Wireless Company Honored for Recycling

Kyocera Wireless Corp., San Diego, a maker of wireless phones and other equipment, has been honored with the 2001 Director’s Recycling Award by the City of San Diego Environmental Services Task Force.

The company earned the award for annually recycling and re-directing more than 60% (equaling two million pounds) of its generated waste.

San Diego Mayor Dick Murphy presented the award to Kyocera for its recycling of paper, metal, wood and plastic. In one of its many recycling programs, Kyocera Wireless reclaimed more than three million batteries from wireless phones in 2000. The company’s goal in 2002 is to increase recycling to 65% of its waste stream.

“From our offices to our manufacturing facilities to our thousands of local employees, Kyocera Wireless Corp. is a San Diego company,” says Masahiro Inoue, president and CEO of the firm. “This award is a validation of our efforts to keep San Diego beautiful and to make Kyocera Wireless Corp. a company its employees can be proud of.”

The company’s Wireless Environmental Management System is designed to improve energy and water use, reduce chemical use and emissions, and recycle both hazardous and non-hazardous materials. An employee task force regularly evaluates the environmental impact of the company's operations.

The wholly owned subsidiary of Japan’s Kyocera International Inc. (KII) was created when KII purchased Qualcomm Inc.’s CDMA consumer wireless phone business last year.