WACKER aims to strengthen its commitment to sustainable business practices in the supply chain. To this end, the company now joined the “Together for Sustainability” (TfS) initiative. Established in 2011, the project is targeted on implementing a standardized global program for responsible procurement of goods and services in the chemical industry and improving the ecological and social standards of suppliers. After AkzoNobel, Arkema, BASF, Bayer, Clariant, DSM, Evonik Industries, Henkel, Lanxess, Merck and Solvay, WACKER is the twelfth company to become a TfS member.

The initiative is based on established principles such as those sub-scribed to by United Nations Global Compact and Responsible Care®, the chemical industry’s sustainability initiative. Together, the TfS members organize supplier evaluations using questionnaire analyses and audits. Thus, the suppliers’ sustainability performance is assessed by independent auditing bodies based on criteria tailored for the chemical industry. Aspects that are evaluated range from the environment, health and safety, labor and human rights to ethical company management. The audits include on-site checks, for example of production sites and office buildings.

The sustainability information obtained from the supplier assessments is made available to all TfS members via a web-based platform. This avoids individual, company-specific check programs and reduces bureaucracy for suppliers and customers.

“By joining ‘Together for Sustainability,’ WACKER will be able to improve the sustainability of the entire supply chain,” said Dr. Erk Thorsten Heyen, head of Raw Materials Procurement. “This also greatly simplifies matters for the suppliers, because they no longer have to provide proof of sustainable practice separately for each individual customer.”