VELUX Group
Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2020, 2021, 2022)
Reporting Period: 2020
Environmental Metrics
ESG Focus Areas
- Climate change
- Biodiversity
- Sustainable buildings
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Safety
- Circular Economy
- Responsible sourcing
Environmental Achievements
- Reduced company carbon footprint by 59% compared to the 2007 baseline (exceeding the 50% target by 9%)
- 97.8% of production waste reutilised
- 99.6% FSC or PEFC certified wood in European windows
Social Achievements
- Accident frequency four times lower than the comparable industry benchmark
- Increased female senior managers to 23% (7 percentage points increase from 2019)
- 86% of relevant employees completed anti-corruption training
Governance Achievements
- 100% of suppliers signed the code of conduct
Climate Goals & Targets
- Become Lifetime Carbon Neutral by 2041 (100-year anniversary)
- Become a carbon neutral company by 2030
- Halve carbon emissions from the value chain by 2030
- 30% of sold windows to have sensor-driven automation by 2030
- 45% of all management positions held by women by 2030
- 40% of senior management positions held by women by 2030
- 3% of the workforce with disabilities by 2030
- 1 accident per 1 million working hours by 2030
- 0.2 lost working hours per 1,000 working hours by 2030
- Single material, 100% recyclable packaging with zero plastic by 2030
- 50% reduction in average non-utilised waste per produced window by 2030
- 30% reduction in flights by 2030
- 100% zero emission company cars by 2030
- Good daylight conditions and fresh air in all new builds and renovations by 2030
- At least 5 sustainable innovations by 2030
- Set a quantitative 2030 target for circular economy by 2021
Environmental Challenges
- COVID-19 pandemic impacting operations and workflows
- Increased accident frequency in 2020 due to COVID-19 related operational changes
Mitigation Strategies
- Implemented measures to safeguard employee health and well-being during the pandemic
- Continued focus on reducing accidents through VELUX Vision Zero and ISO 45001 certification
Supply Chain Management
Supplier Audits: 80
Responsible Procurement
- Code of conduct for suppliers
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), RE100, GHG Protocol
Certifications: ISO 50001, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001
UN Sustainable Development Goals
- SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being)
- SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities)
- SDG 13 (Climate Action)
The strategy contributes to 11 out of 17 SDGs, with the most significant contributions to SDGs 3, 11, and 13.
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- VELUX Active
Reporting Period: 2021
Environmental Metrics
ESG Focus Areas
- Climate change
- Nature
- Sustainable buildings
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Employee well-being
- Responsible business practices
- Circular economy
Environmental Achievements
- Established Purchasing Power Agreements (PPA) for 100% renewable electricity by 2023.
- Introduced new paper-based packaging in Europe and the US, replacing plastic-based packaging.
- Launched the first forest conservation and restoration project in Uganda, estimated to capture around one million tonnes of CO2.
Social Achievements
- Established a Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Steering Committee.
- Launched the Build for Life concept, a set of design principles for sustainable buildings.
- Maintained a strong focus on safety, resulting in a low accident rate.
Governance Achievements
- Anchored the 2030 Sustainability Strategy as a priority in the overall Group corporate strategy.
- Implemented a clear reporting structure within Sustainability and Finance teams.
- Increased governance standards for sustainability reporting to the same level as financial reporting.
Climate Goals & Targets
- Company carbon neutral target by 2030 (scope 1 and 2).
- Lifetime Carbon Neutral by 2041.
- Capture 4.5 million tonnes CO2 through forest and biodiversity projects by 2041.
- Achieve 100% renewable electricity by 2023.
- 50% reduction of product carbon footprint by 2030.
- 50% reduction of carbon footprint from the value chain by 2030.
- 30% reduction in air travel and 100% zero emission cars by 2030.
- Reduce water consumption by 10% by 2025
- 30% of the car fleet will have been replaced with zero-emission cars by 2025.
Environmental Challenges
- Global shortage in supply of digital components.
- Supply chain disruptions.
- Complexity of accurately calculating scope 3 emissions.
- Lack of harmonised waste standards in the EU.
