SCHAFFHAUSEN, Switzerland, July 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- When a company the size of TE Connectivity, a global leader in connectors and sensors, works to change the future, the positive results can be felt around the world.

TE details how it is working toward its purpose of building a safer, sustainable, connected and productive future through its products, partners and business practices in the 2018 Corporate Responsibility Report, released today.

"Our employees genuinely want to feel like they are leaving the world a better place for the next generation and helping our customers do the same," said CEO Terrence Curtin. "I'm excited about all the ways we're using digitization in our global efforts, from creating a better online customer experience to increasing the safety and resource efficiency in our factories. It is also fulfilling to see how our enterprise strategy and purpose are aligning to sustainable long-term global growth trends such as the future of transportation, automation, life-saving medical devices, renewable energy solutions and connected everything."

Supporting safer lives
As vital components of medical devices that are designed to improve patient outcomes, TE sensors and connectors are helping to save lives. For example, TE products are integral components of a medical device used to remove blood clots, minimizing the risk of further strokes. TE is making the world's roadways safer, too, as the technology behind autonomous vehicles. Approximately 94% of crashes are caused by human error and autonomy removes that factor from the equation. By 2030, it is expected that 10% of vehicles will be fully autonomous with new features like predictive ride technology that would allow cars to sense and react to the state of the road ahead.

In addition to helping make the world safer with its products, TE is also working to reduce risks in its own facilities. Since the launch of TE's Safety Assessment for Effectiveness program in 2010, the company has seen a 61% decrease in reportable accidents and received external recognitions for its safety initiatives globally. Three sites in Germany received the Golden Hand Award from safety insurance company BGHW for preventing hand and finger injuries. TE's plant in Thailand earned a Zero Accident Award from the Ministry of Labor in recognition of the 3.2 million hours of operation since its opening in 2015 without an incident. And in Greensboro, North Carolina, TE facilities earned two honors from the state Department of Labor: the Gold Safety Award and recertification through 2023 as a Carolina Star site.

Enabling a sustainable tomorrow
Through a series of Energy Treasure Hunts, TE uncovered opportunities to reduce energy use by an average of 6% at manufacturing sites, contributing to a 30% decrease in energy use intensity since 2010. Because of this program's success, another 45 plants around the world have committed to completing an Energy Treasure Hunt in FY2019.

TE also supports customers developing the future of renewable energy. TE technology connects and protects electrical equipment for safe, reliable and high-performing wind farms, from wind turbines to the grid and on to substations.

Creating a productive world
TE factories around the world are becoming more digital as the company embraces the Industry 4.0 revolution to increase productivity and deliver a better customer experience. The sensors and connectors created in these factories are integral in embedding the Internet of Things into our daily lives as the bridge between hardware and software. And TE's engineers work with customers large and small to help explore efficiencies and design solutions these partners might not have considered on their own.

Amplifying the connected life
TE believes that more possibilities reveal themselves as the world becomes more connected. TE technology will be the foundation of tomorrow's smart cities, in which people can track public transit with their smart phones, cars will make safer and faster decisions than human drivers and high-speed rail systems will get people where they need to go more efficiently. TE employees strive to build deep connections with the communities in which they live and work through charitable outreach. In the past year, employees recorded 36,000 volunteer hours and more than $5 million was donated to 1,500 non-profits in more than 100 communities around the world by TE and the TE Connectivity Foundation.