2020 Sustainability Report

57 Endingen site The photovoltaic array at the production facility in Endingen enabled us to generate some of the electricity required there ourselves, 56.1% in 2019 and 62% in 2020. That electricity was fed into the German electricity network. We investigated using the power we generated directly ourselves and this was found to be feasible. However, using it ourselves would only be economically viable with a new PV system. Further steps relating to this will be taken in 2021, along with a project to look at extending the photovoltaic array. The roof space for it is available on the new warehouse that was completed at the end of 2020 and was constructed in accordance with the latest sustainability standards. For example, a heating system based on gas-powered infrared radiant heaters was installed. These work by using radiant heat. The principle is the same as how solar radiation works, i.e. the rays heat the space, ideally in those areas where staff are working. Further energy savings are possible by having two tempera- ture zones. For example, the non-temperature-sensitive containers for separated waste are kept in the unheated cold room which measures 474 m 2 . The heated part of the warehouse covers a further 1183 m 2 . Because it is so big, all our existing external warehouse capacity, covering a total area of around 800 m 2 , could be moved to the Endingen site. This saves not only on rent but also on journeys that are bad for the environment. Ecology Bützberg site During this reporting period, the wood heating system at the Bützberg site was fitted with a fine particulate filter. The filter uses a textile material and is available almost 100% of the time. With the electrostatic filters that are often used, availability is reduced during heating up and cleaning phases so the flue gases are diverted through a bypass, unfiltered. The filter also includes an additional heat exchanger which increases the effectiveness of the heating by using the residual heat in the flue gas. If we look at the origins of our energy sources, with 47% from wood and 20% CO 2 -neutral electricity, two-thirds of our energy requirement is met from CO 2 -neutral sources. One third (heating oil and fuel) comes from fossil resources, but we offset their CO 2 emissions by working with the Fair Recycling Foundation. Like our fuel consumption, our CO 2 emissions from road transport have also fallen during the reporting period. However, at 81% these still constitute by far the majority of our CO 2 emissions. We would like to take action here and promote the use of electric vehicles. For lorries, there is still no technology available that is affordable and practical. However, for vehicles under 3.5 tons the situation is now different. There are various vehicles available on the market today that could meet many of our mobility needs. As a first step towards electric mobility, we need the infrastructure for charging the vehicles. We are sure that, once this infrastruc- ture is in place, some of our staff would also switch to e-mobility for their own vehicles. So, during the next reporting period, we aim to install 5-6 charging points for electric vehicles to create a situation where the consumption of fossil fuels can be reduced by supporting e-mobility, both directly by our company vehicles and also indirectly in the way that our employees travel to work. Emissions “ 100% of our CO 2 emissions are offset via the Fair Recycling project. ”

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