We consistently avoid waste! Whether it’s consumables, energy or natural resources, we monitor the resource consumption and CO2 emissions of our processes and continuously optimise them wherever we can. We want to address increasing demands in a resource-efficient way.
We’re mindful of environmental concerns
As we go about our work, we keep a constant eye on environmental aspects and rectify any non-compliant practices as quickly as possible. We do this all the time, not just as part of our regular audits.
We expect the same high standards from our suppliers
We expect our suppliers and preferred partners to produce their goods in an environmentally friendly way. They must demonstrate that they have appropriate and effective management systems in place.
We have a long tradition of sustainability
Here at Debrunner Koenig Group, we have been focusing on sustainability, fostering partnership-based relationships with our employees, customers and suppliers, and optimising processes for over 265 years.
We are saving energy
Energy efficiency is an essential part of what we do. We implement energy-saving measures where possible and are increasingly using renewable energy sources.
We’re already carbon-neutral
Avoiding and reducing emissions is clearly our top priority. We have set ourselves ambitious climate targets with that in mind. However, despite the technology currently available for reducing emissions or even removing them from the atmosphere again, we are not yet in a position to completely avoid emissions. That’s why we’ve been fully offsetting all CO2 emissions from Scope 1 and 2 since the beginning of 2022. In cooperation with German non-profit organisation atmosfair, we run an offsetting service to support high-quality and certified Gold Standard renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, thus demonstrably compensating for the climate gases that would otherwise have been produced.
We’re stepping up our efforts to reduce our ecological footprint by focusing on environmentally friendly transport solutions—like combining rail and road freight. Currently, over 40,000 tonnes of steel arrive at our site by rail directly from the factory every year. Since November 2024, we’ve gone even further in integrating rail into our supply chain by adding 48 swap bodies to our fleet. Now, we can cut out 1,000 lorry kilometres a day, swapping them for rail journeys instead— a step that’s really moving the needle in our CO2 emissions.
We’re installing EV charging stations at our locations
The demand for electric vehicles is still rising rapidly. Although the public charging network is also growing, it is at a much slower rate. To help speed up the changeover to CO2-free and therefore sustainable mobility, we are working with swisscharge.ch AG in an effort to expand the charging network for electric vehicles. That’s why we’re busy installing charging points at our locations – and it’s not just for our employees, but the general public as well. EV charging stations are already up and running at some of our locations, as well as at our headquarters in St. Gallen.
We're switching to green mobility
We are continuing to extend our network of recharging stations. At the same time, we added the first electric cars to our fleet in December 2023. St Gallen and Berne are leading the way, and the other regions will follow one by one. Our employees are excited about driving green and making a commitment to sustainability.
Under the Nexigen® brand, we offer transparent, CO₂-reduced solutions in the area of materials, operations and logistics that help our customers build sustainable supply chains. With Nexigen®, we support our partners in accelerating their green transformation and making their progress in sustainability visible.
Your benefits
We have addressed this issue by developing a general definition. It is based on customer demand, steel producer perspectives, steel production technology routes and the GHG Protocol* as the most widely used greenhouse gas accounting standard.
We are also convinced that apart from the complete elimination of CO2 emissions, even reducing them substantially adds value along the way to green transformation. That is why the categorisation defined by our parent company includes several CO2 reduction levels.
* The GHG Protocol (Greenhouse Gas Protocol) is a private transnational greenhouse gas accounting standard
We differentiate between five categories of CO2-reduced products, based on the product’s actual carbon footprint from resource extraction and production to when it finally leaves our warehouse. They range from START to PRIME.
We work together with customers and suppliers to create closed loops and more sustainable supply chains to contribute to building a circular economy.
For existing closed loops, we collect scrap generated during the processing of our products and send it off for steel recycling. Thanks to its durability and low maintenance, steel is one of the most preferred materials the world over, be it for construction, the automotive industry or shipbuilding.
Steel can be recycled ad infinitum without impairing its quality.
The excellent material properties of steel and its recycling options reinforce our firm belief that steel is not the problem, but part of the solution.
