Saab 2011 Annual Report Download - page 48

44 SAAB ANNUAL REPORT 2011
SAAB’S RESPONSIBILITIES > ENVIRONMENT
We are working actively to reduce our impact on the en-
vironment and climate change. An important part of our
work is to collaborate with the industry to create sustain-
able solutions for the future.
Objective
Our overall objective is to reduce the impact of our operations and
products on people’s health, the environment and the climate. e
most important environmental aspects for us are climate change,
our products’ environmental impact, hazardous chemicals and
environmental risks; learn more on page 65. Our climate objective
is to reduce relative CO2 emissions by 20 per cent during the period
2007-2020. Emissions are measured against our turnover in MSEK.
In the area of chemicals, we work actively with needs analyses,
knowledge and communication internally within Saab and with
our suppliers. All the business areas draed strategy documents in
2011, where the use of hazardous substances in their products was
identied. ese strategies will serve as the basis for prioritising
measures to replace hazardous chemicals. e work is monitored
on a regular basis by the Group Environmental Council.
Priorities and results 2011
Climate change
During the period 2007-2010 relative CO2 emissions were reduced
from 2.6 to 2.5 tons per MSEK. Vehicles, aircra, business travel
and goods transports account for 60 per cent of emissions, while
40 per cent is attributable to electricity and heating for our facili-
ties, machinery and processes.
An extensive energy conservation project was launched in 2011
to cut energy consumption at Saab AB’s properties in half by 2015.
e measures include smaller facilities, more ecient operations,
technological investments and increased awareness among em-
ployees about consumption from computers, lighting and projec-
tors. In 2012, one of Saab’s large cooling centres will be replaced by
district cooling to reduce CO2 emissions by 3,000–4,000 tons per
year while at the same time eliminating another smaller, energy-
draining system.
For the h consecutive year, Saab was ranked in the international
Carbon Disclosure Project’s (CDP) Carbon Disclosure Leadership
Index. In its Nordic report, CDP ranks companies that excel at climate
reporting. e focus is on greenhouse gas emissions, goals and results,
measures to limit emissions, and the risks and opportunities compa-
nies see due to climate change. For more information on CDP and
Saab’s complete CDP report, see www.cdproject.net.
Hazardous substances
Certain hazardous chemicals are still necessary to meet security
and technical performance requirements in the aerospace and
defence industry. During the last ten years Saab has reduced its use
of hazardous substances such as volatile organic solvents (VOC),
trichloroethylene, brominated ame retardants, lead and cadmium.
It has received an exemption from the Swedish National Chemi-
cals Inspectorate to use trichloroethylene at the Swedish facilities
in Tannefors and Järfälla. Beginning in 2010, four older facilities
that used trichloroethylene to degrease metals have been replaced
by two modern, enclosed plants, which oer many environmental
benets, including a reduction in trichloroethylene from over ten
tons to about one ton per year. Trichloroethylene emissions to
water have ceased and hazardous wastes have been reduced. In the
process, energy and water consumption have decreased as well.
Although its products are not governed by the EU’s RoHS
directive (Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous Substances in
electrical and electronic equipment), Saab is actively seeking to re-
duce consumption of these substances as stipulated in the directive.
Moreover, we are working to adapt to the requirements of the EU’s
chemicals law, REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation
of Chemicals). In 2011, Saab acquired and tested an IS/IT tool to
structure information on the chemicals contained in its products.
e tool will also be used to verify that the products meet current
chemical requirements. Implementation will begin in 2012. We
have long been using an eective Group-wide IS/IT system to man-
age chemical products in its operations.
Demands on suppliers
We have many suppliers around the world. Because a large share of
the components and subsystems used in its products are pur-
chased from other companies, they too have a great impact on our
environmental work. We therefore require that our suppliers act
responsibly and follow our requirements as well as those of the
EU and our customers. Setting environmental requirements for
suppliers and monitoring compliance is a continuous process. In
2011 this work was given higher priority, especially since we are
currently introducing uniform processes and routines within Saab.
External environmental cooperations
We are one of the main suppliers to Clean Sky, a Joint Technology
Initiative nanced equally by the EU and the industry. e purpose
of Clean Sky is to bring the European aviation industry together to
meet the 2020 environmental goals set by the Advisory Council for
Aeronautic Research in Europe (ACARE). is includes reducing
REDUCING OUR ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT