, the in-house system 22 may register the disclosure contents and the disclosure range. Also, the environmental load information management device 1 and the shared database 10 may be realized as the same device or as separate devices.

[0024] Next, a description will be given of the configuration of the environmental load information management device 1 which performs the main processing in this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a functional block diagram of the environmental load information management device 1 in this embodiment. In Fig. 3, the environmental load information management device 1 has an input unit 11, an environmental load information management unit 12, a transaction support unit 15, an output unit 16, and a storage unit 17. Each of these units will be described below.

[0025] First, the input unit 11 receives information and various instructions used by the environmental load information management device 1. The environmental load information management unit 12 manages the environmental load information handled by the environmental load information management device 1. More specifically, the environmental load information management unit 12 sets the disclosure range of the environmental load information and calculates the environmental load information. To this end, the environmental load information management unit 12 has a disclosure range setting unit 13 and an environmental load information calculation unit 14.

[0026] The transaction support unit 15 performs processing to support transactions such as intermediation of transactions between the companies 2. The transaction support unit 15 may be provided in a transaction support device separate from the environmental load information management device 1. The output unit 16 outputs the processing results of the environmental load information management device 1. The input unit 11 and the output unit 16 are connected to the network 3 shown in FIG. 2.

[0027] The storage unit 17 also stores information groups 171-174, such as environmental load information 171, disclosure scope definition information 172, company information 173, and transaction information 174. In this way, the storage unit 17 corresponds to the shared database 10 in Fig. 2. For this reason, the storage unit 17 may be provided outside the environmental load information management device 1. The information groups 171-174 will be described below.

[0028] 4 is a diagram showing environmental load information 171 used in this embodiment. The environmental load information 171 is information showing information on the load on the environment in corporate activities for each product classification. In other words, it is information showing indicators that may become environmental loads that may occur in the manufacture, distribution, etc. of the corresponding product. Therefore, the indicators that may become environmental loads include emissions of environmental load substances such as CO2 emissions.

[0029] Here, product classification refers to items for classifying products, such as product, SCOPE (supply chain emissions), category, and material. Products also include parts and other deliverables delivered by suppliers. SCOPE indicates the amount of environmentally hazardous substances emitted by each product. SCOPE 1 to 3 can be used to classify emissions by the relevant company, upstream companies (suppliers, etc.), and downstream companies (distribution companies, waste disposal companies, etc.) for each product.

[0030] A category is an item that classifies SCOPE3 from the viewpoint of materials, parts, etc. As a category, the type of parts, etc., such as solder or board, or the identification number (product number) of the parts, product name, etc., can be used.

[0031] In this embodiment, CO2 emissions, CN rate, and RE rate are used as indices that may become environmental loads (environmental load indices). CO2 emissions indicate the amount of CO2 emissions generated in business activities such as manufacturing of the corresponding product category. CN rate indicates the degree of promotion of carbon neutrality in business activities such as manufacturing of the corresponding product category. RE rate indicates the utilization rate of renewable energy (electricity) in business activities such as manufacturing of the corresponding product category. Note that these are merely examples, and other indices may be added, or at least some of them may not be used.

[0032] The environmental load information 171 of this embodiment also records a disclosure level for each item. The disclosure level is determined according to the specified disclosure range, and is used for access control for the relevant item. In this embodiment, disclosure levels 0-3 are used, and the lower the number, the stricter the disclosure range is, that is, the more restricted the disclosure range is. This will be described later with reference to FIG. 5. Note that, although the disclosure levels are set in the environmental load information 171 in this embodiment, they may also be managed as separate information. For example, the disclosure levels may be defined for the environmental load index for each product category in the disclosure range definition information 172 described later.

[0033] Furthermore, the environmental load information 171 of this embodiment manages the environmental load index for each product classification hierarchically. In other words, the sum of the environmental load indexes for each category is the environmental load index for the higher-level SCOPE. The sum of the environmental load indexes for each SCOPE indicates the environmental load index for the higher-level product. In this way, the environmental load information 171 of this embodiment can be understood as hierarchical environmental load information. Furthermore, as described above, the environmental load information 171 of this embodiment is information on the environmental load in corporate activities, and can also be composed of the environmental BOM described in FIG. 1 and public information on the environment of each company. For this reason, the environmental load information calculation unit 14 calculates the environmental load information 171 from the environmental BOM and public information from the in-house system 22.

