Climate Change Data

The Sherwin-Williams Company

Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2021, 2022, 2023)

Reporting Period: 2021

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:621,266 tCO2e/year
Scope 1 Emissions:354,397 tCO2e/year
Scope 2 Emissions:266,869 tCO2e/year
Scope 3 Emissions:To be disclosed in 2021 CDP report
Renewable Energy Share:0.06%
Total Energy Consumption:7.73 million gigajoules/year
Water Consumption:3,755,985 m3/year (withdrawn); 1,686,682 m3/year (consumed in production)
Waste Generated:341.1 thousand metric tons/year
Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed

ESG Focus Areas

  • Climate and Carbon
  • Product Stewardship
  • Life Cycle Assessment
  • Occupational Health and Safety
  • Talent Acquisition
  • Employee Engagement

Environmental Achievements

  • Reduced total CO2 emissions from 634,847 metric tons in 2020 to 621,266 metric tons in 2021 due to renewable energy use, energy efficiency initiatives, and improved fleet fuel efficiency.
  • Recycled approximately 40% of total waste generated in 2021.
  • Collected more than 3.5 million gallons of paint for recycling since 2018 through PaintCare® program.

Social Achievements

  • Achieved the safest year on record in 2021.
  • Hosted a global women’s summit to empower and support employees.
  • Partnered with organizations to attract diverse talent, including HBCUs and HSIs.
  • Expanded employee giving program to include TAG division offices.

Governance Achievements

  • Implemented Sustainability by Design program across the enterprise.
  • Aligned climate strategy with science-based targets approach.
  • Published first disclosures aligning with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework.

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030
  • Increase electricity from renewable sources to 50% of total electricity usage by 2030
  • Increase operational energy efficiency by 20% by 2030
  • Reduce waste disposal intensity by 25% by 2030
  • Increase women in management roles to 30% by 2025
  • Increase underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in U.S. management roles to 30% by 2025
Short-term Goals:
  • Reduce recordable case rate to 0.8 by 2025
  • Increase women in management roles to 30% by 2025
  • Increase underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in U.S. management roles to 30% by 2025

Environmental Challenges

  • Significant and industry-wide raw material shortages.
  • High cost inflation.
  • Ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Worldwide impacts of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
  • Water stress at some locations.
Mitigation Strategies
  • Developed a more innovative, solutions-driven business approach.
  • Developed alternative sourcing strategies.
  • Worked with suppliers to improve product sustainability and reduce Scope 3 emissions.
  • Implemented energy efficiency initiatives and explored renewable energy options.
  • Working with sites in water-stressed areas to mitigate and monitor water stress risk.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Supplier Code of Conduct
  • Collaboration with suppliers on carbon footprint reduction initiatives

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Extreme weather events
  • Water stress
Transition Risks
  • Policy changes
  • Market shifts
  • Reputation risk
  • Technology risk
Opportunities
  • Increased demand for protective coatings
  • Development of energy-efficient products
  • Growth of sustainably advantaged products

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, SASB, TCFD

Certifications: ISO 14001

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • Living Well™ collection
  • SuperPaint® with Air Purifying Technology
  • Products with third-party green chemistry, ecolabel, or similar recognition

Awards & Recognition

  • Forbes® World’s Best Employer
  • Forbes® America’s Best Employers for Diversity, Women, New Grads, and Veterans
  • Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2022 Corporate Equality Index (perfect score)

Reporting Period: 2022

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:710,266 metric tons CO2e (Scope 1 & 2)
Scope 1 Emissions:430,114 metric tons CO2e
Scope 2 Emissions:280,152 metric tons CO2e
Scope 3 Emissions:Not disclosed
Renewable Energy Share:Not disclosed
Total Energy Consumption:8.78 million gigajoules
Water Consumption:3,950,158 m3
Waste Generated:360.3 thousand metric tons
Carbon Intensity:17.99 metric tons CO2e/metric tons produced

ESG Focus Areas

  • Product Stewardship
  • Talent Acquisition and Employee Engagement
  • Climate and Carbon
  • Occupational Health and Safety
  • Life Cycle Assessment

Environmental Achievements

  • Reduced absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions (target: 30% reduction by 2030 compared to 2019 baseline)
  • Increased electricity from renewable energy sources (target: 50% by 2030 compared to 2019 baseline)
  • Improved operational energy efficiency (target: 20% by 2030 compared to 2019 baseline)
  • Reduced waste disposal intensity (target: 25% by 2030 compared to 2019 baseline)

Social Achievements

  • Increased women in management roles (target: 30% by 2025, compared with 26% in 2020)
  • Increased underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in U.S. management roles (target: 30% by 2025, compared with 26% in 2020)
  • Improved score on the Sherwin-Williams Inclusion Index

