Bekaert strives to be a loyal and responsible partner in the communities where we are active. We make a point of interacting with local governments in a transparent, constructive way, and we are firmly committed to complying with national legislations and collective labor agreements. Bekaert adheres to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the treaties and recommendations of the International Labor Organization.
Bekaert has production facilities and sales offices in 40 countries and builds lasting relationships with customers and suppliers, wherever we do business.
We work closely with customers and suppliers by engaging in co-development projects, by conducting feedback initiatives and satisfaction surveys, and by performing industry analyses together.
In 2015, Bekaert’s purchasing department stepped up its engagement to enhance sustainability awareness and control with our suppliers. We reached a global spent coverage of 75% in 2016 (1). We evolved to 80% coverage of our global wire rod spent through key supplier agreements (1). Key supplier agreements are multi-year partnerships in which sustainability, supply chain integration and innovation are explicit building blocks. In 2016, we kick-started the signing of these key supplier agreements in other categories too. Shared targets and action plans for 2017 were further worked out with key suppliers, enabling us all to drive sustainability forward across the supply chain.
(1)Excluding BBRG
Bekaert recognizes the importance of responsible sourcing, in 2016 all suppliers covered by the Conflict Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI) signed the Bekaert Supplier Code of Conduct and completed the most recent template issued by the CFSI. This is an initiative of the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) and the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSi), that help companies from a range of industries address conflict mineral issues in their supply chain.
We actively cooperate with global customers in sustainability programs. We support their sustainability programs by implementing specific actions in our respective policies and we joined sustainability initiatives and standards to accommodate specific customer requests.