[0034] Next, FIG. 5 is a diagram showing disclosure range definition information 172 used in this embodiment. In FIG. 5, the disclosure range definition information 172 is associated with each disclosure level. In this embodiment, the lower the disclosure level, the more restricted the disclosure range. That is, when the disclosure level is 0, it indicates that the environmental load information including the environmental load index cannot be disclosed to anyone other than the relevant company. When the disclosure level is 1 or 2, it indicates that the information can be disclosed only to companies in the same group as the relevant company or to the relevant company. When the disclosure level is 3, which is the most relaxed restriction, it indicates that the information can be disclosed to each company without restrictions. As a result, when the disclosure level is changed, the relevant items and information are changed from "disclosed" to "non-disclosed" and from "non-disclosed" to "disclosed" depending on the company. Note that these disclosure ranges are merely examples and are not limited to the contents of FIG. 5.

[0035] Here, the relationship between the disclosure level (disclosure range) and the hierarchical structure of the environmental load information 171 will be described. In the environmental load information 171, the disclosure level of a higher-level item (environmental load index) is a value equal to or lower than that of a lower-level item, that is, a more restricted disclosure range. This is because when a higher-level item is disclosed, the lower-level items linked to it are also disclosed. In other words, there are cases where a user wants to disclose category 1 (lower) included in product A (higher level), but does not want to disclose another category 2 (lower level). In such a case, if product A is allowed to be disclosed, there is a risk that category 2 will also be disclosed. For this reason, in this embodiment, a constraint of higher level≦lower level is set for the disclosure level of the environmental load information 171.

[0036] Next, Fig. 6 is a diagram showing company information 173 used in this embodiment. The company information 173 in this embodiment is information about each company. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 6, the company information 173 has items such as handled products / parts, affiliated groups, and trading companies for each company. The handled products / parts indicate products and parts (deliveries) that are manufactured, delivered, etc. by the relevant company.

[0037] The group of affiliation indicates the corporate group to which the relevant company belongs. The group of affiliation may include shareholder companies such as parent companies. Conversely, it may include companies that can exert influence such as equity interest companies. Trading companies are business partners such as delivery destinations and suppliers. Trading companies may also include shareholders and lenders such as trading banks. When an access request (disclosure request) is made to the environmental load information 171 from any company, access control is performed using the disclosure range definition information 172 and this corporate information 173. The corporate information 173 may be managed by another device such as a corporate information providing device. The corporate information 173 may also include the business situation of each company and the shipping volume of products and parts.

[0038] The transaction information 174 is information used when the environmental load information management device 1 functions as a transaction support device, and records transaction records, the business status of each company, etc. This transaction information 174 may also be managed by another device such as a company information providing device.

[0039] This concludes the explanation of the information groups 171-174. Next, an example of the location implementation of the environmental load information management device 1 will be explained. The environmental load information management device 1 can be realized by a computer that functions according to a program as described above. For example, it can be realized as a server system or a cloud system. An example of implementation (hardware configuration) on such a computer will be explained below. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of implementation of the environmental load information management device 1 in this embodiment. In FIG. 7, the environmental load information management device 1 has a CPU 110, a RAM 120, a ROM 130, a communication device 140, and an auxiliary storage device 150. Each of these components will be explained below.

[0040] First, the CPU 110 (Central Processing Unit) is a unit that can be realized by a so-called processor and executes various calculations. The CPU 110 executes various processes by executing the environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163 that are loaded from the auxiliary storage device 150 to the RAM 120. These processes correspond to the processes of the environmental load information management unit 12 and the transaction support unit 15 in Fig. 3, and the details thereof will be described later using flowcharts.

[0041] The RAM 120 (Random Access Memory) is a memory that stores programs executed by the CPU 110, such as the environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163, as well as information necessary for executing the programs. The ROM 130 (Read Only Memory) is a memory that stores programs necessary for starting up the environmental load information management device 1, which is a computer.

[0042] The communication device 140 is a device that transmits and receives data to and from external devices. For this purpose, the communication device 140 is connected to the terminal device group 100 and the network 3, and corresponds to the input unit 11 and the output unit 16 in Fig. 3. The terminal device group 100 can be realized by a computer for operating the environmental load information management device 1. However, the terminal device group 100 may be omitted.