- Challenges in measuring the percentage of employees with disabilities due to local legislation and GDPR.
Mitigation Strategies
- Established an internal climate pool of money to finance climate and energy projects.
- Partnered with Schneider Electric to support decarbonisation efforts.
- Developed a carbon footprint calculation tool for suppliers.
- Developed long-term waste reduction plans.
- Developed an approach to collect information related to disability in a confidential and GDPR-compliant manner.
Supply Chain Management
Supplier Audits: 76 completed audits
Responsible Procurement
- Code of Conduct for suppliers.
- VELUX Restricted Substance Management Standard.
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Opportunities
- Development of energy-efficient products and solutions.
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: GRI, SBTi, Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP)
Third-party Assurance: EY (limited assurance)
UN Sustainable Development Goals
- SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being)
- SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities)
- SDG 13 (Climate Action)
VELUX's initiatives contribute to these goals through sustainable building design, healthy workspaces, and carbon emission reduction.
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- Intelligent sensor-driven solutions for energy optimization.
- Paper-based packaging.
Reporting Period: 2022
Environmental Metrics
ESG Focus Areas
- Climate change
- Biodiversity
- Circular economy
- Diversity and inclusion
- Employee health and safety
- Responsible supply chain
Environmental Achievements
- Reduced scope 1 and 2 emissions by 26.2 percentage points.
- Increased share of renewable electricity to 98%.
- 98% of packaging for VELUX Residential roof windows in Europe is now paper-based.
- More than 600 tonnes of EPS/plastic saved in 2022 compared to 2021.
- Enabled two new solar plants in southern Spain, generating 167 GWh of renewable electricity annually.
Social Achievements
- Introduced a new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policy.
- Improved lost workday case rate from 2.58 in 2021 to 1.63 in 2022.
- Implemented the VELUX Care program to support employees returning to work after illness or surgery.
Governance Achievements
- Obtained reasonable assurance on six key indicators in the ESG data table.
- Updated the Code of Conduct for VELUX employees.
- Updated the code of conduct for suppliers and improved supplier due diligence procedures.
Climate Goals & Targets
- Capture 4.5 million tonnes of CO2e through forest and biodiversity projects by 2041
- 50% reduction of CO2e from value chain by 2030
- 50% reduction of product carbon footprint by 2030
- 40% of senior management positions and 45% of all management positions held by women by 2030
- 100% carbon neutral company by 2030
- Implement DEI policy
- Implement global travel policy
Environmental Challenges
- Continued impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, increased energy prices, economic turbulence, and difficulties in gathering data on employee disabilities.
- Long delivery times for electric vehicles.
- Challenges in defining and measuring disability due to GDPR legislation.
Mitigation Strategies
- Established an emergency fund for colleagues in Ukraine affected by the war.
- Permanently closed operations in Russia and Belarus.
- Decreased production in European factories to retain staff (though redundancies were unavoidable).
- Adjusted the target for measuring management diversity and defined a qualitative target instead.
- Changed how employee disability is assessed to allow for self-reported data.
- Engaged in dialogue to understand and break down perceived barriers to switching to electric vehicles.
Supply Chain Management
Supplier Audits: 71 completed audits
Responsible Procurement
- Code of conduct for suppliers
- Strategic partnerships with aluminium suppliers
- Focus on sourcing low-carbon materials
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Physical Risks
- Extreme weather
Transition Risks
- Regulatory changes
- Market shifts
Opportunities
- Development of energy-efficient products
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: GRI, SBTi, UN Global Compact
Certifications: FSC, PEFC
Third-party Assurance: EY Godkendt Revisionspartnerselskab
UN Sustainable Development Goals
- Goal 7 (Affordable and clean energy)
- Goal 13 (Climate action)
- Goal 8 (Decent work and economic growth)
- Goal 11 (Sustainable cities and communities)
- Goal 12 (Responsible consumption and production)
Initiatives contribute to these goals through emission reductions, renewable energy use, sustainable product development, responsible supply chain management, and improved working conditions.
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- Paper-based packaging
- Sensor-driven automation in windows