Nowy Styl
Quality and Environment Policy
The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy was adopted by the resolution of the management board of Nowy Styl sp. z o.o. of 1/12/2023 and shall be effective as of 1/12/2023. This Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy replaced the Policy for Integrated Quality, Environment, and Workplace Safety Management dated 10 March 2022. © Copyright 2023 Nowy Styl Sp. z o.o. Publications of Nowy Styl Sp. z o.o. Brands and trademarks used herein are the property of NSG TM Sp. z o.o.
The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy (hereinafter referred to as the Policy)
In its operations, Nowy Styl strives to be effective, efficient and friendly. These principles are part of our mission, which is:
We help people arrange their offices and other public facilities. We do it with passion and consideration of environmental issues. We try to make every office customised to the users’ needs as regards health and comfort. Our solutions make work pleasant and more effective and cater to ergonomic and aesthetic needs. Our priority is to make every office serve its users. To fulfil our mission, remain competitive, increase the trust we enjoy among our clients, and ensure business continuity, we focus on achieving goals consistent with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We guarantee continuous growth of our company by expanding our operations to international markets and by reinforcing our local and global responsibility. Due to the ever-increasing requirements of our clients and the markets we operate in, we keep improving our processes and products, as regards both quality and environmental impact. We look into the future and try to exceed our targets, striving to achieve higher standards than those required by the law. This Policy is binding on Nowy Styl sp. z o.o. with the seat in Krosno (hereinafter: Nowy Styl or the Organization). This document sets out the main directions of the measures our Organization takes to ensure quality and protect the environment.
The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy
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Our commitment Our products are used every day by thousands of people in more than 100 countries in the world. We supply not only chairs and desks but also complex solutions for specific office spaces and public facilities. We offer end-to-end service and support and cater to the ever-increasing expectations of our clients. Large scale entails considerable responsibility. That’s why when designing our products, we focus on the health and comfort of their prospective users. We keep improving the functionality of our solutions as well as their durability and ergonomic characteristics. To ensure top quality, we assess 100% of our products for their impact on human health and safety. We test the furniture in our own research centre in Poland, and certified third-party research units in Poland and abroad. To ensure the highest possible quality of our production processes, we keep investing in new technologies and IT solutions, and we implement standardization and preventive measures to reduce the risk of errors. We also ensure complete identification and, where necessary, full process traceability. We have implemented the Internal Production Control based on the EN 1090-1 and EN 1090-2 norms, and we guarantee full traceability for both materials and finished products. As a company, we are fully aware of our impact on the environment. That’s why in our everyday work we identify, monitor and try to minimise potential adverse effects of our operations throughout the entire life cycle of our products. This analysis has become a starting point for the implementation of the eco-design management system, based on the ISO 14006 norm. Within the eco-design project, we have defined and parametrized the environmental criteria for our products, based on the mandatory legislation and leading European certifications for office furniture. This is how we can assess the environmental impact of our products throughout their entire life cycle, from the design phase to material procurement, production process, transport, use and disposal.
1. Climate change mitigation/ Climate change adaptation Nowy Styl realises the need to limit CO2 emissions by making decarbonisation one of the strategic goals in its business strategy. Measures aimed at reducing CO2 emissions are supported by the implemented carbon footprint management system, in line with the requirements defined in the ISO 14064-1 norm and the GHG Protocol. The effectiveness of these measures was confirmed by the CO2 Performance Ladder certificate. Our goal, as defined in the management system, is to reduce CO2 emissions in 2025 by 30% when compared to 2018 for our ranges 1 and 2 (pertaining to the ratio of CO2 emissions to the company revenue). In 2025, we are planning to include range 3 in the carbon footprint reporting. We are already working on the preparation of the next stage – the “Net zero emissions” transformation. We take steps to reduce our carbon footprint by half by 2030, and to arrive at zero emissions by 2050. Efficient energy use has long been part of our environmental policy. We keep modernising and expanding our machinery and improving the technology to ensure more efficient energy use. We invest funds in the expansion and modernisation of the existing infrastructure to make it more energy-efficient, so that it’s resilient in the event of immediate and long-term effects of climate change. Our goal is to minimise the use of energy from non-renewable sources. We keep increasing the share of renewable energy in our energy mix. Each year we purchase green energy packages (minimum 30% a year).
