Sustainability has become part of companies’ business strategies

2019 was a year of awakening for many people and organizations globally as Greta Thunberg and her campaign message was spread around the world. For many years in Sweden thinking about what impact our personal behavior has on the environment has become a part of daily life. For a long time we have been separating garbage and I cannot even remember when there was not a machine where I could recycle tin cans and plastic bottles. 

In recent years, sustainability has become an increasingly more important part of Swedish companies’ overall business strategy. Company sustainability can mean different things to different companies and to different people within the organization.  In short, I would say that sustainability for companies refers to the effect that they have on the environment or society. A sustainable business strategy aims to positively impact one or both of those areas, thereby helping address some of the world’s most pressing problems, such as climate change, income inequality, and the absence of decent working conditions. 

Sustainability is a wide area

I would like to present to you my view of how we at Troax are constantly working to be a more sustainable business by including sustainability in the overall business strategy.  Sustainability is a very wide area and therefore I will focus on the environmental aspect of our sustainability work.

But before I do that, I also would like to mention a couple of other areas where we are driving activities to be a more sustainable company. I believe that one very important activity is to set a good standard for working conditions for both employees as well as for major vendors.

Another focus area for us is to maintain a high standard of business ethics in all parts of the world where we are present. Therefore,  we have introduced a new Code of Conduct valid for all employees as well as a Code of conduct for vendors. 

Troax way of driving environmental improvements

As I started three years ago I discovered that Troax had come a long way on its journey to be a more sustainable company.  

Already back in 1998 Troax AB was certified according to the environmental standard.

The company has successfully maintained the ISO 14001 certificate ever since. Troax has always had a big focus on reducing the company’s environmental impact, and for many years is a part-owner of a local wind farm. A couple of years ago when it was decided that our business in Italy needed to move to a new facility, we chose to equip the factory with solar panels in order to decrease the environmental impact of the business. 

Many bigger companies in Sweden have appointed “Environmental Directors” who are responsible for driving activities for sustainability purposes.

Within Troax, we believe that the responsibility to drive environmental improvement activities applies to us all and therefore the targets that the company has laid out for 2020-2024 (see Troax sustainability report 2019) are delegated to the different functional leaders.

Above the targets included in the report, there are cross-functional environmental teams that drive activities on a regular basis to reach other environmental goals set up by the teams. 

Activities to decrease the environmental impact

In essence, I think that Troax has a highly environmentally friendly business where even the mesh panels are  99% recyclable,  meaning that the products we produce can be recycled. In addition, the production process of the panels produces no emissions into the environment. Below I have summarised the environmental goals that we consider most important and that are now being driven throughout the organization. 

• A minimum of 30% of the steel purchased by Troax should be recycled steel
• Engage with freight forwarders compliant with the Euro 6 emission standard
• Climate compensating of air freights
• Product development shall include an environmental impact analysis 
• Reduce energy consumption in the factories by 2% annually per kg produced

I believe that all of these goals are important and that they are achievable for Troax.

For us, sustainable development is a global necessity

Sustainable, active, and systematic environmental work is an important factor for successful companies; contributing to sustainable development is a global necessity. We believe it’s a responsibility that applies to us all

– For a safer tomorrow