Introducing Climate Management: An example from Germany

Content

• What does climate management mean?
• Introduction of climate management - How does it work?
• Interview with Gülen Ak
• Introducing climate management - Conclusion
• DQS: Simply leveraging Quality.

What does climate management mean?

"Corporate climate management aims to identify, record, actively reduce and avoid relevant emission sources and emissions at the site as well as from upstream and downstream activities along the value chain and also includes internal and external reporting on dealing with climate change.

The value chain describes the stages of production and value creation as an ordered sequence of activities and processes. Upstream stages include, for example, the manufacture of primary products or purchased transport services, while downstream stages relate, for example, to the use or disposal of a product.

Conceptually, climate management is part of corporate environmental management, which also includes areas such as wastewater, waste, etc. Environmental management itself is seen as part of corporate sustainability management, along with the areas of economy and social issues."

Source: Corporate climate management along the value chain, published by WWF Germany and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).

Introduction of climate management - How does it work?

"(...) Climate management (includes) a long-term, strategic examination of directly and indirectly responsible emission sources and business-relevant effects of climate change on the company.

To this end, the relevant emission sources, including those from upstream and downstream activities, are identified and prioritized according to emission levels, opportunities and risks, and external requirements. Data collection as well as active control along the entire value chain requires - depending on the emission category - active cooperation with suppliers, business partners or even the company's own employees."

Source: Corporate climate management along the value chain, published by WWF Germany and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). 

Introducing climate management - an example from Germany

Zeller+Gmelin has been a climate neutral site since 2020. Within the scope of climate management, the carbon footprint was determined by means of a greenhouse gas inventory and offset through the targeted support of biomass and wind power projects. After offsetting, the certified climate experts at the German "Fokus Zukunft GmbH" certified them a "climate-neutral company 2020". 

Further savings potentials were identified and implemented through the highly valuable and recognized KEFF check of the organization, which is based at the Stuttgart Chamber of Industry and Commerce. We wanted to find out from Ms. Ak what has happened in recent years with regard to climate neutrality.

Interview with Gülen Ak

Head of Quality, Environmental and Energy Management, Sustainability and Climate Neutrality at Zeller+Gmelin

Ms. Ak, you introduced an energy management system in accordance with ISO 50001 and had it certified by DQS five years ago, in the run-up to the preparation of Zeller+Gmelin's climate neutrality inventory - what effect has this measure had so far?

Güllen Ak: The certification of our energy management system according to ISO 50001 has absolutely paid off. It was the best thing we could have done in terms of energy efficiency. We can now allocate consumption to each of our products and save a lot of energy by improving the relevant processes. This is mainly due to the systematic and regular inspections of our compressed air system. Early detection of leaks prevents energy from literally disappearing into thin air - and compressed air is our main source of energy.

Of course, all this has a positive effect on the issue of climate neutrality. The energy management standard has been and continues to be essential to achieving carbon neutrality. Without the data provided by our energy management system, we would not be where we are today.

You based your GHG inventory on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, involved an external consultant, and also used the KEFF project of the German state of Baden-Württemberg.

The approach has been absolutely successful. In particular, the use of KEFF, now KEFF+, was a home run. For example, the system for detecting compressed air leaks that I mentioned earlier can be traced back to the project. We now do this ourselves. KEFF also gave us access to various funding projects that we are still pursuing today. 

In this respect, how important is environmental consideration to you?

In my 28 years at Zeller+Gmelin, I have implemented environmental thinking from the very beginning and introduced an environmental management system according to ISO 14001as early as 2007. Since then, we have continuously defined and pursued environmental goals, always with an eye on energy. 

With the new ISO certification according to energy management criteria, we have our own new standard for this, namely ISO 50001:2018. Most ISO standards are based on the "High Level Structure", a uniform basic structure for management systems. This makes it much easier to implement in an integrated management system. How important is the environmental approach for you?

What is the current situation regarding the continued development of compensation projects that benefit you in terms of “climate neutrality” status - recently there has been increasing criticism of such projects, including from NGOs?

You mention the issue of greenwashing. In any case, we attach great importance to achieving the majority of our climate neutrality through our own efforts - and we succeed in doing so, for example by purchasing certified raw materials, with waste oil treatment or generally as a result of waste avoidance, the keyword being “circular economy”, which has long been an issue for us.

In my opinion, climate management is not only about climate offsetting, but also about organizational and technical measures, such as replacing the roof and heating system. In addition to purchasing from suppliers with climate-neutral products, we also pay attention to the use of reconditioned drums and the use of recyclate. Instead of disposing of used oil at great expense, our subsidiary Südöl recycles it and adds it to new products as fresh oil.

What still needs to be offset is only handled via absolutely trustworthy, long-term effective projects. Our membership in the German "Stiftung Allianz für Entwicklung und Klima", a foundation for development and the climate, is a great help to us in this respect. Incidentally, we only support projects in countries where we sell our products, and we do so under UN control. By 2030, we want to have improved our processes to such an extent that offsetting is no longer necessary.

