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SOLUTIONS 28We want to put our “Adding value“ strategy into practicehere, along with the aim to facilitate and promote sustainablepractices.Water treatment is one of Brenntag’s main industries. Wesupport our business partners in improving water qualityand promoting renaturation thanks to our wide-rangingproduct portfolio, one-to-one consultancy, an extensive rangeof services, an excellent network and our highly qualifiedemployees. As a result, we are able to create real addedvalue.Brenntag also supplies chemicals to purification plants.Sustainability is a multifaceted, important topic of the future.It constantly requires new answers to rapidly changingrequirements.In the previous chapters entitled “Strategy”, “Processes” and“People”, we showed the different ways in which we areaddressing the complex issue of sustainability.In our last chapter, we will also look ahead to address ourresponsibility to future generations by showing our dedicationfor the protection and maintenance of the environment.Water treatment in particular is a major topic for Brenntag.Water, the source of all life, is of prime importance and keepingit clean is vital around the world. In the past few years,there has been a resurgence in environmental awareness.The demand for environmentally produced and sustainableproducts has continued unabated. This is catered for by theGreen Product Line, which was launched in Europe in 2012.This way, we help support our customers in the manufactureof “green” products.The sale of the NOx-reducing agents Air1 and DEF is anotherimportant step towards the consistent implementation ofour sustainability strategy as is the area of chemical leasing,which is described in more detail later in this chapter. Ourfourth chapter is entitled “Solutions”. For us, this chapter isabout much more than just taking stock of what we haveachieved so far. Instead, we see it as a challenge to takealternative paths. After all, looking for solutions meansfinding answers.Water treatment –naturally sustainableWater is one of our most precious resources, and its treatmentand purification plays a major role worldwide. Froman economic and environmental point of view, sustainabilityis more important now than ever when it comes to water.Water treatment is a topic of global relevance facing localchallenges. As a result of the constantly changing statementsand regulations with regard to water quality, the demandfor innovative water-conditioning product solutionscontinues to rise.The field of water treatment is divided into several areas,with the two biggest being wastewater and sludge treatment,and the provision of clean drinking water. Wastewatertreatment involves purifying wastewater from industrialand municipal sources so that it can be reused. Anotherbranch of this industry is the treatment of sewage sludge,which is formed as a result of the residues from the mechanicaland biological purification of wastewater during thetreatment process.We offer our local and municipal customers a wide rangeof products and provide advice on all topics relating to watertreatment. To this end, our water treatment colleaguesdiscuss the product in detail with the customer so that thecustomer obtains a process- and cost-optimised version.We are faced with the challenge of eliminating pollutionand the unsustainable use of water resources while simultaneouslyincreasing efficiency and maintaining quality. Weare happy to take on this challenge in cooperation with ourbusiness partners in order to protect water as an essentialresource.Green –the colour of the futureSustainability and environmental protection play a significantrole in our society and within companies. For manyyears, we have been supporting our customers with a widerangingproduct portfolio and extensive expertise in thedevelopment and manufacture of environmentally friendlyproducts – with increasing emphasis on ecological sustain-
SOLUTIONS 29ability and standards establishment. In this way, we enableour customers to achieve their environmental targets.In 2010, Brenntag conducted a market analysis of sustainabilityand green chemistry in Europe, which indicated a“green” trend in all areas and industries. With our GreenProduct Line, we offer environmentally friendly solutionsacross Europe and a range of products that meets therequirements of green chemistry. Brenntag is not contentto merely follow this trend, but wishes to set new standardsin green chemistry. The campaign kicked off on EuropeanGreen Day – 16 January 2012 – when all employees in contactwith business partners were given an internal flyer tofamiliarise them with the Green Product Line and