Stala Responsibility 2021 ENG

Our journey towards a sustainable future

R E SPONSI BI L I T Y

Our journey towards a sustainable future We are on our way. We are not ready or perfect, but we are taking major steps towards a better future. We have ambitious objectives and the responsibility to achieve them. We are committed to human wellbeing, safety, nature, the common good and a sustainable future.

Tomorrow is what we make it — together.

From the CEO We exist because we want to create sustainable design that becomes a part of a person’s life. The core of our competence lies in the ability to combine stainless steel, Finnish design and an understanding of life. We design and manufacture high-quality products with a long life cycle.

For Stala, responsibility means that we operate according to the principles of sustainable development by respecting each other and nature. Our SISU values are visible in practice inthat we are outspoken and renewing.

Our certified management systems enable responsible leadership and risk management. We only select partners who have convinced us of their operations. We constantly develop our production methods and pursue an improved material efficiency.

Stala’s strategy is to be interesting, growing and profitable.

Renewing increases interest towards us and is best seen in our innovations, such as our StalaTex material.

The fact that our customers and partners trust us ensures the continuity of our business operations. We carefully listen to our customers’ wishes and maintain our high delivery reliability. We want to be the industry’s best partner who keeps its promises and makes collaboration easy.

Climate change is a serious matter, and we are committed to pursue a carbon-neutral future. Throughout the years, we have managed to reduce the amount of waste we create and the amount of water and energy we use. We have also worked on our packaging to make it greener. We are on our way, but we are reaching for something great. Our work has only began, but we are on a determined journey towards a sustainable future. By working together, we will succeed!

- Pasi Kallio

Stala’s journey to a more sustainable future Mailboxes from surplus steel Stala’s stainless steel mailboxes were created in the beginning of the 1980s as the company was trying to come up with a way to utilise the surplus steel created by kitchen sink holes.

1972 Stala’s journey begins in Lahti in 1972 Stala’s story is a story of Finnish design, functionality and quality. It began with a simple everyday need — kitchen worktop — that, throughout the years, grew into a business based on the idea of realising high-quality design in everything we do.

1980

1983

Stala creates EkoLine waste sorting systems for households The EkoLine waste sorting systems were developed as early as the 1980s to improve households’ possibility to sort waste in a more efficient manner.

Implementation of an environmental system Stala adopted an environmental system.

1986

1994

Lean philosophy implemented at Stala Stala adopted Lean tools with the primary objective of eliminating waste.

We recycle 100% of our waste Stala creates the new eco-friendly StalaTex method The chemical-free StalaTex production method uses only a small amount of energy and is a unique method of creating patterned stainless steel surfaces.

2016

2019

Environmentally awarded Stala won Skanska’s environmental idea competition in 2016 by renewing its kitchen sink packaging to make it more environmentally efficient.

2020 Stala launches new responsibility objectives Stala’s ambitious responsibility objectives are launched to manifest the company’s commitment.

We are committed to reducing the amount of waste we produce by 10% annually.

2035 2030 2021 Lahti selected as the European Green Capital 2021 We are proud to call ourselves a Lahti-based company and to be a part of a leading Finnish and European green city and pioneer in climate work.

Stala’s carbon neutral objective We are committed to being carbon neutral by 2035.

The journey started with a staggered CO2 survey in order to understand the impact our operations have on the atmosphere.

Four cornerstones of responsibility

Promotion of wellbeing

Efficient use of resources

• Taking care of our employees’ health • Treating people well • Safe work • Freedom of speech and assembly • Equality • Good leadership

• Reducing the environmental load • Possibilities of circular economy • Continuous improvement • Total quality, “right the first time around” • Development of production methods and reduction of created waste

Decreasing our carbon footprint

Responsible business operations

• Sustainable production methods and responsible material choices as the basis for new products and innovations • Transport • Energy solutions • Long product life cycle

• Our ethically strong business operations are framed by ethical guidelines • Environmental impact, business ethics and human wellbeing are taken into account in our delivery chain • Profitable business operations make it possible to employ workers • Paying taxes • Business models and innovations that support responsibility

Promotion of wellbeing Our committed and competent personnel is the single most important factor impacting our operations. As stated in our values, we treat each other equally and discuss things in an open manner.

