Deceuninck commits to reduce carbon emissions with science-based targets

Deceuninck has committed to ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse emissions through the corporate carbon reduction scheme, Science Based Targets (SBTi) This includes a commitment to cut the CO2 emissions from its own operations (Scope 1&2) by 60% by 2030 from a 2021 baseline. Allowing for future growth in real terms this means reducing CO2 per tonne of product produced by 75%. This goes significantly beyond the SBTi minimum target of 42%. 

It has also committed to cut emissions from within its supply chain (Scope 3 emissions) by 48% per tonne by 2030, as part of its wider journey to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Deceuninck’s carbon reduction roadmap includes plans to phase out the use of fossil fuels, a switch to renewable energy and increased electrification of process.

It has also invested more than €15million in one of the world’s most advanced recycling and compounding facilities to create the capacity to reprocess up to 45,000 tonnes of post-consumer and post-manufacturing PVC-U per year. In real terms this gives us the capacity to prevent more than three million windows from going to landfill annually.  Rob McGlennon, Managing Director, Deceuninck in the UK said: “This is an ambitious programme but absolutely the right thing to be doing. We know that our customers working in the commercial and specification sectors are already having to evidence the embodied carbon in the products that they supply but it’s no less important in retail as homeowners seek out sustainable products.This isn’t something that only systems companies need to be looking at. We all need to do our bit, that includes fabricators and installers, for the environment but also because sustainability is fast becoming a prerequisite for growth and profitability.”

Science-based targets provide a clearly-defined pathway for companies and financial institutions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, helping prevent the worst impacts of climate change and future-proof business growth. Targets are considered ‘science-based’ if they are in line with what the latest climate science deems necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement – limiting global warming to well-below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.

Bruno Humblet (CEO Deceuninck) said: “Responding to the SBTi’s call for corporate climate action illustrates our strong commitment to sustainability. The science-based targets provide a framework for us to evaluate every business decision from a climate mitigation point of view.  For years, we have been a pioneer in our sector because of our recycling facilities. Recycling will keep playing a key role in our carbon reduction roadmap because it implies less sourcing of raw materials. We want to lead by example in our industry and look forward to taking meaningful climate action jointly with our suppliers and other stakeholders.”