Environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) practices continue to be priorities for global leaders. Emerson and RS Group have recently released ESG reports, detailing their commitments to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction and energy transition, as well as corporate diversity, education and innovation. Emerson released its 2022 ESG Report, which focuses on the company’s efforts to solve sustainability and decarbonization challenges and help its customers makes the same transition. RS Group released its ESG Report for 2022/23, which focuses on efforts to plan for the company’s 2030 ESG action plan.
Emerson commits to energy transition
Emerson’s long-term environmental goals include net zero GHG emissions by 2030, net zero throughout its value chain (suppliers and customers) by 2045 and 100% renewable electricity sourcing by 2030. So far, Emerson has reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 42% since 2018, surpassing its original 20% reduction target six years early. Emerson has also reduced Scope 3 emissions by 1.1% since 2021, and Emerson locations have procured 30% of its electricity from renewable sources. (Scope 1 emissions are direct GHG emissions that occur from sources that are controlled or owned by an organization. Scope 2 emissions are indirect GHG emissions associated with the purchase of electricity, steam, heat or cooling. Scope 3 emissions are not produced by the company itself, but by those that it works with up and down the value chain.)
“To achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, countries worldwide are striving to halve their greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by 2050. Recent scientific reports indicate that while the curve of global greenhouse gas emissions is starting to bend, it is not happening quickly enough. The world is making progress in certain areas of the economy, but there is still much work to be done. This is why it’s important to accelerate the deployment of clean technologies and support continued innovation,” the report said. “We believe that leveraging the impact of Emerson’s broad automation capabilities can help bring about a net zero future. Emerson is committed to serving as a technology enabler in the world’s low carbon transition, with our biggest positive environmental and climate contributions coming from the solutions and expertise we provide to our customers.”
The company estimates that approximately 70% of its revenue is tied to sustainability enabling technology.
Emerson’s social responsibility focuses on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives, employee engagement, workforce development and corporate philanthropy. The company has pledged that 40% of its leadership to be women and 30% of its U.S. leadership to be minorities by 2030. Corporate governance measures are focused on supporting ESG with sustainability and technology-focused board committees and a focus on decreasing the recordable rate of injuries.
RS Group: For a Better World
The overall strategy, achievement and future actions for the RS Group are outlined in its ESG Report 2022/23. The report is based on the company’s ESG action plan, entitled “For a Better World,” which launched in November 2021. The plan has four global goals in the areas of advancing sustainability, championing education and innovation, empowering people and doing business in a responsible way.
RS Group has set a net zero emissions goal for its direct operations by 2030 and throughout the value chain by 2050. RS has reduced its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 58% since 2019/20, with progress made through distribution center energy efficiencies and renewable electricity. It has also reduced its Scope 3 transportation emissions intensity (or tonnes of emissions due to Scope 3 transport per tonne of product sold) by 28% since 2019/20, thereby achieving its 2029/30 goal seven years early. The company said this was possible through modal shifts from air to sea or air to road and optimizing its supply chain to source, store and ship more products locally.
RS is also making efforts to help its customers develop more sustainable products and solutions with the launch of its ‘Better World’ product range that are supported by trusted sustainability certifications. The initiative currently includes 20,000 products that make it easier for individuals and businesses to make more informed decisions about the sustainability and potential positive environmental impact of different products from RS’ suppliers and partners. RS is also aspiring to grow this range to 100,000 products globally by 2024/25.
The company plans to support workforce development by partnering with education providers, building skills and fostering innovative solutions with the goal of working with 1.5 million young engineers and innovators. RS Group has also made a commitment to work toward making 40% of the company’s leaders women and 25% ethnically diverse.
“ESG is absolutely core to our purpose and in how we operate as a business in conjunction with our employees, our suppliers and our customers,” said Andrea Barrett, VP of Social Responsibility and Sustainability at RS. “We see the release of our ‘For A Better World’ report as a key part of the process of transparency for the benefit of all our stakeholders as we state our position, our future and our hopes, and how we view our place and responsibilities not only in terms of the environment and society but also how we govern ourselves as an organization in a more sustainable manner.”
