The Environmental in ESG

As a production company, we have to focus particularly on environmental issues.

This includes the introduction of sustainable practices, the reduction of carbon emissions in our own company, the innovation-driven and energetic implementation of ideas for solutions relating to the transformation from combustion engines to electric drives, the promotion of resource efficiency, the minimization of waste and pollution, the purchase of clean energy and the management of environmental risks throughout the entire operational and supply chain.

Environmental aspects such as water and its availability, our impact on biodiversity and, in particular, the issue of plastics are continuously developed and considered by us in this context.

Plastics and elastomers have become an integral part of our everyday lives. Especially in the areas in which Woco is active, such as seals for drinking water systems and in the automotive industry. Here it is important to design sustainably. We know that more than 70% of our company's CO₂-footprint is caused by the materials we use. For Woco, this is therefore the most important lever for making a difference and achieving the greatest impact. We do this with bio-based raw materials or recycled materials.

Anchoring within the company.

Ecological requirements arise from the issues of climate change and adaptation to climate change, environmental pollution, water availability, biodiversity and the careful use of our resources and their conservation through sensible recycling. Environmental protection activities have long been an integral part of Woco. For example, all of our production sites are certified in accordance with ISO 14001. The basis created here can be expanded for future requirements.

Climate protection is one of the most important challenges, which is reflected both in our strategic orientation and in the adoption and publication of our climate strategy.
To this end, Woco has established a comprehensive climate management system since 2018 and has transparently presented its activities to customers as part of the CDP Supply Chain Questionnaire Climate Change.
Woco has consistently received a B rating since 2018.

ESG Climate Change

With our climate strategy, we want to further expand our commitment to reducing emissions. To this end, we have drawn up a comprehensive roadmap up to 2030.

Excerpt from the climate strategy:

From 2023, we will use green electricity at all our German sites and already have a conversion plan for all our production sites worldwide.

We are examining all sites for the possibility of using PV systems. We have already implemented PV systems in China and France.

For our Scope 3 emissions, by far the largest source of emissions, we use emission-optimized primary materials in addition to recycled materials. We use Woco's expertise in material development to develop new CO₂-optimized materials for our customers.

Woco ambitions

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The decoupling of growth from resource consumption and the reduction of greenhouse gases is possible through the increased use of recyclates and closed material cycles.

Woco has been working on this topic for a long time and was able to increase the use of recyclates from 3% in 2018 to 9% in 2022.

Woco is involved in various initiatives in order to expand its existing expertise and better meet the requirements of the market:

CEWI - Circular Economy as a driver of innovation for a climate-neutral and resource-efficient economy https://cewi-projekt.de/
Cooperation with the Lüdenscheid Plastics Institute on the subject of recycling processes and models, influence of recycling on the CO₂-footprint.

We have also launched a number of internal initiatives to offer our customers more alternative materials. We make no compromises when it comes to quality and take the specific material requirements into account.

6 Holzklötze mit grünen Symbolen des Kreislaufs

Without water of sufficient quality, there is no life. Woco is aware of this fact.

It was a matter of course for Woco to answer the questionnaire on water security in the CDP (Supply Chain Program) since 2018. Here, too, we consistently received a B to B- rating.

With our PSC product segment, we have a product range that focuses on the quality and availability of water.

The issue of water in the production facilities (availability, quality, use), the location in water stress areas and the ongoing discussion about the necessity of water throughout our entire supply chain constantly sensitizes us to the importance of the topic.

The dramatic decline in biodiversity in recent decades is mainly due to human activities.

Land use changes, environmental pollution and climate change threaten biodiversity. Clean air, clean water and good soil are crucial for preserving biodiversity and thus for combating climate change.

At Woco, we have taken initiatives to promote biodiversity at various production sites.

We raise awareness of environmental protection with global campaigns like these.

The management of our Indian plants Greater Noida and Woco Kandla planted trees and encouraged all employees to actively participate. We planted palm trees and other tree species such as Royal Poinciana. The enthusiasm of the community was palpable as all participants began to think about how they could contribute to a sustainable and environmentally friendly lifestyle. For example, by planting their own garden, composting, recycling, using sustainable products, saving water and switching to LED or energy-saving light bulbs at home.

Woco flanks its sustainability ambitions with concrete actions that clearly emphasize the importance of biodiversity.

The winning project from our sustainability workshop was successfully implemented. In collaboration with the regional initiative "Unternehmen blühen auf" (Companies flourish), we continued the project and planted insect-friendly vegetation in addition to the wild bee hotels.