Our Environmental Commitment
Our commitment to the environment is at the core of everything we do. As a global innovation powerhouse, we recognize the responsibility we hold towards the environment, society, and future generations. With a legacy of innovation spanning decades, we are dedicated to pioneering solutions that empower progress while minimizing our environmental impact.
Qualification of Sustainable Products
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Component and Materials Business
Whose objective is to enable sustainable applications or enhance the overall system to mitigate climate
change, such as lowering CO2 emissions in aerospace. -
Equipment Business
Whose objective is to achieve more sustainable production.
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Tool Coatings
Whose objective is to improve customers’ production process from a sustainability perspective and thus contribute to responsible consumption and production.
At Oerlikon, we see combating climate change as similar to engaging in groundbreaking R&D. We have a defined the above criteria to categorize our products’ sustainability. The categories are: tool coatings, component and materials business and equipment business. These categories with corresponding criteria and classifications enable us to identify challenging areas and guide our investment in sustainability.
In 2022, we introduced an additional evaluation process for R&D initiatives involving two tiers of
evaluation. Based on these criteria for products and projects, 78% of our total R&D investment in 2023 was in sustainable products. We continue to collaborate with our customers on the delivery of solution upgrades that will strengthen our technology leadership. At the same time, we will work toward our 2030 R&D target, where 100% of our R&D spend (except for defense and oil & gas) is on sustainable products.
Environmental Sustainability in Operations
Oerlikon has long been dedicated to developing sustainable innovations and technologies, often in collaboration with external partners and customers. We recognize the need to apply those same principles of innovation to our own operational processes and systems and to reduce the impact of our business on the environment. Our overall strategy for reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions relies on optimizing efficiency on both small and larger scales. That can mean anything concerning infrastructure (from transitioning from diesel to electric forklifts to repurposing recovered heat from combined heat and power systems) and/or process optimization in operations (industrial/production processes).
