largest in Europe. Meanwhile, two new breweries
commenced production, one in China and one
in Indonesia.
We also enhanced the efficiency of our
breweries with an eye to ongoing increases in
productivity. Investments were by no means
confined to new machinery but also focused
strongly on human resources. Dedicated training
programmes are designed to teach our people
the knowledge and skills to cover more than
just one single skill. We also seek to ensure an
optimal spread of responsibility deployed as
low as possible in the organization. This means
a higher degree of teamwork and a broader
package of tasks.
Comparison of performance with other
breweries yields valuable benchmarks and
leads to an exchange of best practices.
Research Development
Heineken's Research Development policy is
embedded in quality enhancement and innovation.
Our Dutch-based central R&D unit is a prime
player, with the operating companies in a
supporting role. They work closely with leading
research institutes and academic bodies around
the world. Joint projects are also undertaken with
other companies. The outcome of these activities
are implemented by our operating companies.
Geographical breakdown ofthe
sales of beer brewed under the
supervision of Heineken
n thousands of hectolitres
1997
1996
Europe
37,207
35,497
4.8%
Western Hemisphere
19,232
18,568
3.6%
Africa
7,786
8,007
-2.8%
Asia Pacific
9,557
8,598
11.2%
73,782
70,670
4.4%
Innovation in packaging is a major priority
for Heineken. The launch of the two-part
'shaped can' represented an innovation in the
brewing industry. The can - shaped like a beer
glass - was jointly developed with Carnaud Metal
Box and went on the market in April. The 'shaped j
can' has won four awards for innovation,
including the prestigious Supreme Gold Award
ofthe 1997 Metal Packaging Manufacturers
Association conference in London.
Our central laboratory and tasting-panels
were awarded the STERLAB certificate in 1997.
This is a dedicated quality award for laboratories.
Heineken Nederland received a quality
certificate from the Netherland Quality Institute.
Factors which earned the appreciation underlying I
the certificates include the development of
management systems doing full justice to qualit/
health and safety, and the environment.
Environment
Heineken fully recognizes the imperative of
environmental protection, and this is an integral
part of our quality strategy. Heineken also seeks
to use energy and raw materials as efficiently as
possible whereby any burden on the environmert I
is reduced to the minimum feasible level.
We regard self-regulation and covenants as
meaningful measures towards detailing these
principles. The aspects of safety, health and the
environment are integral to our policy here.
Hence, we pursue maximum re-cycling of
residual products and reuse of waste-products.
In the area of packaging we aim for reduction
in weight and a responsible cycle of packaging
use in both environmental and economic terms.
In Europe we have started to implement a
system whereby operating companies are obliged
to formulate their own environmental policies,
conduct audits and report back.
A concrete example of our environmental
activities is the programme to reduce water and
energy use per hectolitre of beer. In the period
I993"I997 we have cut water and energy
consumption in Europe by 17% and 6
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