As a company that takes a proactive approach to the future, we have always done everything in our power to live up to our responsibilities in every way, whether in relation to the environment, our customers, our business partners, or our employees.
We are shaping the change – SEW EURODRIVE has been focusing on topics such as the circular economy, renewable energies, and energy-efficient drives for many years now. Our products, which are designed as a modular concept, comply with Ecodesign Regulation (EU) 2019/1781. What's more, we have received multiple awards and hold various certificates:
- ISO 14001 and ISO 50001 certification
- EcoVadis SILVER medal: with an improvement from 72/100 to 75/100 points, we are among the top 6% of the companies assessed
Our Sustainability Committee, which reports directly to the Management Board, monitors and continuously re-evaluates the ways our actions across all sectors and departments impact the environment.
| Q3/2023 | CO2 Emission Offsetting by Location: Corporate Carbon Footprint (CCF) – Results for the Bruchsal Elektronik Plant |
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| Q2/2023 | CO2 emissions accounting by product (Product Carbon Footprint, PCF)—pilot calculations for a representative mechanical/mechatronic/electrical product |
| Q2/2023 | Measures taken at various locations to reduce the fill quantity of packaging materials |
| Q4/2023 | Eco-design guidelines for product development approved |
| Q4/2023 | CO2 accounting by location; a Corporate Carbon Footprint methodology for the accounting has been developed, including Scope 3 |
| Q1/2024 | CO2 accounting by location (CCF) – for specific countries within the SEW-EURODRIVE Group, Scope 1 and 2 accounting |
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| Q1/2024 | Publication of a report on the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act 2023 |
| Q1/2024 | Purchase of green electricity for German locations |
| Q2/2024 | Commitment to comply with ecodesign guidelines in product development processes |
| Q3/2024 | Publication of the 2023 Sustainability Report based on the GRI standard |
| Q4/2024 | Assessment of further economically, technically, and ecologically viable reuse/reprocessing/recycling projects |
| Q4/2024 | Launch of the “Eco-Screening” development service for the ecological assessment of project decisions |
| Q1/2025 | CO2 balancing by location: The CCF phased plan defines the rules for automatically generating a balance sheet for key Scope 3 categories. |
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| Q1/2025 | Publication of a report on the 2024 Supply Chain Due Diligence Act |
| Q1/2025 | CO2 balancing for the PCF product—a concept for automated generation has been developed |
| Q2/2025 | Publication of the 2024 Sustainability Report based on the GRI standard |
| Q1/2026 | Reduction of CO2 emissions by > 80% for German sites (Scope 1/2)* *based on the 2022 baseline year; excluding adjustments |
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| Q2/2026 | Non-financial report in accordance with the CSRD (EU law) for the 2025 reporting year |
| Q2/2027 | Reporting under the European Supply Chain Act (CS3D) |
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Environment, economy, social issues, and quality
The support frame for sustainable business operations: To comprehensively optimize our processes, we have defined several areas of focus. Within these areas, we evaluate our progress and identify new initiatives.
Ethics and Corporate Governance
The high quality of our products goes hand in hand with high ethical standards—ones that go beyond compliance with applicable regulations and human rights. Ethics and corporate governance are the embodiment of sustainable development. They reflect our company’s core values: freedom, reliability, and humanity.
Employees
Every SEW-EURODRIVE employee is important. People are the “drive” behind our company and the key to our lasting success. Our motto shapes our entire organizational culture.
Products and Services
The modular design principle of our products has been a key foundation of our success for many decades—it is a concept that, by its very nature, conserves operating resources and is therefore sustainable. Building on this principle, we are gradually adapting processes throughout the entire value chain to ensure that the use of energy and materials is as efficient and sustainable as possible—from the product development stage through to end-of-life disposal—in close collaboration with our customers and partners.
Manufacturing and Business Processes
The SEW-EURODRIVE modular design allows for the creation of customized drive systems, precisely tailored to the needs of each customer and industry. Therefore, there is no single, universal answer to the question of a drive’s carbon footprint; however, we have many measurable characteristic values that we use to track our emissions at specific locations and in specific markets, and based on this, we are already implementing appropriate measures.
Delivery Chains and Raw Materials
Think locally—act globally. We aim to source raw materials as close as possible to our facilities and locate our branches near our customers. Thanks to short transport routes, we limit CO₂ emissions and limit the need for packaging. “Glocalization”—the combination of globalization and localization—increases our flexibility and helps us avoid excessive dependence on individual countries or regions.