Sustainability at Hultafors Group
Sustainability at Hultafors Group
Sustainability at Hultafors Group

Sustainability at Hultafors Group

We are not satisfied just being a part of the future – we aim to be at the forefront in our business in terms of sustainability.

At Hultafors Group, sustainability is as much a social perspective as it is an environmental approach.

We are committed to taking an active role in society. Through company growth and responsible policy, we aspire to have a positive impact on all the people connected to our business, and to minimise the environmental impact of our operation. Sustainability is a natural part of our strategy, and is integrated in our daily work and a company ethos built on respect for both people and the planet.

We have high ambitions for our contribution to a sustainable future and are setting out metrics by which we can measure our progress and embarking on new initiatives through which these ambitions will be realised. It is important that our products as well as our actions can be trusted and that, as a company and a community, we foster a work environment where sustainability issues are experienced as core issues.

Hultafors Group's owner Investment AB Latour has a long tradition of acting responsibly, which is shown by the company’s long-term investment horizon and management style.

Construction workers with Snickers workwear

Respect the People

Our ambition is for everyone who works with us to have excellent working conditions. We aspire to positively influence and impact everyone connected to what we do. Only human beings seen as persons and treated with dignity and respect drive companies to be not just better than average but truly successful and engaged in the world.

Employees

Ensuring that our employees are healthy and involved is a priority for Hultafors Group. Our aim is that no employee should get injured at work and that all employees should have a good and healthy work environment. We constantly work to reduce the risk for accidents on the job, and strive to promote good physical and mental health. We involve everyone in our work environment efforts, asking for their input and cooperation as we continuously work to improve and perfect our work environment.

Because we want to hire and retain the best people, it is important to truly be an attractive employer. Our history and heritage as a company attests to the fact that this value has always been at our core. We do not take the issues of a positive, healthy and safe work environment for granted. Again, it is the individuals at Hultafors Group who make the difference and help us meet our potential in all areas.

End-Users

We strive to minimise our environmental impact while optimising the functionality for those using our products. We contribute to good working conditions and well-being for our professional users by regularly inquiring after and formulating insights into their work needs, and then striving to meet those needs with innovations and products.

When creating a new product, we always involve our craftsmen users in the development process to fully understand their genuine needs in their daily work, and perfect the design and development at an early stage. About ourselves we have the saying ‘In every way, a partner to rely on.’ We work hard to live up to that promise.

Partners

Our ambition is that everyone working for us or with us should have good working conditions, regardless of whether they are employed at one of our self-owned plants or at an outsourced production unit.

When it comes to outsourced production, our Code of Conduct sets the standard for what we consider important, and ensures that the working conditions at independent suppliers are consistent with our company values. We strive to build long-term relationships with our producers. For example, we have worked with the same producer in Vietnam for over 18 years and counting, and we have other important and abiding long-term relationships with producers.

To ensure our high standards and quality are maintained everywhere, we have our own well-established organisation to monitor, develop and audit the outsourced production, as well as our self-owned factory units. Monitoring sustainability in regards to production outsourced to developing countries is a top priority. Ensuring high business ethics, fair working conditions and human rights in our value chain, requires both internal and external third party audits. For this purpose, we have a Hultafors Group-wide agreement with Intertek (https://www.intertek.com/). Auditing our suppliers and subcontractors on a regular basis ensures our values are maintained and that all our affiliates and suppliers continuously meet our requirements as stated in our Code of Conduct. (To read our Code of Conduct please see our Policies & Certifications page.)

Norwegian Transparency Act

The Norwegian Transparency Act aims to promote enterprises’ respect for fundamental human rights and decent working conditions in connection with the production of goods and the provision of services and ensure the general public access to information regarding how enterprises address adverse impacts on fundamental human rights and decent working conditions.

Hultafors Group supports and respects the protection of internationally proclaimed Human Rights. In 2022, the following Hultafors Group subsidiaries met the inclusion criteria for the Norwegian Transparency Act:

  • Hultafors Group Norge AS – find HGNAS account for the financial year 2022 here (English), and here (Norwegian). You can also find it in the Hultafors Group Sustainability Report 2022, above on this page.(will be published in June 2023)

  • Fristads AS – refer to separate Fristads Sustainabilty Report, available on their website.

Upon written request, any person has the right to information from an enterprise regarding how the enterprise addresses actual and potential adverse impacts pursuant to The Norwegian Transparency Act. This includes both general information and information relating to a specific product or service offered by the enterprise.

If you have any general questions relating to Hultafors Group and The Norwegian Transparency Act, please contact us at sustainablity@hultaforsgroup.com and we will get back to you via email. For specific whistleblower issues or submissions, please visit hultaforsgroup.com/whistleblowing.

Respect the Planet

We work proactively to reduce our environmental footprint. We have set goals and monitor our progress with indicators. Our tradition and heritage of making long-lasting products is an important component in our effort to minimise negative impact to the environment.

Our self-owned plants and production sites have a long experience working with environmental issues. Most of these are certified according to ISO 14001 (for more information please see the Policies & Certifications page). In a few sites, the process of certification is ongoing . When it comes to choosing suppliers, we strive to work with suppliers certified in accordance with ISO 14001. Every self-owned plant has its own environmental aspect list, which is updated yearly. This list is continuously evaluated to make sure we prioritise the improvements which are of the greatest importance to the environment. This process results in a local action plan with measurable targets for each plant, where we strive to minimise consumption of waste, energy and chemicals, as well as choose materials with a lower environmental footprint.

All of our own production facilities work with environmental action lists to minimise waste, consumption of energy and use of harmful chemicals. To minimise environmental impact and minimise health and safety hazards from chemicals, we conduct robust proactive chemical research throughout our value chain with the support and guidance of the Swedish Chemical Group and RISE (Research Institute of Sweden). For more information about our partners and tools, please check the Value Chain Data & Analytical Tools page.

Profitability with Purpose

Without profit, a business is not sustainable but a sustainable business is a profitable one. We believe it is as simple as that.

To have a positive impact on the world, an ethical business needs to thrive and grow; it must be profitable. We have high ambitions to contribute to a sustainable future, and believe that achieving that requires a consistent, clear-eyed and adaptive approach to the challenge of achieving the twin goals of sustainability with profitability. Acting responsibly with regard to how our products are made, transported and used, is one way we can contribute to good health for our users and minimise the effect on the environment. We are investing increasingly in research for the end of life solutions for our products as well as circularity.