[0043] The auxiliary storage device 150 can be realized by, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD) or the like, and is a device that stores data and programs for executing various processes. The auxiliary storage device 150 may be realized by a solid state drive (SSD) using a flash memory or the like.

[0044] The auxiliary storage device 150 stores the information groups 171-174, the environmental load information management program 160, and the transaction support program 163. Although the contents of the information groups 171-174 have already been explained, at least a part of these may be stored in a database configured separately from the environmental load information management device 1. The auxiliary storage device 150, RAM 120, and ROM 130 correspond to the storage unit 17.

[0045] 3 by the CPU 110. The environmental load information management program 160 has a disclosure range setting module 161 and an environmental load information calculation module 162. The processing in these modules corresponds to the processing in the disclosure range setting module 13 and the environmental load information calculation module 14. In other words, the processing in the environmental load information management program 160 corresponds to the processing in the environmental load information management unit 12. The disclosure range setting module 161 and the environmental load information calculation module 162 may be realized as independent programs. The transaction support program 163 is a program for executing the processing in the transaction support unit 15.

[0046] Here, the environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163 are, for example, application programs that can be executed on an OS (Operating System) program. The environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163 may be installed in the auxiliary storage device 150 from a portable storage medium, or may be distributed via the network 3. For this reason, the environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163 can be stored in a storage medium. The CPU 110 may execute processing in accordance with a program other than the environmental load information management program 160 and the transaction support program 163. In this case, it is desirable to store this program in the auxiliary storage device 150.

[0047] The environmental load information management device 1 may be provided with an input device such as a mouse or keyboard corresponding to the input unit 11. Furthermore, a display device such as a display corresponding to the output unit 16 may be provided. Furthermore, the input device and the display device may be realized as a single device such as a touch panel. This concludes the explanation of the configuration and information in this embodiment, and next, the processing flow will be explained.

[0048] <Processing flow> Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing flow in this embodiment. The processing contents will be explained below according to this flowchart, and the processing will be explained using the configurations shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3. Note that it is assumed that a group of information such as environmental load information 171 has been recorded in advance in storage unit 17 prior to the following processing.

[0049] First, in step S1, the input unit 11 accepts status information that may affect the environmental load information 171, such as the status of a company or the activity status of a social situation. The status information is accepted from each in-house system 22, the terminal device group 100, etc. If this status information has been accepted (Yes), the process proceeds to step S2. If this status information has not been accepted (No), the acceptance process of step S1 continues.

[0050] Furthermore, in step S2, the disclosure scope setting unit 13 of the environmental load information management unit 12 judges whether the disclosure scope needs to be changed according to the situation information. As an example of this judgment, it can be judged whether the received situation information satisfies change criteria previously stored in the storage unit 17. For example, in the case of corporate acquisition or merger, it can be judged that the disclosure scope needs to be changed. Furthermore, the conclusion or change of contracts regarding transactions of deliverables (products) between companies is also included in the situation information.

[0051] Furthermore, in step S3, the disclosure range setting unit 13 identifies items in the environmental load information 171 that require modification. To this end, the disclosure range setting unit 13 identifies a company related to the received status information, and identifies items corresponding to the company's products and parts from the environmental load information 171. To this end, the company information 173 may also be referenced. If the result of the above determination is that a modification is required (Yes), the process proceeds to step S3. If the result is that a modification is not required (No), the process proceeds to step S7.

[0052] In step S3, the disclosure scope setting unit 13 propagates upward from the item that needs to be changed, which was identified in step S3, and identifies upper-level items for the item that needs to be changed from the environmental load information 171 in a propagative manner. In the example of Fig. 4, the upper-level items are category 1, SCOPE 3 (total), and product A (total) for material 1, respectively.

[0053] Next, in step S4, the disclosure range setting unit 13 judges whether a change is necessary to the higher-level items identified in step S4. In this step, it is judged whether the constraint "higher level ≦ lower level" is no longer satisfied by changing the disclosure range of the items identified in step S3. As a result, if a change is necessary (Yes), the process proceeds to step S5. On the other hand, if a change is not necessary (No), the process proceeds to step S6.

