Electrolux 2013 Annual Report Download - page 38

Innovation for
sustainability
Achieving the Group’s vision of sustainability leadership is cru-
cial to realizing the business strategy. The objective is to develop
smarter, more accessible, resource-efficient solutions that meet
people’s needs and improve their lives.
Sustainability priorities target three areas:
• Products, services and markets – to sustainably provide
resource-efficient products and services that are accessible
to more people around the world.
• People and operations – to engage employees in continually
improving operations for the safety of people, integrity of the
company and the good of the environment.
• Stakeholders and society – to build trust and connect with
stakeholders across the value chain to achieve successful
sustainability outcomes.
Sustainability leadership requires a clear vision, strong organi-
zational alignment and global commitment.
In 2013, a 2020 goal was set to cut the Group’s climate
impact by 50% relative to 2005 production. The reduction in car-
bon emissions is to be implemented in production, transporta-
tion, use of greenhouse gases and in the use phase of products.
With this goal, Electrolux aims to be among the leaders in
product-energy efficiency in each product segment and market.
Electrolux is collaborating with partners along the value chain to
further reduce carbon emissions outside the Group’s direct
control.
Products, services and markets
The Group’s most significant environmental impact is carbon
dioxide emitted by consumers during product use. Accordingly,
Electrolux places great importance on increased product effi-
ciency, and sustainability is one of four prioritized areas in prod-
uct development.
At least one-third of the product development spend is envi-
ronmentally related and include energy and water efficiency as
well as design-for-recycling.
A Green Range performance indicator of the most efficient
products in each sector allows comparability of environmentally
leading products against the total range.
A key challenge is to meeting increasing demand for energy
and cost-efficient appliances by transfering innovation rapidly
from the premium to the mass-market segment.
To build increased consumer awareness of the value of effi-
cient appliances, Electrolux focuses on efficiency and other sus-
tainability benefits in marketing across the Group. During the
year, the Group conducted a market survey in Australia, Brazil,
France, China, Germany and the US to gauge consumers’ per-
ception of Electrolux as a sustainable brand and better under-
stand the importance of environmental factors in purchasing
behavior. Results showed that two-thirds of consumers ranked
environmental impact as one of the three most important factors
when purchasing household appliances.
People and operations
The Electrolux Foundation, the Group’s principle of conduct,
covers three areas: Respect and Diversity, Ethics and Integrity,
and Safety and Sustainability.
In 2013, Electrolux launched a group-wide program for ISO
9001 (quality), ISO 14001 (environment) and OHSAS 18001
(health and safety) certification. The objective is to leverage the
certification program for improving governance and sharing
best practice.
Sustainability is a core element of the Group’s strategy. Focus is on resource-
efcient products, engaging employees in sustainability objectives and increasing
awareness of the positive and negative impacts across the value chain.
Global Green Range Responsible sourcing
In total, 373 supplier audits were carried out in 2013. The improvement is illustrated by the
reduction of non-compliances in follow-up audits of 87 suppliers.
Consumer products with the best environmental performance accounted for 12%
of total sold units and 24 % of gross profit.
Number
0 200 400 600 800 1,000 1,200
Minor findings
Major findings
Zero tolerance Initial audit
Follow-up audit
%
0
5
10
15
20
25
30 Share of units sold
Share of gross profit
36 ANNUAL REPORT 2013
Strategic development 2013 Innovation