Resource Efficiency and Materials
Economic and environmental drivers for resource efficiency
As a manufacturing company, NORMA Group depends on various raw materials and primary products as important precursors of its products. NORMA Group’s total production materials turnover amounted to EUR 372.2 million in 2021 (2020: 291.3 million). The largest share was accounted for by steel and metal components, granules and plastic and rubber products. PURCHASING AND SUPPLIER MANAGEMENT Efficient handling of the raw materials required for production is therefore both needed from an environmental point of view and economically necessary to reduce production costs.
Taking into account NORMA Group’s procurement portfolio, price increases for raw materials are considered very likely overall. However, the associated financial impact is estimated to be minor. RISK AND OPPORTUNITY REPORT
Reducing waste volumes
A key indicator of the efficient use of raw materials is the volume of waste. NORMA Group collects data on both hazardous and non-hazardous waste (metal, plastic, paper, wood and other waste). As with other environmental data, NORMA Group reports waste data in relation to sales to improve internal and external comparability.
The reduction of waste generation is controlled in accordance with the environmental management systems. The EHS department is responsible for ensuring adequate waste management that is implemented at the plant level in accordance with ISO 14001 standards. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS In its CR Roadmap, NORMA Group has set the goal of further reducing the amount of waste in relation to revenues in 2022. CR TARGETS
|
Volumes of various forms of waste T009in kg per EUR thousand of revenue |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
2021 |
2020 |
Change in %1 |
|
|
Non-hazardous waste |
11.2 |
11.0 |
2.3 |
|
Metallic Waste |
6.7 |
6.7 |
-0.2 |
|
Plastic Waste |
1.1 |
1.1 |
-3.6 |
|
Cardboard/Paper Waste |
0.7 |
0.8 |
-8.7 |
|
Wood Waste |
0.8 |
1.0 |
-16.3 |
|
Other Waste |
1.9 |
1.4 |
39.9 |
|
Hazardous Waste |
0.6 |
0.6 |
-9.0 |
1_The percentage change is based on unrounded absolute figures.
Last year, the absolute amount of non-hazardous waste increased by 17.6 % to 12,261 tons (2020: 10,429 tons). In relation to sales revenues, non-hazardous waste amounted to 11.2 kg per EUR thousand of revenue (2020: 11.0 kg per EUR thousand of revenue), an increase of 2.3 %.
Metallic waste continued to be the largest waste category. Although a significant proportion of NORMA Group products are made of plastics, the waste produced in this process, however, can often be regranulated and reused in the production process itself.
In 2021, the volume of hazardous waste was 0.6 kg per EUR thousand of revenue (2020: 0.6 kg per EUR thousand of revenue). The handling of hazardous substances affects only a few production areas, and compliance with legal requirements is regularly monitored as part of the environmental management systems.
Efficient production processes
NORMA Group optimizes the efficiency of its production through the implementation and continuous improvement of the NORMA Business System (NBS). Among other things, NORMA Group uses the NBS to monitor indicators to improve material efficiency. This includes the number of defective parts produced internally but not delivered to the customer (see defective parts under PRODUCT QUALITY AND SAFETY) and the scrap rate, which sets the value of the scrap in relation to the total production material consumed. To make management as effective as possible, data is collected at machine, department and plant levels.
In addition to the strong focus on these indicators, Scrap Marketplaces have been set up at all sites. The aim of these ‘marketplaces’ is to sensitize the workforce to the avoidance of scrap and waste. Scrap is collected at the machine level in red boxes and displayed visibly in the production halls. The clear visibility is intended to encourage employees to look for solutions to produce less waste. Depending on the plant, the contents of the Scrap Marketplaces are checked weekly or even daily, the causes analyzed and appropriate countermeasures defined.
Recycling and compliance with legal requirements on materials
Depending on the type of waste, NORMA Group employs different recycling methods. For example, a large share of the waste generated in production processes is externally recycled by NORMA Group’s contractors. Plastic waste is reintroduced into the manufacturing process as far as possible, depending on the type of plastic and reasonable costs. A certain portion of the resulting plastic waste is regranulated. If possible, NORMA Group also purchases recycled plastic.
NORMA Group is currently not in the position to recycle its own products because these are usually used in end products such as engines and turbines, and doing so would require a disproportionately high investment of time and resources on the part of NORMA Group. All contractually regulated specifications on material type and recyclability are fulfilled. Compliance with the statutory labeling requirement is also guaranteed. In this way, NORMA Group complies with statutory regulations such as end-of-life vehicle regulations and guidelines such as RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) and California Proposition 65 on the requirements on drinking water infrastructure. Additionally, it supports its customers’ recycling concepts.
Legend
These contents are part of the Non-financial Group Report and were subject to a separate limited assurance examination.