Two companies – one goal
Today, economic success is based increasingly on business responsibility as well. Headquartered in Bielefeld, the Schüco Group shows how this can work. The reputed manufacturer of windows, doors and facade systems would like to make a contribution to the preservation of natural resources in the future for the sake of upcoming generations. Important strategies in this are at the same time recycling and the protection of resources – two fields in which REMONDIS is providing support on a sustained basis.
A brand for people with high expectations
It is taken for granted that anyone who outfits their home with new building elements will attend to design, comfort, security and safety. In addition, criteria relating to sustainability are playing an increasing role. After all, one wants to have a feeling that one has made a responsible decision that does not undermine climate and environmental protection. For many customers, products from the Schüco brand are the first choice in this context. The sophisticated window, door and facade systems of the Bielefeld enterprise are used by millions of people throughout the work and meet the most stringent demands.
Innovation, partnership, excellence and responsibility are the key factors in Schüco‘s success in the market.
Schüco is among the technology and service leaders in the sector and is at the same time considered to be a pioneer in sustainability. Whether it be aluminium, plastic or steel: All products are designed to be long-life, recyclable, save on resources and protect the climate. Several Schüco product systems are already C2C-certified. They are thus in line with the cradle-to-cradle (C2C) principle, according to which products are developed in such a manner so that their materials can be returned to the closed-loop cycle completely and without losing any quality as materials.
Schüco‘s head offices in Bielefeld. The company employs 4,750 staff members and operates in more than 80 countries.
Optimisations for more recycling
With regard to environmental management, Schüco pursues lofty aims while striving for continuous improvement. REMONDIS has at the same time been an important partner since the beginning of the year. Regional Enterprise West renders services for the entire Schüco Group on behalf of Schüco International KG. Four product sites in Germany are involved along with all the materials that accumulate there – from scrap metal to hazardous waste, whereby in addition to the operative handling the focus is above all on joint optimisation.
Solid foundations to tackle any and all assignments
For Schüco, the arguments in favour of a partnership with REMONDIS were above all the high level of recycling competence as well as the fact that the company can also process hazardous materials. In addition, it all had to be executed from a central point, as Schüco is interested in creating new structures: environmental tasks that have been performed at different sites in the past are now to be carried out at the head offices of the company. In terms of operative implementation, on the other hand, the key factor was spatial proximity. REMONDIS was able to excel in this regard with its tightly meshed network of sites: right from the outset, three of the Schüco plants involved were at a location where REMONDIS also has a branch office. A fourth site is only located a few kilometres from a REMONDIS operation. On top of this, both Schüco and REMONDIS are members of the AUF initiative, an internal system in the construction industry for the return of aluminium scrap.
Input for the Sustainability Report
In the service package, REMONDIS is also assuming numerous tasks in the fields of documentation, reporting and monitoring. The collections of data that are being produced in this context can also make a contribution to Schüco‘s Sustainability Report. The report, which is issued on a regular basis, draws up a balance sheet on the company‘s commitment to sustainability and is compiled on the basis of the particularly exacting international guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
360 degree sustainability: Schüco covers the entire life-cycle of a construction project with its activities.
The new activities that have been commenced are intensifying a partnership that has already been in existence for some time. Thus REMONDIS already developed a concept with suggestions for optimisation for Schüco‘s internal waste-economy operations two years ago. Moreover, the two enterprises have been working together for around ten years in the field of aluminate. Here REMONDIS takes on sodium hydroxide with aluminium, utilising a complex recycling process to make premium-grade ALUMIN® out of it – a versatile brand product that is used in municipal and industrial sewage treatment.
Image credits: image 1, 2: © Schüco
