Sustainable supply chain
Holcim’s principles of respect for human and labor rights, and environmental protection are integral to how we work with our suppliers in all markets.
SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT CORE ELEMENTS
Supplier due diligence
In all countries, we have processes in place to identify, prevent and manage potential adverse impacts in our supply chain relating to climate, nature (biodiversity and water), Health, Safety and Environment (HSE), security and resilience (S&R), social responsibility and human rights.
Climate in the supply chain
Our procurement and logistics professionals around the world are working at full speed to deliver on Holcim Climate commitments across all greenhouse gas (GHG) scopes. For example, we work with our suppliers of transportation services to help them decarbonize their fleet.
Nature in the supply chain
Holcim piloted the SBTN methodology and used it with an earth engine platform to identify suppliers that operate in water risk areas. This is the first step to prioritize key suppliers to engage with, and work on implementing actions to reduce freshwater withdrawal and water pollution in our supply chain.
“We integrate sustainability criteria in every sourcing decision to scale up action at pace, and deliver on our climate, nature and human rights commitments.”
Partnering to scale up change
We believe it is essential to promote sustainability throughout the supply chain, to scale up change in our sector. This is why we are involved in a number of partnerships and alliances to decarbonize building.
Holcim is a founding member and co-chair of the Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC), which aims to develop a global responsible sourcing certification system.
Green mobility
Decarbonizing road transport and using the greenest and most efficient transport options is key to reducing emissions in our supply chain. One essential reduction lever is the transition to zero-emissions heavy duty vehicles, but they are still not widely available in the market.
For this reason, we signed the Call for Zero-Emission Freight Vehicles, led by the Transport Decarbonization Alliance. Through this commitment, we are highlighting the need for low-emission vehicles and encouraging our suppliers to transition to renewable energy for transportation. We are founding members of the First Movers Coalition of the World Economic Forum, to accelerate the demand and market availability of zero-emission trucks.
We are equally engaged in reducing CO2 emissions from maritime transportation, aligning with the International Maritime Organization’s Poseidon Principles for decarbonizing shipping. We signed the Sea Cargo Charter, which provides a framework to assess and disclose the ecological impact of ship chartering. This cross-industry collaboration is essential to increase customer demand for net-zero shipping.
Positive social impact
Human rights are a cornerstone of our business, and we extend our high standards to our supply chain. We signed the 2021 Action Pledge to end child labor. We are increasing visibility about human rights in our extended high risk supply chain.
Access to water, sanitation and hygiene is also an essential part of our operations, and we expect our suppliers to uphold the same standards. Holcim is a signatory of the WASH Pledge. This commitment ensures we provide best practices in terms of water, sanitation and hygiene for our communities, employees and contractors.
Contributing to UN Sustainable Development Goals
We work to have a positive impact on all 17 UN SDGs. As part of our commitment to a sustainable supply chain, we have identified four goals where we can make a significant difference:
How we are making it happen
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