AUO's 8.5G Panel Facility Wins ISO 50001 Energy-Management Certification

Taipei, March 22, 2011 (CENS)--AU Optronics Corp. (AUO), the No. 2 maker of thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels in Taiwan, announced yesterday that its 8.5th-generation (8.5G) facility located in Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP) has been certified to meet ISO 50001 standard for energy management.

AUO is the world's first TFT-LCD manufacturer that has obtained this certification, again demonstrating its extraordinary achievements in green practice, the company said.

The ISO 50001 is developed by the ISO/PC 242 energy management project committee of International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The standard establishes a framework for industrial plants or commercial facilities to manage energy, so that energy efficiency increases, costs are reduced and less impact is made on the environment.

The ISO 50001 is an evaluation standard for energy management systems. The standard enables organizations to establish, operate, maintain and improve energy management systems, so that continuous progress could be made to increase energy performance, efficiency and savings. ISO 50001 was approved as a Draft International Standard (DIS) in July, 2010, which is the current version available. The International Standard (IS) is expected to be published in the third quarter of 2011, AUO said.

AUO pointed out that it has introduced ISO 50001 to front-end TFT and back-end module facilities based on its already-obtained certifications such as ISO 14001, ISO 14064 and LEED. The goal is to achieve 25% energy savings in 2015, with 2010 as the base year, the firm claimed. AUO added that a total of 66 energy-saving measures are adopted by its panel facilities in 2011, aiming at 10% energy conservation. An estimated 55 million kilo-watt hour (kWh) of electricity would be saved, and 35, 000 tons of carbon emissions reduced, the equivalent effect of the forestation of 9 New York City's Central Park.

AUO initiated AUO Green Solutions in 2008, leading the industry by developing the "Green 2010" eco-efficiency indexes, both of which formed important basis for the ISO 50001 certification. The "Green 2010" goals include an 80% waste recovery rate, 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and 70% reduction in water consumption, all which were successfully achieved within the timeframe.