Sustainable lighting
Today, tomorrow and in future
Sustainability is more than just a buzzword for us
As a company, we see ourselves as part of a larger whole to which we are committed – now, and for a future worth living. Climate protection has always been a focus of our work, both because our products can make a significant contribution to improving our customers' climate balances and also because we are continuously reducing our emissions, for example through the use of sustainable energy sources, or climate-conscious Group strategies for business travel and mobility management. Social responsibility is just as important to us as ecological responsibility, which is why we have anchored sustainability as a fundamental principle of our actions across all organisational levels.
Sustainability Report
We have a single objective: to make all of our locations CO2-neutral by 2030 at the latest. To achieve this we rely on sound, transparent and comparable data – so we know our current status and what we still have to achieve. We have created this data base in the production of our first sustainability report. As an integral part of this, we have aligned our approach and work to the international standards of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and the GRI, and have taken environment, social and ethical aspects of sustainability into account using an ESG framework. We welcome your support as we strive towards climate neutrality. In our sustainability report you can read about our achievements so far, and more importantly, about what we will be doing to become increasingly sustainable, year on year, from now on.
Product Development
XAL stands for innovation – and aspects of sustainability are always taken into account. This is a tradition: In the 2000s, we recognised earlier than many others that LEDs as a long-lasting and energy-efficient technology would be the future of the lighting industry. Then as now, we are continuously working on improving our products even further – whether in terms of durability, efficiency, the carbon footprint, or also with regard to the replaceability and reusability of components and materials. Our innovations in sensor-controlled lighting also help our customers save energy.
"Our product innovations aim to provide the best lighting solution for every application with optimised energy efficiency and longevity."
Christian Kügerl, Head of Product Development
Environmental Product Declarations
We create Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) to provide a comprehensive perspective over the entire life cycle of our products. Covering input raw materials, production, packaging, transport and use of products by our customers, right up to recycling at the end of their useful life, we give a transparent evaluation of the environmental impact, in accordance with ISO 14025 and EN 15804. By using meaningful data for the environmental footprint of our products, we create the basis for consciously making environmental decisions.
Production & Logistics
Our production and logistics processes are continuously optimised to reduce the impact on the environment as much as possible. Thus, our transport packaging is manufactured in-house from recyclable material to minimise the transport volume and the amount of filling material. Our powder-coating plant is powered by an environmentally friendly wood chip heating system and feeds the residual heat of the coated products to a use in the process, thereby reducing the consumption of resources. It goes without saying that our production halls are illuminated with energy-efficient LEDs.
"We are constantly optimising our production and logistics processes - in the process, we recognise how beneficial efficient business practices are to the sustainability of our work."
Martin Dlaska, COO
Climate Initiatives
We believe that our actions and our products' life cycle must be traceable and transparent, which makes an orientation towards clear standards essential. Accordingly, we are ISO 14001 environmental management standard certified, in addition to ISO 9001. We also rely on independent providers to evaluate our corporate social responsibility: Ecovadis regularly assesses our corporate social responsibility holistically and based on objective criteria with a focus on the environment, labour and human rights, ethics, and responsible procurement.
Energy & Mobility
The areas of energy and mobility usually have a strong influence on a company's CO2 emissions, which is why XAL has been working for years to fully exploit this savings potential. Climate-conscious business travel management and holding meetings virtually were priorities for us even before the pandemic. Converting our vehicle fleet to e-mobility in 2021 was an important project. Our sites are partially supplied with energy from sustainable sources. We are also planning to install photovoltaic systems to further reduce our emissions from energy consumption.
"We know how important an objective and transparent evaluation of measures is, which is why we align our sustainability strategy with internationally recognised standards. Yet our goal is to go beyond that and set our own benchmarks to effect real change."
Michael Engel, Managing Director
UN Global Compact
In 2019 we joined the UN Global Compact initiative whose principles guide our interactions with each other and our communities, our supply chain management, and our resource strategies. In addition, we work with external experts to determine our corporate carbon footprint and will make many more environmental product declarations available from 2022.
Any questions?
If you would like to learn more about our sustainability measures and are interested in the climate neutrality of our products, then please contact us.
