Dear Stakeholders,
Thank you for continuing to be a part of our journey to better serve those who make the world. In 2023, we refreshed our priority impact goals to better align with our brand-led and market-driven business strategy, and I am pleased to report that those goals have taken root within our businesses.
Aligning Business Strategy and Our Impact Goals
Our strategy to drive long-term value for our stakeholders is based on creating a simplified and focused organization, investing in core growth and innovation to be a market leader, and delivering for our customers and shareholders. This strategy underpins our three impact pillars of People, Product and Planet, which guide our focus and initiatives for sustainable performance.
Through simplification and prioritization, we have operationalized our goals in the business with a roadmap to achieve them. We submitted our updated emissions targets to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in 2023 for validation. And, we are encouraged by our continued leadership level status and recognition with CDP, receiving an A- for our 2023 submission.
Making Progress on Our Goals
We are already making progress on our new goals, which are intended to drive growth while reducing costs. Highlights from 2023 include:
- Grow the Trades: We invested $7.4 million into programs to grow the trades, providing pre-career or in-career training in disciplines such as mechanical, pipe, electrical and finishing trades, which we also expect will broaden our end-user engagement and brand ambassadorship.
- Operational Emissions: We have reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions in line with our science-based targets through sustainability-related capital investments in our facilities, including solar panels, upgraded HVAC and continued investment in our Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) facility, creating opportunities to increase our use of energy from sustainable power sources.
- Zero Waste to Landfill: We continue to certify new Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWTL) sites within our global network each year, which is also expected to reduce our disposal costs at several sites over time.
- Circular Design: Our circularity strategy is focused on increasing packaging recyclability by developing new sustainable designs and improving the sustainability attributes of legacy packaging, which has also led to productivity improvements.
In this report, we share additional examples that demonstrate how we are advancing the sustainability of our products and operations while supporting end-user-driven solutions.
Addressing the Trade Skills Gap
We have also advanced our partnerships with organizations that train tradespeople – our end-users. The increase in demand for construction workers – driven by investments in infrastructure, an increased need for housing and a shortage of tradespeople – is creating a significant influx of opportunities for individuals coming into the skilled trades. Against this backdrop, we are proud of our commitments to initiatives designed to provide both new and experienced workers with the necessary training, products and solutions they need to succeed in the industry.
I am particularly pleased that, through initiatives across the Company, we are providing resources to bring underserved populations into the construction and industrial economy, partnering with end-users, customers, suppliers, industry associations, governments and nonprofits to achieve this goal. By collaborating with these organizations, we believe we are creating value not only for these local communities but also for industries that remain labor-constrained and for our businesses and shareholders.
As a valued shareholder, you have the opportunity to help us greatly enhance our efforts as we evolve and grow. We welcome your interest and engagement as we navigate to a better-shared future through sustainable business practices, innovation leadership and best-in-class solutions.
Don Allan, Jr.
President & Chief Executive Officer