Publication of the third H.Essers sustainability report: a clear overview of our sustainability ambitions and achievements
Even in these times of turbulent markets and economic challenges, we still strongly believe in our 2020-2025 strategy, which is absolutely sustainable. So where do we stand exactly? What are the goals we have set and what have we achieved in the past year? Read all about it in our third sustainability report, which was recently published. Yannick Dylst, Project Manager Sustainability, is happy to tell you more about it.
In this externally validated sustainability report, we offer our customers, partners and other stakeholders clear and transparent insights into the sustainable course we are navigating. “In the previous reports, our business already focused on the UN SDGs and 19 sustainability ambitions we derived from them,” explains Yannick. “In this third report, we continue to build on those same values. We are indeed publishing this third report about six months earlier than the previous editions. In this way, the publication more closely follows the reporting year and that means that, especially when it comes to projects, it is easier for us to define what we have accomplished. It is also more topical. In addition, we chose to describe completed projects a little less extensively and to zoom in on the progress we are making.”
Investing in people
Are we on track to put our sustainability strategy 2020-2025 into practice? “I think so,” says Yannick. “This strategy is supported by an increasing number of people. That is how we create momentum. In recent years, our employees have become true sustainability ambassadors. Through training and inspiration sessions, we really take them on board in our strategy and invite them to share good ideas. They, in turn, further promote our vision towards our customers. At the same time, we are also noticing an increased demand for more sustainable solutions from our customers in various sectors, which creates an interesting interaction that allows us to really make a difference in our industry.”
Company in transition
What are some of the interesting highlights from the third report? Yannick can name quite a few. “Our continued investments in multimodal transport, such as the development of our rail port, Dry Port, Port of Limburg, the Markiezaat container terminal and our long-distance rail connection to China. It is a good sign that we are a company in transition. In geographical terms, the strategic acquisitions of Meeus and Coral were very important. In the meantime, we also continue to be committed to our local anchoring with the construction of a chemical site in Lommel for an additional 150,000 m² of storage capacity. And in order to support our growth, we are always looking for new colleagues to join the team. In the report, you can read how we use different angles and an inclusive approach to attract new people. Of course, we also continue to look after the well-being of those who already work here. For example, we are expanding successful health projects such as Fit2Grow, while offering our employees extensive training opportunities to shape their own career paths as well.”
In the report, H.Essers takes a critical look at new ways of deploying people and technology to provide sustainable services. “We are looking to see if our existing infrastructure can be further optimised and we are considering ways in which vehicles can reduce their emissions outside their daily routes too. One such possibility would be electric cooling in waiting areas, which would make the trucks quieter while reducing emissions and being more friendly overall to both drivers and the surrounding environment. We will also look at the innovative concept of HVO-insetting, the use of a green biodiesel to reduce CO2 emissions from the logistics flow, and its potential for the future in combination with synchromodal networks.”
Customer-focused investing
A customer-oriented mindset should definitely be part of our strategy, Yannick ascertains. “Customer engagement is essential for strong service delivery,” he says. “That is why we ask our strategic customers about their experiences via the Net Promoter Score. The results are followed up in order to optimise our services. In the future, we want to use this survey even more broadly.”
“These are just some of our initiatives. Just check it out yourself and who knows, it may even provide inspiration for your team or company?”
Curious about the 2020-2025 strategy and our most recent sustainability report? Download it here!