Corporate Responsibility at NORMA Group

 

Acting responsibly in all areas of the company

As a manufacturing company, NORMA Group is aware of its ecological, economic and social responsibility and sees it as a central responsibility to reconcile the effects of its business activities with the expectations and needs of society. It therefore bases its operational decisions on the principles of responsible corporate governance and sustainable action. Environmentally compatible and sustainable management are firmly anchored as essential components of the company strategy. NORMA Group’s strategy and corporate responsibility objectives in the areas of environment, governance and social affairs are continuously evaluated and updated. Further information can be found in the 2022 CR REPORT and on the NORMA Group website at WWW.NORMAGROUP.COM.

 

Non-financial performance indicators and other key non-financial indicators

Compliance with applicable environmental protection regulations and the avoidance of environmental risks are a high priority for NORMA Group. The company is guided by international standards and guidelines. NORMA Group’s most important non-financial performance indicator is CO₂ emissions. This indicator is also a fixed component and a key target within the variable long-term remuneration (ESG-LTI) of the company’s Management Board members. CO₂ emissions are measured in tons of CO₂ equivalents (Scope 1 and 2; method: market-based). Other key non-financial indicators include the Group’s innovative capacity, measured by the number of invention applications, the problem-solving behavior of employees, expressed in terms of defective parts per million produced (parts per million / PPM), and the accident rate, measured in terms of accidents per 1,000 employees. The detailed set of personnel and environmental indicators as well as key figures on occupational safety and health protection in the Group can be found in the 2022 CR REPORT.

 

Carbon dioxide emissions

NORMA Group currently focuses the collection and management of its greenhouse gas emissions on emissions arising from gas consumption (Scope 1) and the purchase of electricity and district heating (Scope 2) at its production sites. The company strives to continuously reduce these emissions. For example, NORMA Group’s target of reducing CO₂ emissions from its production processes by around 19.5% by 2024 compared to the reference year 2017 was already significantly exceeded in 2022. In the first half of 2023, CO₂ emissions were 2,572 t CO₂e (H1 2022: 2,783 t CO₂e). ¹

 

Invention applications

NORMA Group offers product solutions that support its customers in responding to megatrends such as resource scarcity and climate change in a targeted manner. Securing the ability to innovate in the long term is therefore a key driver for NORMA Group’s future growth. Therefore, the strategic orientation of NORMA Group’s innovation management is based in particular on the defined megatrends and focuses on emissions reduction and water scarcity. Based on these long-term trends FORESIGHT MANAGEMENT and Business Development derive potential market segments for NORMA Group, in water management or the areas of battery cooling and exhaust gas treatment, for example.

With this in mind, the continuous development of new products that are oriented towards the changing requirements of end markets, customers and legal regulations is a constant focus. NORMA Group promotes the inventive spirit of its employees through targeted incentive systems and measures its innovative capacity on the basis of the inventions reported by employees in a formalized process. A total of 8 invention applications were submitted in the first half of 2023 (H1 2022: 10).

 

Quality indicator

NORMA Group stands for high reliability and service quality. The reputation of its brands and the reliability of its products are a key factor in the company’s success, because as connecting elements of various individual parts, NORMA Group’s products are often mission-critical for its direct customers. Therefore, the quality of its products is of high importance in all business units. The Group relies on the highest quality standards in the development and manufacture of its products.

In order to minimize faulty production and maximize customer satisfaction, NORMA Group measures the problem-solving behavior of its employees using the key figure of defective parts per million produced (parts per million / PPM). This figure is recorded and aggregated on a monthly basis throughout the Group. The number of defective parts (PPM) was 1.8 in the first half of 2023, a significant improvement compared to the same period of the previous year (H1 2022: 4.0).

 

Accident rate

NORMA Group focuses on providing employees with a safe and risk-free working environment. Special programs are in place to ensure that all workplaces meet the highest safety standards and that accidents and incidents are avoided as far as possible. To this end, the sites take technical precautions in particular and conduct training courses on the prevention of occupational accidents. All NORMA Group production sites have local occupational health and safety officers who, together with the respective plant management and safety committees, ensure the implementation of occupational safety standards and are available as experts who can answer technical questions. Success in the area of occupational safety and health is monitored through regular reporting by the global occupational safety department to the Management Board. Cause analyses are carried out at the production site level and appropriate countermeasures are defined. The progress of these measures is also reported to the Management Board.

To assess the effectiveness of its programs and measures in the area of occupational health and safety, NORMA Group collects the accident rate as one of the important figures. The accident rate measures the number of accidents resulting in more than three working days lost per 1,000 employees. In the first half of 2023, the accident rate was 4.4 accidents per 1,000 employees (H1 2022: 2.8).

1_CO₂ emissions excluding Energy Attribute Certificates (EAC) amounted to approximately 22.545 t CO₂e in H1 2023 (H1 2022: 23.466 t CO₂e).