Trelleborg commits to sustainability by design - A defined strategy to integrating sustainability throughout its operations

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Trelleborg Marine and Infrastructure demonstrates its commitment to placing sustainability at the heart of everything it does, with ‘Sustainability by Design’ – a new clearly defined strategy to integrate sustainability at every level of the business unit. Guided by UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Trelleborg has made it its top priority to minimize its negative impact and maximize its positive impact on the planet and society.

 

Richard Hepworth, President of Trelleborg Marine and Infrastructure, says: “Climate change is a clear threat to the world. Scientists tell us that we will face its devastating impact if nothing is done to limit temperature increase to +1.5 oC by 2050. Today, with about 90% of world trade transported by sea, global shipping accounts for around 3% of the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving global warming. With increasing stakeholder expectations and regulations - such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Greenhouse Gas Strategy 2050 - the maritime industry finds itself at a pivotal point in the debate around sustainability. As the conversation continues to grow in both volume and reach, so do initiatives, such as the World Ports Sustainability Program, the Environmental Ship Index, and the UN’s 17 SDGs.

 

“Trelleborg’s new research report titled ‘Serious About Sustainability’, highlights a renewed and heightened focus on the environment and as a result, sustainability is climbing higher on the agenda of those across the maritime and infrastructure sector – and rightly so. Against this backdrop, we continue our sustainability journey with a renewed sense of purpose and focus, integrating sustainability at every level of the organization, underpinned by the belief that prioritizing sustainability above everything is the right thing to do.”

 

The five SDGs Trelleborg Marine and Infrastructure is being guided by are SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy, SDG 9: Industry Innovation and Infrastructure, SDG 13: Climate Action and SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. Trelleborg’s support of the SDGs spans three key focus areas. The areas include responsible supply chains – from sourcing to end-of-life, decarbonizing the maritime and infrastructure sector through the development of cleantech and engineering sustainability through premium product design.

 

Trelleborg believes that the benefits of its solutions stretch beyond functionality and business performance – they protect people and the environment, as well as infrastructure and other assets, helping its customers advance their sustainability goals.

 

Trelleborg supports decarbonization in the maritime industry by providing smart and technologically advanced solutions to improve safety, efficiency and sustainability. Its automated mooring solutions, AutoMoor and DynaMoor, help to optimize berth utilization and deliver superior efficiencies in port operations. The solutions significantly reduce the time to moor vessels and can minimize infrastructure investment to increase berthing capacity which in turn results in reduced carbon emissions. Trelleborg successfully completed the installation of its rope-free automated mooring system, AutoMoor, at the Port of Tallinn’s Old City Harbor, which is the largest harbor in Estonia and one of the busiest passenger harbors in the world. Several units of Trelleborg’s AutoMoor T40 Twin Arm systems were installed at the Old City Harbor’s Berth 13 cruise ferry wharf to facilitate faster berthing processes and improve safety levels within the port environment.

 

Hepworth, continues: “With the shifting global and ecological landscape impacting the environment, it is important now more than ever to keep up our commitment to designing sustainability into everything we do. We continue to contribute heavily towards green investments and new initiatives, both internal and external, to protect the essential via sustainability improvement. We believe that the only way to protect our environment and contribute to a better future is by all working together. At a Group level, Trelleborg’s goal is to achieve a 50% reduction in carbon emissions relative to sales by 2025 and realize our longer-term vision of being carbon neutral by 2035.”

 

Trelleborg’s commitment to engineering sustainability through premium product design has seen it further strengthen its position as a world leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance products and solutions. These products and solutions are critical to developing urban resilience to avoid human, social and economic losses. This includes applications such as immersed tunnels which aim to reduce congestion and emissions in cities, water infrastructure solutions that protect societies against rising sea levels, seals for offshore wind foundations and vibration isolation and structural support. As a global leader in sealing systems for immersed tunnels, Trelleborg will supply seals for the construction of the 18 kilometer long Fehmarnbelt immersed tunnel, a project that will deliver a green corridor between Denmark and Germany, to reduce travel time from one hour to just seven minutes and provide a reduction of approximately 200,000 tons of C02 per year. To support its commitment to building responsible, circular supply chains from outsourcing to end-of-life, Trelleborg is advancing its sales technologies, replacing materials in production with more environmentally friendly options, transitioning towards renewable packaging and renewable energy, and most importantly partnering with suppliers who are willing to advance sustainability practices.

 

Highlighting Trelleborg’s commitment to integrating sustainability at every level of the organization, it is launching a new sustainability hub comprising a video detailing how guided by the UN’s SDGs, the organization is making its customers’ operations more sustainable. Additionally, visitors to the hub can access ‘Serious About Sustainability’, Trelleborg’s research report which reveals where sustainability sits on the maritime sector’s priority list, the key business drivers for sustainability and what actions are having the most immediate impact.

 

To find out more about Trelleborg’s long-term commitment to enhancing sustainability by design, visit its new sustainability hub now