Cummins has a long history of corporate responsibility, based on the framework of linking the impact on our stakeholders to responsible business decisions. In addition, Cummins has invested talent, passion, and resources into trying to solve problems in our communities and society as a whole since the Company's inception in 1919. Cummins firmly believes a company is only as healthy as the communities where it does business.
The Cummins Engine Company embarked on a new approach to corporate philanthropy by establishing a separately incorporated foundation mandated to affirm and promote humane living which later led to a target of 5% of pre-tax profits. Soon the program expanded to include all public projects in Bartholomew County. To date, the Foundation has funded just over $22 million in architecture fees and has been involved in more than 50 projects. This has helped propel Columbus, Indiana to a 6th place ranking in the nation for Architectural Innovation by the American Institute of Architects. Click here to see examples of Columbus architecture on the Columbus Visitor's Center page.
J.I. Miller establishes corporate responsibility in a statement from the Annual Report: "While some still argue that business has not social responsibility, we believe that our survival in the very long run is as dependent upon responsible citizenship in our communities and in the society, as it is on responsible technology, financial and production performance." Mr. Miller believed a corporation received the right to exist from society. He noted that too much time had been spent debating whether or not corporations have a social responsibility and not enough time on fulfilling a corporation's responsibility. The corporation's responsibility to society is dependent not simply on social projects in the public sector but on how it chooses to use its total resources in the conduct of regular business.
The Cummins India Foundation is established. This foundation focuses on higher education, the environment, energy and local infrastructure development. One way the foundation gives back is through the Cummins College of Engineering for Women. Another project is the Rural Electrification Project that strives to provide power that is both economically sustainable and friendly to the environment to villages that are un-electrified today. The project relies on biofuel, biogas and producer gas for energy conversion in order to minimize the overall Carbon Emissions by using locally available renewable energy.
The Asociacion Filantrópica Cummins (AFIC) in San Luis Potosi is formally recognized as a charitable organization by the Mexican government. AFIC has sponsored a number of innovative philanthropic projects including Taller Brayle, a carpentry shop for blind and physically challenged individuals, and Talleres Creación, a women's sewing micro-business. Watch a video about the AFIC here.
Cummins articulated a new Mission statement reaffirming corporate responsibility as a core value and defining it as "serving and improving the communities in which we live."
Cummins established the business case for Corporate Responsibility and identified
three global priorities – education, environment and social justice/equality of opportunity.
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