We consider this impact in all of the aspects mentioned below, in line with the environmental goals listed in the Regulation of the European Parliament and Council (EU) 2020/852 (the EU Taxonomy).
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The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy
2. Sustainable use and protection of water and marine resources Water is the most precious resource on Earth. That’s why we try to manage it responsibly. When managing water consumption and preventing any uncontrolled losses, we are supported by our automatic utility monitoring system.
3. Transition to a circular economy We can see that natural resources are less readily available with every passing year, that’s why we try to optimise the use of materials in our production processes, by adjusting the cutting process and obtaining precise equipment, to minimise waste.
Wherever it’s possible, we strive to improve the water efficiency of our processes by implementing a closed water circuit and reuse scheme.
Additionally, we strive to increase the share of recycled materials (pre-and post-consumer recycled materials) and those obtained from sustainable sources. We obtain detailed information on the content of the materials from our suppliers.
We monitor, reduce and dispose of the wastewater from the production processes. We have our own sewage treatment plants and on-site laboratories, which test the quality of water before it’s released. In this respect, we operate in accordance with the obtained Water Law permits.
We have already implemented and want to introduce more solutions in line with the idea of circular economy. This means we not only use recycled materials, but we also intend for our products to be further recycled. To this end, we put relevant labelling and make the products easy to dismantle. We focus on creating durable products, easy to repair and renovate, with a very long lifetime. We also provide spare parts – original or equivalent – for at least 5 years after the production of a specific solution is discontinued. We are working on introducing a business model fully based on the principles of circular economy. We try to minimise the amount of waste generated by our packaging. That’s why we keep introducing improvements to eliminate palettes, cardboard and single-use plastic. At Nowy Styl, we strive to reduce the amount of packaging in our internal transport: we introduce various types of reusable and returnable packaging. When we transport products to our clients, we use carts and BDF systems, which means we significantly reduce the number of palette trucks and the overall amount of packaging. We try to introduce solutions to minimise production waste. In doing so, we are trying to reclaim 100% of the waste to be recycled or reused in the production process, to avoid storing excessive waste on dumping grounds.
The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy
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4. Pollution prevention and control
5. Protection and restoration of biodiversity and ecosystems.
In our processes, we try to prevent or, where that is not practicable, reduce pollutant emissions into air, water or land. Wherever there are any emissions, we follow the relevant environmental permits we have obtained.
With the view to preserving all the elements of biodiversity in their natural habitats and preventing illegal deforestation, we ensure that the wood and wood-based materials we use are compliant with Regulation (EU) no. 995/2010 („Timber Regulation”). Additionally, we take steps to gradually and significantly increase the share of wood from forests engaged in sustainable forestry management - FSC® (FSC®-C120977) and PEFC certified. Each year we keep increasing the portfolio of FSC®-certified products, which is an additional guarantee that the wood used to make these items is obtained from sustainable forests. This is the so-called chain of custody system.
