Everyone is talking about sustainability in all its various forms; the value culture, the economy, and, not least, politicians are all shaping its significance. And Thomas has been taking a long, hard look at the question of what “embracing sustainability” actually means for our company.
Fields of action ESG
The key words “environmental”, “social” and “(corporate) governance” (ESG) provide something of a guiding framework, and criteria have been identified for each of these three main strands of sustainability defined by the European Commission. These criteria are set out in the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and help companies to mark out areas of action for introducing sustainability into their own activities and environment.
Sustainability: taking responsibility
Thomas is assuming responsibility as a company and has been doing since long before the CSRD framework came into effect in January 2023. One of the first milestones was reached in 2008 with the establishment of an occupational health management system, followed later on by certified energy management and certified environmental management, among other things. Thomas is also benefiting from its forward-looking mindset, because alignment with sustainability criteria is increasingly becoming a customer requirement – and those who can meet it can expect additional opportunities within the market. “Sustainability is firmly embedded in our mission statement and values,” explains CEO Markus Krauss. “As far as Thomas is concerned, ‘sustainability’ means preserving creation through responsible corporate governance. We’ve set a number of tangible objectives in our company strategy. For example, calculating product-specific carbon footprints highlights where there is potential for improvement and thus added value to be had by our customers.”
Since 2023, Sascha Koschinski has been focusing on systematically promoting sustainability issues at Thomas in his role as Senior Consultant Sustainability, Compliance & Strategic Projects. The company believes that this area harbors potential for increased growth and profitability through sustainable resource management. “The Thomas Group has set itself a real challenge in terms of sustainability and compliance,” says Sascha Koschinski. “Rather than merely seeking to satisfy the legal requirements, it wants to be seen as an innovator and shape market trends with its sustainability strategy and what it’s doing to deliver it. It’s no longer just about preventing or curbing the negative impact of your own actions but about helping to solve problems in a positive way and creating products that will help society as a whole become more sustainable.”
ESG focus areas
Following close scrutiny of the ESG criteria, the areas they cover, and the opportunities and risks present on the market, Thomas has identified the key themes and sub-themes and has set its future priorities for sustainable action:
Embracing sustainability
“When I wrote my Bachelor dissertation at Thomas, I worked out the method for calculating the product carbon footprint, or PCF, using the example of the ELUPS coil. The PCF expresses in net terms the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to a particular product throughout its life. It’s determined by gathering product-specific consumption data and emission factors and balancing them out against one another as necessary. At the end, you have a tool that’s designed to be used in the future to log data in a structured way and calculate the PCF for more products.”
Alexander Krestel
Working student in Plastics Development
„Many key social issues, such as work/life balance and health management and prevention, have been integral parts of our corporate culture for many years, long before sustainability became an area of focus. And even now, despite having already achieved a great deal, we’re always working on becoming even better – so that we’re an attractive employer for highly skilled and dedicated managers and staff. To this end, we have colleagues whose job is specifically to promote inclusion, for example, and who are driving these issues further forward.“
Alexandra Müller
Manager HR Development
„As far as Thomas is concerned, setting up and continuing to develop a compliance management system, or CMS, is an expression of the company’s shared core values. These are already defined in our mission statement and our code as a family business, and we’ve been actively demonstrating them in practice for many years, both within the company and in our dealings with the outside world. We want to put measures and processes in place to ensure compliance with the law, regulatory requirements, and our own internal guidelines. The CMS is fostering a transparent corporate culture and helping to strengthen trust in Thomas among our customers, our partners and, perhaps most importantly, our colleagues.”
Hakim Bel Aifa
Expert Legal Services
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