Areas of Operation: Procurement
This department includes all business activities that involve the cost-effective procurement of the needed quantity of materials, machines or services in the necessary quality for production and sales. Procurement has a close relationship to the action field of commodities and raw materials procurement.
Fields of action
Fields of action in can be identified and set by analysing where a company’s activities have a either direct or indirect influence on biodiversity. The spatial relation to biological diversity is intuitively connected to the sites and facilities field of action. Corporate activities influence biodiversity in other ways though as well.
Sites and Facilities
Approaches:
Building construction, purchase and management
Goals:
Cost reduction through reduced building maintenance
Product Design
Approaches:
Effect of design on procurement decisions
Goals:
Increase in the number of possible suppliers through the substitution of scarce resources
Personnel
Approaches:
Further training for employees in procurement
Goals:
Prevention of public protests over biodiversity damaging procurement policy by more cautious employee actions
Supply chains, commodities and materials
Approaches:
Supply of materials and services
Goals:
Long-term security of raw materials supply Reduction of procurement costs through new materials Long-term relationships with suppliers
Best Practice Examples: Axel Springer - Green supply chain management
As part of its supply chain management programme, Axel Springer, a German publisher, uses ecological criteria to select its suppliers. For paper manufacturers, the criteria specify that they:
- must not harvest more wood than can be grown again,
- must use the forest in a way that does not endanger animal and plant species,
- should, as a timber buyer, conduct eco-monitoring,
- should provide the necessary ecological expertise (for example, for forestry workers),
- respect the native population (for example, the Sami),
- should instruct the public about ecological progress and problems.
Axel Springer AG
Best Practice Examples: Sekisui House Ltd. – Indigenous plants for humans and animals
Sekisui House Ltd. promotes the “Gohon no ki” gardening concept, which is designed to help maintain ecosystems by planting indigenous trees to attract local wildlife. Planting trees not only improves the aesthetics of the property, but it attracts wild birds and butterflies - creating a small ecosystem. This supports a network for interacting with the surrounding natural environment and has a positive effect on the quality of life for the local residents.
SEKISUI HOUSE, Ltd.
Best Practice Examples: UPM, the Otto Group and Axel Springer – From the forest to printing products
An example of such a sustainable supply chain management policy is the cooperation between the Otto Group, Axel Springer, and UPM, a forestry company. This allows wood to be traced back from the finished printing product to the forest the wood came from. Company Profile: UPM, Otto Group, Axel Springer
Additional information about Supply chains, commodities and materials
Production and manufacturing processes
Approaches:
Energy supply
Goals:
Reduction in production costs through the subsidies for ecological production methods
Additional information about Production and manufacturing processes
Transport and Logistics
Approaches:
Product storage
Goals:
Reducing storage costs through just-in-time procurement