It is very important for us to manage the chemicals we use in our products and production processes, to minimise the threat they pose to the employees, users and the environment. That’s why we try to reduce the amount of chemicals, especially those that are harmful, or to replace them with more human-friendly and low-impact substances. Any issues related to the disposal and use of chemicals, from planning their purchase to delivery, transport, storage, evidencing, training, application in a production process, emergency handling, to disposal of waste and leftover packaging, are managed through relevant internal procedures. Since we have implemented eco-design, we define and implement the criteria stipulated for the chemicals, components and materials, and for finished products, as regards their origin, safety and emissions. To this end, we comply with the requirements defined in the Regulations: 1907/2006 (REACH), 1272/2008 (CLP) and 2019/1021 (Pops), and the 2011/65/UE (RoHs) Directive for electrical components. Considering the harmful effect of formaldehyde emissions, our furniture board, plywood and other wood-based products used in chairs and other furniture do not exceed 50% of the standard emission accepted by the European Union, i.e. Emission Class E1 (our formaldehyde emissions for these materials have been reduced by half). We keep expanding the range of upholstery and foams with the Oeko Tex Standard 100 certificate. Our portfolio is constantly expanded to include more certified products, to confirm that we comply with the highest standards for emissions and chemical safety.
While we take care to protect biodiversity and avoid hazardous substances, we also increase the portfolio of upholstery options by adding those with EU Ecolabel, which confirms that the product meets rigorous environmental criteria.
Constant improvement In practice, the implementation of this Policy is supported by certified management systems, based on the requirements stipulated in the following norms and standards: ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 14006, FSC®, EN 1090-1, EN 1090-2, ISO 3834-2. We commit to engage fully in the implementation and functioning of the systems by ensuring the resources necessary to maintain and improve them. We comply with the mandatory legislation and fulfil our other duties, defined in the client agreements as well as product and system certifications. To guarantee the adequacy of the operating management systems and make sure they fit the objectives we have defined, we implement internal audits and voluntarily undergo thirdparty audits conducted by independent certification units. In the event of any irregularities, we implement remedial and preventive measures. To ensure continuous improvement, we analyse the risks and opportunities inherent in our processes and implement steps to mitigate the risks. We train our employees to raise their awareness of the impact on the environment and quality, including the focus on meeting the client’s requirements. We involve our employees in quality programmes and environmental initiatives, e.g. under the Suggested Improvements scheme.
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The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy
We promote pro-environmental attitudes and raise awareness among our business partners and suppliers in all of the abovementioned areas. The requirements defined for our suppliers are described in detail in the Nowy Styl Purchasing Policy. Compliance with these requirements is verified during periodical assessments and audits conducted at the suppliers’ facilities. Reporting and solving irregularities The channels for reporting irregularities and people responsible for addressing such reports are defined in the Nowy Styl Code of Ethics and Anti-Corruption Policy. The documents can be viewed at www.nowystyl.com in the tab titled Sustainability.
Due diligence Building an organizational culture focused on respecting the natural environment is a process we are involved in and we will continue with all the responsibility and due diligence appropriate for the entire value chain. At Nowy Styl, we believe that to ensure that the natural environment is respected, we must identify and monitor the major actual and potential adverse impact of our operations on the environment. This means we are engaged in actions to prevent, mitigate or repair this impact. Nowy Styl is going to publish information on the effectiveness of the implemented environmental solutions and the outcomes of these measures in the sustainability reports available at www.nowystyl.com.
The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy
Review and monitoring This Policy is subject to periodical review at least once a year, with regard to its adequacy. It is updated on a current basis to improve the environmental measures taken by Nowy Styl. This is to say that Nowy Styl retains the right to modify the Policy or any part thereof now or in the future. Communication This Policy is available at www.nowystyl.com in the tab titled Sustainability. The implementation of the Policy is supported by communication inside Nowy Styl and throughout our value chain. The information included in the Policy will be communicated and promoted e.g. during training sessions organized at Nowy Styl. This Policy will also be distributed and promoted among our business partners. Effective period The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy was adopted by the resolution of the management board of Nowy Styl sp. z o.o. of 01/12/2023 and shall be effective as of 01/12/2023. The Nowy Styl Quality and Environment Policy replaced the Policy for Integrated Quality, Environment, and Workplace Safety Management dated 10 March 2022.
Adam Krzanowski CEO & Co-founder
Rafał Chwast Vice President of the Board
Małgorzata Naparło Member of the Board
Paweł Smaś Member of the Board
EN_V01_2023
www.NowyStyl.com