plannedactivities.Definition – how we understand green chemistryTo us, “green chemistry” refers to chemical products andprocesses that serve to reduce or avoid the effects of environmentalpollution. Although there is as yet no global,industry-wide definition of the term “green”, to us “green”simply means environmentally friendly.The US Environmental Protection Agency has developed 12principles of green chemistry. For our service and productrange, we have chosen to focus on the top five. As such, atleast one of these five basic principles has to be fulfilled forour products so that they can be included in the EuropeanGreen Product Line. The majority of our products fulfilbetween three and five of our basic principles.Five Principles of Green Chemistry1. Use of renewable feedstocks2. Safer solvents and auxiliaries3. Less hazardous chemical syntheses4. Design for biodegradation5. Design for energy efficiencyGreen Product Line – achieving green goals togetherThe demand for green solutions is continuing to increase– something that has been influencing the development ofnew products across all industries for years. Based on ourmarket analysis, we decided to concentrate initially on thefour industries in Europe in which this trend manifests itselfmost strongly.Cleaning, water treatment, coatings and construction, andpersonal care are areas in which both customers and endconsumers are increasingly looking for natural and environmentallyfriendly products. The demand for green productsin these segments has risen rapidly in recent years. For ex-ample, the field of natural and organic cosmetics has grownintensively given that more and more consumers are demandingnatural ingredients because they are gentler tothe skin. The topic of sustainability plays a major role in thearea of personal care.The natural cosmetics market has developed from a nichesegment into a mainstream market. People associate naturalcosmetics with health and well-being. Our range of naturaland sustainable raw materials helps our customers to developgreen products to fulfil their customers’ requirements.AdBlue®/DEF –effectively reducing emissionsIn recent decades, the amount of traffic on the roads hasincreased significantly around the world. In turn, this hasled to an increase in the levels of pollutants in the air.Vehicle emissions are considered one of the main contributorsto the greenhouse effect.Since we also transport large quantities of chemicals everyday in our HDVs, we want to make a contribution towardsreducing environmental pollution – something that we aredoing with the successful promotion of two NOx-reducingagents: AdBlue® and Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF).A tiny amount but mighty powerfulUntreated vehicle exhaust fumes contain nitrogen oxides(NOx), which have a significant effect on air pollution.The only way to prevent them from being emitted is tomake sure that they do not occur in the first place.The diesel engines of many HDVs are equipped with the selectivecatalytic reduction (SCR) system.The aim of this technology is to clean the diesel enginesreliably and to reduce their harmful emissions. This is donewith the use of AdBlue® and DEF. These two special NOxreducingagents are non-toxic, odourless and highly concentratedurea solutions that contribute to the reduction inNOx emissions.AdBlue®/DEF is sprayed via a nozzle into the exhaust streamat a precise, pre-defined quantity. This leads to a chemicalreaction within the SCR catalytic converter. First, AdBlue®/DEF is broken down (hydrolysed), which causes the harmfulnitrogen oxides to be converted into harmless nitrogen (N)and water (H 2O).Two names with one aimAdBlue® and DEF are specifically used to reduce nitrogenoxide emissions. They have the same effect but are used ondifferent continents.AdBlue® is successfully marketed by Brenntag throughoutparts of Europe and starting in Asia-Pacific, while DEF is
Page 1: ADDINGVALUESustainability Report Br
Page 4 and 5: CONTENTSCEO Letter 06Strategy 09Com
Page 6: 06strict corporate governance guide
Page 9: STRATEGYIntroductionCompany profile
Page 12 and 13: STRATEGY 12The HSE strategy - safet
Page 14 and 15: KapitelinformationenResponsible bus
Page 16 and 17: PROCESSES 16Sustainable processes a
Page 18 and 19: PROCESSES 18Outstanding: Marianne L
Page 20 and 21: KapitelinformationenSuccess depends
Page 22 and 23: PEOPLE 22We are well aware of the f
Page 24 and 25: PEOPLE 24The individual components
Page 26 and 27: KapitelinformationenNo matter how y
Page 30 and 31: SOLUTIONS 30prevalent on the North
Page 32 and 33: ANNEX 32GRIReportedLocationIndicato
Page 35 and 36: Brenntag AGStinnes-Platz 145472 Mü

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