[0054] Furthermore, in step S5, the disclosure range setting unit 13 changes the disclosure range of the higher-level items identified in step S4 and the items identified in step S3, that is, the disclosure level of the environmental load information 171. Here, the disclosure range setting unit 13 changes the disclosure level of the items identified in step S3 according to the received situation information. For example, if the relevant company has withdrawn from the corporate group, the disclosure level "1", which indicates that only group companies are disclosed, is changed to "0" or the like. This change may be made according to a pre-stored rule corresponding to the situation information, or may be made according to a specification from the terminal device group 100.

[0055] Then, the disclosure range setting unit 13 changes the disclosure level of the higher-level item so as to satisfy the constraint that the higher level is lower than or equal to the lower level. Usually, the disclosure level of the higher-level item is reduced by a predetermined value such as -1, that is, changed to a more restricted value.

[0056] Furthermore, in step S6, the disclosure range setting unit 13 changes the disclosure level of the corresponding item in the same manner as in step S5.

[0057] Furthermore, in step S7, the environmental load information calculation unit 14 judges whether or not calculation of the environmental load information 171 is necessary according to the received status information. As an example of this judgment, it can be judged whether or not the received status information satisfies change criteria previously stored in the storage unit 17. For example, if a logistics route, material, or manufacturing process of a delivered item is changed, it can be judged that calculation is necessary to change the environmental load information 171. Also, if development and manufacturing of a new product (part) is started, it can be judged that calculation is necessary to add (items of) the environmental load information 171. As a result, if it is judged that calculation is necessary (Yes), the process transitions to step S8. Also, if it is judged that calculation is not necessary (No), this processing flow ends.

[0058] Then, in step S8, the environmental load information calculation unit 14 calculates the environmental load information 171 according to the situation information. For example, the environmental load information 171, particularly the environmental load index, is calculated based on actual information such as materials (ingredients) included in the situation information and basic units, and the environmental load information 171 in the storage unit 17 is updated. In one example, when a corresponding item changes from disclosed to undisclosed due to a change in the disclosure level, basic unit information can be used for calculation, and when a corresponding item changes from undisclosed to disclosed, actual information can be used for calculation.

[0059] Here, examples of calculations in this step (1) and (2) will be described. (1) When the disclosure level is lowered in step S5 or step S6, particularly when it becomes non-disclosure, the environmental load information calculation unit 14 identifies the product's basic unit from the actual information and calculates the environmental load information based on this. (2) When the disclosure level is raised in step S5 or step S6, particularly when it becomes disclosure from non-disclosure, the environmental load information calculation unit 14 identifies the actual information from the product's basic unit and calculates the environmental load information based on this. Furthermore, for products that have been delivered (including shipped), it is desirable to suppress the calculation of the environmental load information in step S8. That is, in step S7, it is desirable for the environmental load information calculation unit 14 to determine whether the product has been shipped. This concludes this processing flow, but steps S7 and S8 may be omitted.

[0060] <Application example (variation example)> Next, application examples (variations) of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 9A to 9C. The application examples here indicate the framework of an environmental load information management system, which determines the range in which the environmental load information 171 can be accessed.

[0061] First, FIG. 9A is a diagram for explaining a framework in which a company group is closed in this embodiment. In FIG. 9A, group a, group b, and group c are described as company groups. Group a is the company group of interest in this embodiment, and company A and company AA belong to it. Company B and company BB belong to group b. Company C and company CC belong to group c. There is also a company D that does not belong to a company group. This is similar to FIG. 9B and FIG. 9C described later. In FIG. 9A, the environmental load information 171 is managed in a closed form by the company group, and access by companies other than group a is restricted. A configuration in which the in-house system of each company is connected to the environmental load information management device 1 by a dedicated line within group a may be adopted.

[0062] Moreover, Fig. 9B is a diagram for explaining the semi-open (semi-closed) framework in this embodiment. In Fig. 9B, a part of the environmental load information 171 is enclosed and managed by a corporate group, and access by companies other than group c is permitted. In Fig. 9B, access to company D may also be restricted.

[0063] Furthermore, Fig. 9C is a diagram for explaining the completely open framework in this embodiment. Here, in Fig. 9A and Fig. 9B, the environmental load information management device 1 is managed by the company group a of interest, but in Fig. 9C, a third party such as a public institution manages the environmental load information management device 1. In Fig. 9C, the environmental load information 171 is open to and accessible by each company, regardless of the company group.

[0064] 9A to 9C are diagrams for simply explaining the framework, and the disclosure level of the environmental load information 171 can be set for each individual company, allowing management to be performed separately from the company group.

