In this summer of idled nuclear plants and energy shortages, corporate Japan is under duress.
Workers in short-sleeved dress shirts spend their days in 28-degree offices, the new standard. Lights are dimmed and printers are on only when necessary. Firms chart their energy use, and at one bread factory in Hokkaido, an employee jumps on the PA system when electricity usage spikes, ordering air conditioners off and asking select workers to stop what they're doing.
"This is a demand warning," the announcer says, reading from a script. "We ask for your cooperation."