We have a zero-tolerance policy for bullying and discrimination. All of our employees can express themselves and organise in the work community as they want to. We regularly examine our employee satisfaction, and our objective is that the total result remains above nine.

Our factory has invested particularly in occupational ergonomics and safety. Our goal is zero occupational accidents. We maintain health and strive to prevent sicknesses in collaboration with occupational healthcare. We also pay attention to these things in our partner network.

We collaborate with educational institutions by, for example, offering the chance to get familiar with the working life and partner with us for thesis and collaboration projects. We acquire services from industry specialists and research and test our products together with authorities.

”At Stala, we are one big family. If there’s something on your mind, you can always reach out to someone to unburden your mind. Titles do not restrict talking in any way, you are free to speak your mind based on your feelings. It’s good to live and be at Stala.”

Efficient use of resources Functioning processes and Lean principles form the core of our operations. Sustainably manufactured and responsible material choices and the development of production methods guide our actions in our own factory and in our partners’ operations. We strive to reduce our environmental load through continuous improvement and our philosophy of “getting it right the first time”. By developing production methods and reducing the amount of waste we create, we are able to use our resources in a more efficient manner.

We pay special attention to managing the product life cycle. The longer the operating life of a product is, the smaller the environmental impact. A good example of prolonging a product’s operating life is our StalaTex patterning method, which helps keep the product beautiful and usable for longer.

Detailed maintenance, installation and recycling instructions that come with the products are also publicly available on our website. Our technical support serves you in case of problems and assists in any accessory-related matters.

We strive to reduce our environmental load through continuous improvement and our philosophy of “getting it right the first time”.

Decreasing our carbon footprint Our stakeholders are increasingly interested in the carbon footprint of our products. We have started a staggered CO2 survey to understand the impact our operations have on the atmosphere. Our objective is to be carbon neutral by 2035.

Our personnel has always been interested in the promotion of recycling and the reduction of waste.

Stala has been using an environmental management system since 1994.

We strive to decrease the amount of waste our factory creates by 10% annually. The same goal also applies to the use of water and energy.

The main raw material of our Seven kitchen worktops, stainless steel, is almost 90% recycled.

Our objective is that by 2030, all material we use is 100% recyclable. All surplus stainless steel from our own production ends up as raw material for new steel.

Objective of carbon neutrality by 2035.

Objective of that by 2030, all material we use is 100% recyclable.

Responsible business operations Ethical principles are the cornerstone of our operations. We commit our employees and supply chains to follow them. Our functioning processes guarantee profitable business operations which ensures that we can invest in and develop our operations in an ecological and economic manner towards a sustainable future. We audit our suppliers and require that all of them commit to our Supplier Code of Conduct. Through this, we want to ensure human wellbeing in our supply chains. We have drafted our ethical guidelines based on the international ISO 26000 standard Guidance on Social Responsibility.

Ethical principles are the cornerstone of our operations.

We value openness, so we warmly welcome our customers to visit our factory where they can see and experience our operations for themselves. High delivery reliability, technical quality of our products as well as our friendly and fast customer service create a basis for long-term collaborations.

For us, responsible business operations signify profitable growth towards a sustainable future — ecologically, socially and economically. We have existed for nearly 50 years, and we want to continue developing the world in the future. We encourage our own employees and collaboration partners to develop new innovations and create business models that support responsibility.

We carry our responsibility for the creation of the future, from Lahti since 1972.

Read more about Stala’s responsibility www.stala.com/campaigns/responsibility

StalaOy

Stala Oy Yrittäjänkatu 4 15170 Lahti FINLAND

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+358 3 882 1133 sink.sales@stala.com stala.com

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StalaOy

Stala Oy