How did you actually determine the carbon footprint back then? 

We proceeded in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which is the internationally recognized standard for determining the carbon footprint. The external institute “Fokus Zukunft” supported us in this.

We then entered all energy-relevant parameters in tabular form in a special database. This included heat, fuel and electricity consumption as well as upstream emissions, business travel, commuting, waste generation and wastewater volumes. But also much more, right down to the consumables used in production and in the offices. The data collection is precisely regulated in so-called Scopes, i.e. areas of application, from 1-3.

What was your biggest challenge?

The business trips and the associated overnight stays were a real challenge. I was supported in this by my colleagues from the HR department. It was a Sisyphean task to determine all the data on all business trips for 2018 in retrospect. It was important to know which means of transport was used, where overnight stays were made, etc., as this has to be taken into account differently in the energy balance.

In terms of the energy balance, travel has a marginal impact of 7 %. The low travel expenditure is mainly due to the use of digital media. Many people use digital media and video conferencing and save on some business trips.

Why did you choose the Greenhouse Gas Protocol as the basis for your GHG inventory and not ISO 14064-1?

The answer is simple: we believe that the Greenhouse Gas Protocol is better known internationally and has been on the market for longer than the ISO 14064-1standard, which is based on the Protocol. As we are internationally positioned, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol was more suitable for us.

How have the projects you mentioned in the last audits developed - new laboratory, increased use of green electricity and so on?

We are on schedule with the construction of the new laboratory and we have taken a big step forward, particularly in the use of green electricity. By increasing our use of green electricity, we have reduced our CO2 footprint by 45%.

There were also so-called “lighthouse projects” that you focused on to reduce your GHG emissions, such as the modernization of the cooling water system. Are there any other areas that you want to tackle in the near future or have already tackled?

We are currently focusing on three things: Heating, cooling and ventilation. This is also directly related to the issue of heat planning, which is linked to legal requirements under the German Energy Efficiency Act that must be met by January 1, 2025.

In production, the morning starts with shop floor management: relevant energy topics are also included here

And what happens next?
All locations are now certified to ISO 9001, even in China. The headquarters in Eislingen, England and France are also certified according to the environmental management standard. But all other locations fulfill the Zeller+Gmelin environmental requirements. We have a single system for all sites, which means that they all use identical processes, procedures, documents, forms, etc., and are monitored and certified according to the same specifications.

Our shared vision is reflected in our environmental and climate targets. These are then broken down to the individual locations and implemented consistently. Our CIPs also do not differentiate between “normal” suggestions for improvement and suggestions in the environmental and energy area, and we want to push this even more.

We are currently constructing a new building for our laboratory with climate neutrality in mind. For example, passenger elevators are powered by photovoltaics and electricity is even generated and fed back into the grid when the elevators descend.

In the future, we plan to use even more green electricity in order to sustainably reduce our carbon footprint. In addition, ongoing energy-saving projects, for example in production, will have a positive impact on the inventory. And finally, we could realize potential savings by using climate-neutral energy sources.

Ms. Ak, thank you very much for this informative interview. 

Introducing climate management - Conclusion

The chemical company Zeller+Gmelin achieved the goal of climate neutrality at its headquarters in Eislingen four years ago. This was the result of numerous energy-saving projects and consistent climate management. In an interview with Gülen Ak, Head of Quality, Environmental and Energy Management, Sustainability and Climate Neutrality at Zeller+Gmelin, it becomes clear that the implementation of an energy management system in accordance with ISO 50001 was essential for this success. 

Another guarantee of success was the collaboration with the KEFF project, which has since been replaced by KEFF+. This project helped to identify additional savings potential and take advantage of funding opportunities. As a climate-neutral company, Zeller+Gmelin also relies on the internationally recognized Greenhouse Gas Protocol for the preparation of its GHG inventory, which is in line with its global orientation.

In addition to technical and organizational measures, such as the modernization of heating and cooling systems and the increased use of green electricity, the company attaches great importance to avoiding greenwashing. The development of trustworthy and long-term effective compensation projects is of great importance here. Zeller+Gmelin aims to be completely offset-free by 2030 by further optimizing internal processes.

This practical example illustrates that integrated and systematic climate management not only contributes to achieving climate neutrality, but also opens up economic benefits through increased energy efficiency and subsidies. For management representatives in production, the example of Zeller+Gmelin offers valuable insights and suggestions for their own practice.

Gülen Ak concludes: “Our shared vision is reflected in our environmental and climate targets.” This underlines the importance of a clear strategic direction.

DQS: Simply leveraging Quality.

DQS audits provide you with clarity. The holistic, neutral view from the outside on people, processes, systems and results shows how effective your management system is, how it is implemented and mastered. It is important to us that you perceive our audits not as an examination, but as an enrichment for the further development of your management system - and as the basis for your success.

We always audit impartially, independently and appropriately - on the basis of internationally recognized accreditations by the German Accreditation Body (DAkkS) and system providers such as IATF and UNIFE, among many others. They are the basis of our business activities - and of our customers' trust in us.

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