SUSTAINABILITY
REPORT 2020
Sustainability Report 2020
Table of Contents
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Introduction
002
Reporting Principles
002
Organisational Profile
002
Carbon Emissions
003
Regulatory Compliance
003
Operational Efficiencies & Improvements
004
Recycling and Energy
005
Production Waste
005
Key Environmental Performance
005
Energy Use
006
Emissions (GHG)
006
Transport & Logistics
006
Customer Engagement
007
Ongoing Assistance
007
New Policies
008
Quality Control
008
Training and Initiatives
008
Sustainability Report 2020
Introduction This document has been developed by Branded Group for all our key stakeholders, partners, contractors and customers. It documents are activities across sustainability for the 2019 - 2020 financial year (the reporting period) Our investment in processes and the development of an internal framework has allowed us to effectively manage and measure performance across all key deliverables and responsibilities for sustainable growth. Our dedication to key core principles and goals, has allowed us to continually to improve upon our social responsibilities during uncertain times and build upon our goal of becoming a leader in sustainable design and manufacture of retail point of sale.
This document includes; • Existing & newly developed operational policies and practices • Risk management processes and efficiencies • Internal controls and overall business management
Reporting Principles Branded Group is privately held business. Our reporting is been developed to our own standards that we deem appropriate in accordance with our commitment to ethical and moral practices associated with sustainable and environmentally conscious practices. We openly support and encourage transparency of communication to all our stakeholders, partners, contractors and customers of issues relating to the environment through our activities across the supply chain. Any questions relating to this report can be directed to Branded Design Pty Ltd.
Organisational Profile Branded Design Pty Ltd is a privately held company that operates across Australia. Our headquarters are located in Sydney, NSW, Australia. Branded Design Pty Ltd provides products and services to key retail and media customers throughout Australia. We manufacture in Australia and China. Branded Design Limited has 7 permanent employees and 20 sub-contractors and partners working across Australia and China.
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Sustainability Report 2020
Environment & Sustainability
Carbon Emissions With sustainability a core value within our business, Branded Group has worked to ensure our designs have a minimal carbon footprint. Prioritising local businesses enables us to minimise the costs associated with Australian carbon credit units. Branded Group strives to ensure its designs and displays minimise environmental and climatic risks that could potentially compromise its operation into the future. By actively encouraging innovative designs and collaborating with industry experts, we have worked to minimise our environmental impact within the two key areas;
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1.
Carbon Emissions within all stages of a project. 2. The environmental impact of projects at the end of life. Our cyclical review process enables us to continually improve upon our processes to mitigate and minimise the risk of goods ending up in landfill.
Regulatory Compliance Throughout the reporting period, Branded Group, its partners or subcontractors did not receive any fines or penalties associated with non-compliance of environmental laws or regulations under Australia law.
Sustainability Report 2020
Operational Efficiencies & Improvements In 2017, Branded Group made the decision to move its primary operations into a co-working environment. This change brought about several key improvements in environmental efficiencies.
Integration into sustainable
Interior spaces, offices, meeting
infrastructure offering green energy
rooms have been designed and built
and water provisions
using reclaimed and upcycled building materials from old sites.
Sensitive office waste recycling program offers all shredding waste to be recycled All lighting and fixtures within the space have been designed and developed with efficiency in mind, Complete on-site recycling program
running the latest low consumption
through commercial partners (Veolia)
LED lights
In 2019, Branded Group completed its transition from physical local servers to online based cloud servers by Google (G-Suite). This eliminated the need for physical servers, integrated networks, storage and power backup systems. The removal of all physical hardware created a remote working infrastructure and worker flexibility moving forward. All equipment was either sold or recycled through commercial partners such as Officeworks. With the introduction of the cloud based system and online design software, designers and clients are able to collaborate, feedback and review without the need for physical paper or models. This completely eliminates the need for paper, printers and ink. The covid pandemic resulted in a further evolution of our business. As a result, we invested in the latest compact mobile computing technology that gave employees the best efficiency when working remotely. As we continue to navigate a covid environment, our resolve to maintain our environmental conscience has strengthened. By enabling staff to work from home, we are minimising their carbon footprint by reducing the need for travel.
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Sustainability Report 2020
Recycling and Energy
Production Waste
Branded Group is committed to recycling, reusing and refurbishing assets and products wherever feasible. We have taken significant measures within our designs and with our clients to ensure that all products are manufactured from recycled materials as well as recycled at the end of life.
We currently engage with retailers and commercial partners to ensure that all waste material is recycled. As of last period 2020 Branded Group successfully recycled 100% of all waste production material.
We have worked to optimise the efficiency of our operations to ensure we continue to minimise environmental impact by ensuring all material being sourced is FSC certified. In 2020, we achieved our goal of recycling all temporary products produced from FSC paper and we will continue to further refine our processes to ensure this goal becomes a non-negotiable within our business. Branded Groups commitment to minimising our environmental footprint extends to our clients too. We have continued to work and engage with suppliers to achieve the same result regarding permanent and synthetic products. In addition, we actively promote the use of post-consumer options such as HDPE and PP.
