We create a future fit for our grandchildren

Our ESG principles and Sihl values

6. February 2023
Aline Jansen
At Sihl, we work every day to create a "grandchild-friendly" future. We call it “enkelfähig.” But what does that mean?

For us, “Enkelfähigkeit” means creating values with foresight and responsibility that we not only want to pass on to our descendants, but that we above all also live ourselves – not only in a business sense. It is important to us to take responsibility for people and the environment. We see this as a prerequisite for long-term success and for offering our customers an exceptional level of quality and service.

Our ESG principles serve as the organisational basis for our “Enkelfähigkeit”. Sustainability and social responsibility play an important role in our corporate strategy and guide our actions.

 

What does ESG stand for?

“Environmental Social Governance” (ESG) stands for social responsibility in the sense of sustainable business. This includes various criteria such as the environment, working conditions, human rights, fair business practices and sustainable procurement of raw materials.

Sustainability & protecting the environment

We have set ourselves the goal of leaving a small CO2 footprint on our earth, protecting the environment and causing as little pollution as possible. For this reason, we produce a large part of our energy ourselves – highly efficient and as environmentally friendly as possible. With our photovoltaic systems, we generate about 770,000 kWh of electricity on the roofs of our production halls. This saves us 540t of CO2 per year. Additional energy is generated by means of combined heat and power (CHP).

As a further measure, we only buy electric & hybrid vehicles as company cars and have installed our own charging infrastructure for them on the company premises. Sustainability is also a priority in the production and development of new products: we pay attention to gentle production conditions and the use of sustainable raw materials and chemicals. For example, almost all of our base papers are FSC®-certified, and when it comes to polyester films, we focus on films with recycled content. We make sure that we only work with suppliers who meet our high quality standards. In addition, we largely avoid harmful substances such as solvents in the production of our products and focus on recyclability.

Our Sihl values

Our values are always at the forefront of everything we do – in our day-to-day business, in our projects, but equally in our contact with customers and partners and in our collaboration with colleagues. Together, we live these values, take responsibility for the environment and society and thereby create a sustainable future that is “enkelfähig”.

We are innovative

Innovation is our DNA and is based on our efficient research & development. We build on the great creativity, specific skills and broad knowledge of our employees and our networks from science and industry. Through innovative technologies and processes, we enable ongoing trends to revolutionise markets and create new opportunities for our customers. Together, we develop sustainable solutions for a future worth living. This is also demonstrated by the research seal “Innovative through Research”, with which the Stifterverband has rewarded us.

We are responsible

We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. At Sihl, it is particularly important to us that economy and ecology go hand in hand in our corporate strategy so that we actively contribute to a sustainable future. ESG is always our guiding principle and we create products and solutions that make the best possible use of available resources. Our commitment has already been rewarded several times with the silver medal in the EcoVadis Sustainability Rating and various certificates for environmental and employee protection from TÜV.

We are passionate

We are building on our pioneering role in our core business, but we are also exploring new, innovative ways to achieve sustainable success. The goal is always to differentiate our business from that of our competitors. To achieve this, high-performing employees are an indispensable cornerstone on which we build. We are a team that is passionate about its work and loves what it does. This is how we bridge the gap between tradition and modernity and drive our innovative strength. It is particularly important to us that we support our employees and provide them with the necessary resources and skills so that they can act with passion and offer our customers solutions that are tailored to them.

We are cooperative

For us, communication and ongoing exchange are the basis for long-term success. We attach great importance to global cooperation with our customers, partners and society through various channels in order to take on challenges together. Fair dealings and close cooperation with each other are essential in order to make a difference and achieve the best possible results.