d&b audiotechnik GmbH & Co. KG
Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2021)
Reporting Period: 2021
Environmental Metrics
Total Carbon Emissions:1,546 tonnes CO2e
Total Energy Consumption:31 MWh/€ million
Waste Generated:44kg/m€
ESG Focus Areas
- Employee well-being
- Resources
- Energy and emissions
- Product responsibility
- Business success and jobs
- Sustainable innovation
- Incentives to rethink
- Human and labor rights
- Stakeholders
- Financial decisions
- Anti-corruption
- Regional added value
Environmental Achievements
- EMAS and ISO 14001 certification since 2013
- Reduced solvent consumption using new technologies and materials
- Continuous reduction of waste volumes and hazardous waste
- Extended service life of IT equipment
- Launched Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) program in 2020
- Two combined heat and power plants generated 307,734 kWh of electricity in 2021
- Conversion of production areas and large parts of admin to LED lighting
- Reduced emissions due to fewer trips (70 online events in 2021)
- Saving on cooling in server rooms by converting IT landscape
Social Achievements
- Leased bikes for all employees since March 2018
- Annual employee appraisals
- HR ticket system for easier employee requests
- Employee emergency hotline launched in early 2019
- Leaders Weekly for manager exchange
- Regular town hall meetings
- Maintained team spirit during coronavirus crisis with virtual formats
- Further development of ELF –Education and Learning Factory–as a virtual learning platform
- Coronavirus testing station for employees
- COVID-19 and flu vaccinations for employees
Governance Achievements
- Code of conduct established
- Regular consultation of the COVID-19 occupational health and safety team
- Implemented remote work successfully in 2021
- Defined standardized requirements to be observed by all employees in its code of conduct (fair competition, preventing money laundering, handling gifts and donations)
Climate Goals & Targets
Long-term Goals:
- Carbon neutrality
Medium-term Goals:
- Achieve carbon neutrality for Scope 1 and 2
- Implement energy concept for new building (2023)
- Reduce emissions by restructuring production areas
- Review and partial switch to carbon-neutral transport
- Expand CPO program to include additional products
Short-term Goals:
- Return to normality after the pandemic
- Start of New Work project
- Launch of the EDP program
- Further development and promotion of company health
- Definition of additional key performance indicators to measure employee satisfaction
Environmental Challenges
- Coronavirus pandemic disrupted business operations and negatively impacted KPIs
- Switching to water-based paint presented technical hurdles
- Room for improvement in waste reduction
- Pandemic prevented many projects from being carried out in 2021
- Need to switch to electricity from 100% renewable energies
- World’s events industry largely locked down in 2021
- Need for a Group-wide view on Principle 8 (Sustainable Innovation)
Mitigation Strategies
- Sticking to sustainability strategy
- Alternative options for saving solvents implemented
- Postponed projects to 2022
- Continuous work to reduce energy consumption and achieve carbon neutrality
- New building in 2023 will improve electricity provider options
- Focus on avoidance rather than offsetting carbon emissions
- Project group established to ensure greater sustainability in the product portfolio from 2022
Supply Chain Management
Responsible Procurement
- Definition of environmental guidelines for procurement
- Substitution of raw materials or use of recycled material
- Achieving greatest possible level of dismountability during product development
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Physical Risks
- Possibility of the site being flooded by the Weissach river
Transition Risks
- Shortage of resources, in particular rare earths
Opportunities
- Development of energy-efficient products
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: WIN-Charta
Certifications: EMAS, ISO 14001
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- CPO products
- SL-Series XSL/XSLi
- D40/40D amplifiers
- Soundscape immersive audio system enhancements
Awards & Recognition
- IQ Magazine’s Green Guardians Award