Governance Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030
  • Increase electricity from renewable energy sources to 50% of total electricity usage by 2030
  • Increase operational energy efficiency by 20% by 2030
  • Reduce waste disposal intensity by 25% by 2030
Short-term Goals:
  • Increase women in management roles to 30% by 2025
  • Increase underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in U.S. management roles to 30% by 2025
  • Achieve a recordable cases rate (RCR) of 0.8 by 2025
  • Reduce the number of ergonomic injuries by implementing at least two interventions per year at each manufacturing site by 2025

Environmental Challenges

  • Not disclosed
Mitigation Strategies
  • Not disclosed

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Supplier Code of Conduct

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Not disclosed
Transition Risks
  • Not disclosed
Opportunities
  • Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI

Certifications: Null

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • Powdura® ECO, coatings that cure at room temperature, high-transfer-efficiency powder coatings, heat- and sun-reflective roof coatings, infrared-reflecting concrete coatings

Awards & Recognition

  • Not disclosed

Reporting Period: 2023

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:700,323 tCO2e/year
Scope 1 Emissions:434,541 tCO2e/year
Scope 2 Emissions:265,782 tCO2e/year
Scope 3 Emissions:7,515,404 tCO2e/year
Renewable Energy Share:0.13%
Total Energy Consumption:2,493 MWh/year
Water Consumption:3,943,481 m3/year
Waste Generated:333.2 tons/year
Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed

ESG Focus Areas

  • Climate and Carbon
  • Product Stewardship
  • Life Cycle Assessment
  • Occupational Health and Safety
  • Talent Acquisition and Employee Engagement

Environmental Achievements

  • Expanded our use of on-site solar energy in North America
  • Entered into a virtual power purchase agreement that added up to 320,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of renewable energy to the grid
  • Upgraded LED lighting kits for all paint store color displays
  • Reduced waste by 3,033 MT through various initiatives
  • Reduced waste disposal intensity by 12% compared to the 2019 baseline

Social Achievements

  • Launched Create Your Possible™ — a new guiding framework for talent that positions us as an employer of choice
  • Completed Conscious Inclusion training for 100% of senior leadership
  • Achieved injury-free status at 5,564 sites
  • Donated $6,417,023 to charitable causes
  • Exceeded Building our Future economic inclusion commitments and awarded contracts totaling more than $300 million with minority-owned, female-owned and small businesses through April 2024

Governance Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 30% by 2030
  • Increase electricity from renewable sources to 50% of total usage by 2030
  • Increase operational energy efficiency by 20% by 2030
  • Reduce waste disposal intensity by 25% by 2030
Short-term Goals:
  • Reduce recordable case rate to 0.8 by 2025

Environmental Challenges

  • Increased fleet activity leading to a slight increase in Scope 1 emissions
  • Challenges in full electrification of fleet due to lack of adequate public charging infrastructure and battery life for large vehicles
  • Scope 3 emissions being a larger contributor to carbon footprint than Scopes 1 and 2
Mitigation Strategies
  • Decreased Scope 2 indirect emissions resulting from energy efficiency projects
  • Investing in emissions-reducing practices such as more fuel-efficient engines, improved idling technology, air flanges to reduce drag, and smart loading and routing solutions
  • Conducting an inventory of top raw materials and their emissions factors, planning to work with suppliers on decarbonization goals and evaluating alternative raw materials

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Supplier Code of Conduct

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • extreme weather events
  • water stress
Transition Risks
  • policy changes
  • market shifts
  • reputational risks
  • technology risks
Opportunities
  • protective coatings for infrastructure
  • coatings for renewable energy technologies
  • energy-efficient coatings
  • innovation in sustainable products

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: World Resources Institute (WRI) GHG Protocol, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)

Certifications: ISO 14001, OSHA VPP

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • ProMar® 200 Zero VOC Interior Latex Paint
  • Powdura® ECO coatings
  • SHER-WOOD® Environmentally Adaptive Hydroplus™ coating
  • valPure® V70 coating
  • FasTop® Multi range of polyurethane concrete industrial floor materials
  • SofTop® Comfort Flooring Systems
  • Cool Feel® deck and walkway coating

Awards & Recognition

  • SEAL Sustainable Innovation Award for valPure® V70
  • FeRFA Environmental Initiative Award for FasTop® Multi
  • Sustainability, Environmental Achievement and Leadership (SEAL) Sustainable Innovation Award for valPure® V70
  • Better Plants Award for Orlando solar energy installation
  • Forbes Net Zero Leaders
  • USA TODAY America’s Climate Leaders
  • Forbes World’s Best Employers
  • America’s Best Large Employers
  • America’s Best Employers for Women
  • America’s Best Employers for New Graduates
  • America’s Best Employers for Diversity
  • America’s Best Brands for Social Impact
  • HLPA Top Employers Who Support the Hispanic/Latino Community
  • American Opportunity Index Top 100 Employers of Choice
  • British Coatings Federation Best in Class for Diversity & Inclusion
  • Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies
  • Newsweek World’s Most Trustworthy Companies
  • Brand Finance United States’ Most Valuable Brands
  • Retail Info Systems Most Responsible Retailer
  • 360 Quadrants Top 16 Paints and Coatings Companies