AVK’s environmental efforts
AVK's purpose is to develop, manufacture and market products of high quality and with a long lifetime. Our products are parts of vital infrastructure including water supply, wastewater treatment and energy supply as well as a variety of other industrial applications that all together contribute to sustainable development, the health of people and a better environment.
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For AVK, sustainability and sound economics go hand-in-hand. Reducing water loss actively helps reduce electricity consumption and protects one of our most valuable resources, and at the same time it saves money. Our high-quality solutions minimize environmental impacts caused by excavation, repair or replacement. Thereby, our business foundation meets the requirements of social responsibility and environmental conscience.
Our contributions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals
UN SDG 6
Our valve solutions contribute to a reliable, durable, and stable water management and help reducing water loss and energy consumption. AVK products are also applied in processes that aim to ensure responsible wastewater handling to avoid risk to the environment and health as well as in processes that exploit the use of energy in wastewater.
UN SDG 9
All three business units of AVK contribute to this goal as we design and produce innovative products, some of which are used in recycling initiatives and processes or for energy, water and infrastructure solutions.
UN SDG 17
We co-operate with partners across industries, governments, authorities, the civil community and the academic world. In recent years, we have had a particular focus on partnerships within the water industry and subsequently within the area of SDG 6.
International standard for environmental management
AVK complies with the internationally accepted ISO 14001 standard, which provides a foundation for eco-management in companies. We work continuously to fulfil local environmental standards and minimise our environmental impacts in terms of processes and materials.
We are proud of having obtained several other certifications as well. It demonstrates our reliability as global leaders when it comes to creating solutions considering the environmental impact:
- ISO 9001 – Quality management
- ISO 29001 – Quality management in the oil & gas industry
- ISO 14001 – Environmental management
- ISO 50001 – Energy Management
- ISO 45001 – Occupational health and safety management
EcoVadis sustainability rating
EcoVadis have rated more than 130,000 companies across the world, and we are proud that our efforts have earned us a spot among the top 15% of all rated companies. We will continuously focus on contributing to a more sustainable future. Read more about AVK’s efforts and goals in our sustainability report.
EcoVadis performs business sustainability ratings based on a number of CSR related indicators within the themes environment, labor & human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement. The methodology is built on international sustainability standards, and the rating evaluates how well a company has integrated the principles of sustainability and CSR into their business and management system. Performance is rated by assessing company policies, actions and results as well as by inputs from third-party and external stakeholders.
Documenting our environmental impact
Our first Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) have been published and are available for download at our websites. GWP (Global Warming Potential) values are stated on the datasheets of products covered by the EPD. Our goal is to offer EPDs for our entire product range.
In addition, we have prepared a GHG (Greenhouse Gas) baseline report to be used as internal basis and reference for continuous improvements in our processes.
Environmental efforts in the AVK Group
At the AVK Advanced Castings foundry, supplying the AVK Group with castings for valves and hydrants and other metal castings, we use the innovative lost foam method. This method allows for an improvement in performance, since it does not require finishing of the castings and, consequently, it reduces energy consumption and the amount of particle emissions into the atmosphere. In addition, the production of a large amount of our castings is based on recycled scrap iron.The AVK Group has strict requirements and standards for energy and water consumption its production companies must meet. Consequently, all companies make great efforts to reduce consumption wherever they can. Also, it is our objective that we always dispose of discarded materials in an environmentally sound way, and that all our production companies in the long-term meet the requirement of zero waste to landfill.