This included ● Paper and Cardboard offcuts and scrap ● PS, HIPS. HDPE, PETG and PP offcuts and scrap ● PMMA & PC offcuts and scrap ● Steel Sheet & Aluminium offcuts and scrap material
All waste material is transported back to manufacturers where it is turned into new sheet product for commercial use. In 2020, Branded Group began actively sourcing synthetic materials that only come from recycled sources, avoiding virgin materials wherever possible.
Key Environmental Performance
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Type
2019
2020
2021
Total quantity of paper and board materials used in project (t)
108.5
94.5
85.9
Total quantity of plastic & metals materials used in project (t)
22.4
16.5
32.0
Total imported materials used in project (t)
14.5
6.2
5.4
Total energy consumption for period (KWhrs)
8622.07
6518.28
7242.54
Total cardboard waste material quantity recycled (t)
102.2
89.5
81.5
Total plastic & metal waste material quantity recycled (t)
1.1
0.8
1.8
Sustainability Report 2020
Energy Use Due to the global COVID crisis within the period of 2020, overall consumption within Branded Group dropped significantly. Branded Group have partnered with suppliers and manufacturers who have active programs that enable the reduction or completion of net zero targets of carbon emissions. We expect all our partners to adhere to the same high level of standards and uphold the same ethical values as we do.
The 'Blue Box' initiative developed by Branded Group further refined our shipping and distribution chain. This reduced the requirement for individual transport and distribution services. The 'Blue Box' initiative was compatible with current transport solutions across the merchandising network. The net result was a saving of approximately 13.50 metric tons of CO2e emissions for the period. We have continued to collaborate with customers to ensure our products are as sustainable as possible. This is extended to working with our clients to develop ways permanent fixtures can replace temporary campaigns that require constant transporting and printing.This has achieved savings of over 1.5 metric tons of CO2e emissions per annum.
Emissions (GHG) In the period 2020, Branded Group reported lower overall emissions compared to prior years. This was attributed to overall savings achieved across efficiencies with transport and distribution.
Transport & Logistics Further extending on our achievements in minimising energy use, we have actively sought out transport suppliers who share our vision for minimal or zero carbon emission standards While we cannot directly influence the type of use of vehicles and their emissions; we can assist our partners with how goods are delivered.We are able to advise our clients on the most efficient ways to packing and transporting their goods across all elements of the supply chain.
Type
2019
2020
2021
Sea Freight
3.6
0.6
0.3
Air Freight
12.02
10.01
4.41
Local Road
16.98
15.66
2.4
Local Air
4.67
2.89
1.84
Total
37.27
29.16
8.95
-
CO2e (Carbon Dioxide Equivalent) Includes Carbon Dioxide and all other greenhouse gases
-
All CO2e emissions for periods calculated in metric tonne (MT)
-
Includes all cargo handling
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Sustainability Report 2020
Customer Engagement Our focus on renewables, sustainability and efficiencies within store will continue to increase in line with our vision for the future. We have embarked on an innovative and dedicated approach to solutions that target key deliverables directly across all stages of projects; with particular focus on Production, Packing and Transportation. For the period of 2019 - 2020, Branded Group began actively engaging with raw material suppliers to ensure that all paper based materials were being sourced from FSC certified forests and mills. In late 2020 we began our investment into biodegradable materials as a result of research undertaken to better understand our customers and current market conditions. As a result, we have committed to only source materials that can be currently recycled by commercial partners within the retail industry within Australia. Since January 2020, Branded Group no longer offer or promote the use of plastic materials within packing materials or solutions. We now actively engage with customers to develop solutions that are completely paper based and recyclable while maintaining all key deliverables.
Ongoing Assistance Branded Group have actively engaged and assisted customers to develop sustainable solutions. This was further enhanced through a formal process that was developed to help customers understand the current environmental impacts and help plan a more sustainable future. We demonstrate to customers the benefits to the environment and how it can even have positive economical and financial impacts long term.
Conduct Major campaign pre-project reviews and implementation plans or recommendations
Analyse existing ranges of POS solutions and offer solutions with improved environmental benefits
Provide data that can then be summarised and reported to show how new solutions improve upon the old. <<< 007
Re-design and re-engineer current solutions to improve environmental impacts.
Work collaboratively with customers to monitor, track and improve environmental impacts to meet company sustainability goals.
Sustainability Report 2020
New Policies
Training and Initiatives
In H2 2022 Branded Group will introduced its One Tree program that encourages customers to invest and purchase sustainable products designed and developed to have a positive impact on the environment. As part of the program one tree is planted with every unit sold to offset all Carbon Dioxide emissions produced during manufacturing and distribution.
In late 2020, Branded Group undertook the decision to further expand our sustainable offering by creating Poscycle; a division encompassing all facets of sustainable environmental design. Our motto; ‘a better environment through innovative industrial design’ combines our collective professional experience within the industry to design and develop innovative sustainable solutions moving forward.
Quality Control Branded Group has undertaken steps in accreditation to ISO14001:2015 Environmental Management Systems in November 2021. We expect completion of this within the period of 2022.
Part of this expansion allowed staff to undergo training and assessment via online tools to better understand how environmental impact occurs within our industry and what can be done to future proof our processes. Branded Group intends to have all research completed in Q2 of 2021, with Poscycle fully established and a comprehensive sustainability report completed by the end of Q4 2021.
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+61 401 559 240 chriss@brandedgroup.com.au WWW.BRANDEDGROUP.COM.AU