Siemens 2012 Annual Report Download - page 188

1 A. To our Shareholders
21 B. Corporate Governance 49 C. Combined Management Report
50 C. Business and economic environment
64 C. Financial performance measures
69 C. Results of operations
82 C. Financial position
93 C. Net assets position
95 C. Overall assessment of the economic position
96 C. Subsequent events
97 C. Sustainability
111 C. Report on expected developments and
associated material opportunities and risks

initiatives. Our Chief Sustainability Officer also manages the
Sustainability Office, which is responsible for implementing
the sustainability strategy and for coordinating company-wide
programs and measures.
To help us maintain an objective perspective on our sustainabil-
ity challenges and performance, we have also created the
Siemens Sustainability Advisory Board composed of nine em-
inent figures in science and industry from a range of disciplines
and regions of the world. None are employees of Siemens. The
Board meets at least twice a year, and through professional ex-
changes and concrete initiatives has already contributed to the
further development of our sustainability program.
Furthermore, assigned Sustainability Managers in the Sectors
and Clusters ensure that sustainability measures are imple-
mented throughout the Company.
... 
   
Our sustainability efforts are generally based on our Business
Conduct Guidelines, which provide the ethical and legal frame-
work within which we conduct our business activities. They
contain the basic principles and rules for our conduct within
our Company and in relation to our external partners and the
general public. Specific issues, such as those relating to the
environment, are covered in more detailed regulations and
guidelines. This comprehensive set of rules is generally bind-
ing for all companies controlled by Siemens.
Furthermore, we believe that close collaboration with stake-
holders supports us in addressing complex, interlocking sus-
tainability challenges and topics. Maintaining an intensive dia-
logue with partners along the supply chain and with external
stakeholder groups and organizations is important for us:
Siemens is actively engaged with leading global sustainability
organizations, such as the World Business Council for Sustain-
able Development (WBCSD), and committed to international
standards and guidelines for sustainability. For example, we
signed on to the United Nations Global Compact in  and
became a signatory to the Global Compact’s CEO Water Man-
date in ; since fiscal , we are member of the steering
committee of the Global Compact’s Caring for Climate initia-
tive. We regularly report on our sustainability performance us-
ing the current guidelines (G.) of the Global Reporting Initia-
tive (GRI), which aim at high transparency and comparability
for corporate sustainability reporting.
Siemens has been part of the widely respected Dow Jones
Sustainability Index for thirteen consecutive years and is
ranked as Sector Leader in  for Diversified Industrials for
the fifth time in a row and as Supersector Leader for Industrial
Goods and Services for the first time ever. We also earned high
ratings on a number of other indexes and rankings, including
those created by the prestigious Carbon Disclosure Project
(CDP). Siemens was included in CDP’s Global  Carbon Dis-
closure Leadership Index (CDLI) for the fifth time in a row with
one of the top scores in the world.
.. Research and development
...  
   
In fiscal , we continued to focus on the following areas
in research and development (R&D): () ensuring long-term
future viability, () enhancing technological competitiveness,
and () optimizing the allocation of R&D resources.
Our R&D activities are geared toward ensuring sustainable en-
ergy supplies, which is essential to our long-term viability and
competitiveness in the energy and infrastructure industries.
Accordingly, major focus areas include:
> increasing the efficiency of both renewable and conventional
power generation,
> improving low-loss power transmission, and
> finding new solutions for intelligent power networks (smart
grids), carbon dioxide separation in power plants, and ener-
gy storage systems for volatile renewable energies.
Another major focus is promoting more efficient energy use in
buildings, industrial facilities, and the transport sector – for
example through the development of electric drives and faster
charging stations for electric vehicles.
Across all focus areas, we recognize the vital importance of so-
phisticated software solutions – not just for the areas men-
tioned above but also in nearly all of the other fields in which
Siemens is active. Siemens software was used, for example, to
virtually develop, build, test, and continually optimize the Red
Bull Formula  championship-winning car throughout the 
season. The same is true of the Mars rover “Curiosity,” which
landed on the red planet in August . Siemens software
was used here to digitally design, assemble, and test a virtual
rover before the first prototype was even constructed.
R&D activities are carried out by both our Sectors and our Cor-
porate Technology (CT) department. The Sectors focus their
R&D efforts on the next generations of their products and solu-
tions. In contrast, the aim of CT is to be a strong innovation
partner for operational units and to help secure our technology
and innovation future while strengthening Siemens as an inte-
grated technology company.