Howdens is a growing business. Sustainable behaviour will help us continue to grow in a way that preserves our culture, supports our business model, mitigates our risks, and addresses the needs of our stakeholders.
Part of our culture
We describe the Howdens culture as being ‘worthwhile for all concerned’ and ‘creating the conditions that allow everyone to succeed’. That means that our business needs to be worthwhile for our staff, our customers, our suppliers, the environment, and the communities we work in.
Supporting our business model
Sustainable behaviour also gives us a competitive advantage. Lowest cost production in our dedicated UK factories leads naturally to minimising waste, energy, and raw materials. Our mission statement aim of ‘no-call-back quality’ means that we need to produce and source product which is durable and safe.
Being trusted partners to our suppliers and customers means that our relationships need to be worthwhile for all parties concerned over the long-term.
We have over 850 depots in the UK and Europe. Each one of them relies on strong local relationships to trade profitably, so we need to be a good neighbour in each of those communities.
Mitigating our risks
Sustainable behaviour helps us to address some of our principal risks. For example, we invest in keeping our people safe, developing their skills, and offering them a great place to work. We do this because it’s the right thing to do, but it also mitigates our ‘Health & Safety’ and ‘Loss of key personnel’ risks.
Developing and maintaining sustainable supplier relationships mitigates our ‘Interruption to Continuity of supply’ risk. Energy efficient, safe and durable product mitigates our ‘Product design relevance’ risk.
A sustainable product offering,
responsibly manufactured or sourced,
that meets the needs of the builder and
the end-consumer
Maintaining and building on our culture
of being worthwhile for all concerned.
Continuing to grow a sustainable
business that appeals to current and
future stakeholders.
An agile and resilient business,
proactively managing ESG risks, with
transparent high-quality stakeholder
reporting.
Represented by:
Maintain zero waste to
landfill in manufacturing and
distribution. Zero waste to
landfill in depots over time,
with target of less than 5% by
end of 2022.
Achieve carbon neutral
manufacturing by the
end of 2021 and
maintain that status as
the business grows.
Maintain international
safety standard ISO 45001
in our manufacturing and
distribution operations.
Achieve ISO45001 in our
depot network.
Progressive, phased
implementation of high quality
reporting.
Underpinned by:
Keeping our 12,000
employees safe and
well. Supporting
their growth, offering
them great rewards
for success, and
opportunities to grow
with us.
Certified raw materials
from sustainable
sources. Responsible
purchasing, working
with our international
network of over
250 main suppliers.
Efficient distribution.
Continuous research
and evolution of
our products and
packaging. Refining our
efficient manufacturing
processes and working
with our suppliers on
bought-in product.
Reducing waste,
lowering emissions,
working with The
Carbon Trust to
achieve continuing
improvements.
Being a responsible
member of over 850
local communities
in the UK and
internationally.
Supporting a range
of local and national
charities.