[0065] This concludes the description of this embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, when the environmental load information management device 1 is realized as a cloud system, the cloud side (environmental load information management device 1) may be configured to hold limited private data, i.e., environmental load information 171 with restrictions on disclosure, and not to hold public data. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1...environmental load information management device, 10...shared database, 11...input section, 12...environmental load information management section, 13...disclosure range setting section, 14...environmental load information calculation section, 15...transaction support section, 16...output section, 17...storage section, 171...environmental load information, 172...disclosure range definition information, 173...company information, 174...transaction information, 2...company, 21...employee terminal device group, 22...in-house system

Claims

1. An environmental load information management device for managing environmental load information in the business activities of a company, a storage unit for storing, as the environmental load information, environmental load information configured for each product that is a deliverable of the company having a hierarchical relationship, the SCOPE of the product, and a category; an input unit for receiving status information indicating a change in the status of the company; a disclosure range setting unit for changing a disclosure range of environmental load information of a product related to the status information, among the environmental load information; An environmental load information management device having an environmental load information calculation unit that calculates the environmental load information based on the environmental BOM and public information managed in the company's in-house system.

2. 2. The environmental load information management device according to claim 1, The disclosure range setting unit, Identifying items of said environmental impact information that require a change in the scope of disclosure; Identifying higher-level items relative to the items requiring change from the environmental load information in a propagative manner; Based on the situation information, change the disclosure scope of the item requiring change and the higher-level item; The environmental load information calculation unit calculates the environmental load information in accordance with the situation information, The environmental load information management device discloses the calculated environmental load information according to the changed disclosure range.

3. 2. The environmental load information management device according to claim 1, The disclosure range setting unit changes the disclosure range in response to the conclusion or modification of a contract for the transaction of the product.

4. 3. The environmental load information management device according to claim 2, the environmental load information includes a disclosure level indicating a disclosure range for each item of the environmental load information; The disclosure range setting unit changes the disclosure level as a change in the disclosure range.

5. 5. The environmental load information management device according to claim 4, The environmental load information calculation unit is an environmental load information management device that calculates the environmental load information based on actual information and basic units included in the status information.

6. 6. The environmental load information management device according to claim 5, The environmental load information calculation unit When the item requiring change and the higher-level item are changed from disclosed to non-disclosed due to the change in the disclosure level, the environmental load information is calculated based on the basic unit; an environmental load information management device that calculates the environmental load information based on the actual information when the item requiring change and the upper level item are changed from non-disclosure to disclosure due to the change in the disclosure level;

7. An environmental load information management method for managing environmental load information in a company's business activities using an environmental load information management device, comprising: As the environmental load information, products that are deliverables of the companies having a hierarchical relationship, and environmental load information configured for each SCOPE and category of the products are stored in a storage unit, accepting status information indicating a change in the status of the enterprise; changing the scope of disclosure of the environmental impact information of the product related to the status information, among the environmental impact information; The environmental load information management method calculates the environmental load information based on an environmental BOM managed in the company's in-house system and public information.

8. 8. The method for managing environmental load information according to claim 7, Identifying items of said environmental impact information that require a change in the scope of disclosure; Identifying higher-level items relative to the items requiring change from the environmental load information in a propagative manner; Based on the situation information, change the disclosure scope of the identified necessary items and the higher-level items; The environmental load information management method includes calculating the environmental load information in response to the situation information, and disclosing the calculated environmental load information in accordance with the changed disclosure range.

9. The method for managing environmental load information according to claim 7, The environmental impact information management method changes the scope of disclosure in response to the conclusion or modification of a contract for the transaction of the product.

10. 9. The method for managing environmental load information according to claim 8, the environmental load information includes a disclosure level indicating a disclosure range for each item of the environmental load information; The method for managing environmental load information further comprises changing the disclosure level as a change in the disclosure range.

11. The method for managing environmental load information according to claim 10, The environmental load information management method calculates the environmental load information based on actual information and a basic unit included in the status information.

12. The method for managing environmental load information according to claim 11, When the item requiring change and the higher-level item are changed from disclosed to non-disclosed due to the change in the disclosure level, the environmental load information is calculated based on the basic unit; The method for managing environmental load information calculates the environmental load information based on the actual information when the item requiring change and the higher order item are changed from non-disclosure to disclosure due to the change in the disclosure level.

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