Working sustainably
At uvex, we want to realise our vision of protecting people in a sustainable way. As a manufacturer with a high in-house production rate, we consider the environmental impact of all of our processes and can influence most aspects of the value creation chain. We use this influence to reach our sustainability goals in terms of ecology, economy, working conditions and human rights, employees and society, and product. In uvex plants, we’ve implemented almost 300 measures and projects to improve our sustainability performance.
Our sustainability targets
- Internationalisation of business areas
- Growth of the market position in the USA
- Expansion and modernisation of uvex's own production facilities
- Various digitalisation initiatives to safeguard the future of the uvex group
- Reduction in energy consumption amounting to 6.5% in relation to energy metrics (based on financial year 2016/17) by the end of financial year 2019/20 as part of measures linked to DIN EN ISO 50001
- Secure supply of carbon-neutral energy and gas for energy procurement
- Alternatives to energy-intensive production processes
- Optimisation of production processes
- Ongoing supplier monitoring by way of audits to ensure total compliance with social standards
- Expansion of the uvex group’s employer brand: recruit and retain employees over the long term - particularly for target groups that are hard to fill, increase recognition of the uvex group and improve its image, motivate and retain internal employees, project younger image of the uvex group as an employer
- Further development of digital tools such as e-learning
- Increased use of social media for the purposes of recruiting and retaining employees
- Rainer Winter Foundation's work to be continued by the family business over the long term
Michael Winter, Managing Partner uvex group
"protecting people is our mission. protecting planet is the natural continuation of this mission when it comes to treating people, society and nature responsibly. With protecting planet, we have created a label that offers maximum transparency and information about our sustainability activities: from resource-saving products and innovative measures in our factories through to social commitment and social projects."
Sustainable protection of people and environment
Protecting people also means taking responsibility for the environment - and we take this responsibility very seriously by voluntarily exceeding statutory requirements for environmental protection. We place high value on continuity and the responsible use and deployment of social, environmental and economic resources – to protect our environment, society, and the health of our customers.
Sustainability standards and certifications
An overview of the standards that the uvex safety group complies with and the certifications that we hold.
protecting planet
Under the motto ‘protecting planet’, uvex has developed a range of particularly environmentally friendly products. The protecting planet label can be found on products and their packaging to emphasise uvex’s commitment to areas of sustainability and raise awareness of environmentally friendly and socially responsible business practices.
Established sustainability at uvex
- For uvex, long-term sustainability measures that are widely rolled out are a matter of course
- 98.4% of the group’s electricity consumption has come from 100% renewable sources since 2014
- Our earplug production process is waterless and virtually CO2-neutral
- Our safety shoe production department is certified in line with ISO-14001; this is the first area of our company to obtain this certification
- Compensation of CO2 emissions caused by gas combustion is at 97.3% of gas consumption since 2016
- All “made in uvex”products are produced at a European site (max. 1000 km radius from the company headquarters in Fuerth)
- Product packaging and outer packaging are mainly made of waste paper, and work is being done according to a standard strategy for sustainable packaging
For a number of years, uvex has followed its own social code, implemented a prohibited substances list and applied a comprehensive quality management system:
Download the brochure
- Binding social standard for all suppliers – based on globally recognised standards such as those of the ILO or SA8000
- 85 regularly audited core suppliers
- Consistent implementation of defined measures across the world by trained uvex employees more than 10,000 hazardous substances checks carried out each year along the entire value creation chain
- Systems that surpass legal requirements
- 80 employees dedicated to ensuring that all products are of optimum quality
- 11 locations across the world with DIN-ISO-9001 certification
Sustainable packaging
Our uvex pheos clear safety spectacles are available in a fully recyclable paper box with paper compartment inlays, with the product packaging removed and a reduced number of user instruction leaflets (made out of recycled paper). Contact us for more information
Sustainability facts (based on approx. 100,000 pieces)
- Fully recyclable paper box with paper compartment inlays
- 100,000 pieces of plastic product packaging removed
- -200kg of plastic waste (-100%)
- 20,000 pieces of paper packaging removed
- -226.3kg of paper waste
- Reduced user instructions -30% and made out of thinner and recycled paper =0.7t reduction of paper waste
