Building on strong sustainability foundations

Two years ago, we carried out our largest-ever sustainability stakeholder dialogue, in which some 600 people inside and outside ABB gave their views on where we needed to improve performance and where we should increase focus.

Having evaluated the input, we have been working hard to prepare ABB for the years ahead. Among other things, this means strengthening the knowledge and skills of our employees, developing robust objectives and improving communications.

We are building on strong foundations and are confident we can reach the aims set under our sustainability strategy. These include being seen as a world leader in sustainability in the years to come.

What is already clear is that sustainability issues and considerations increasingly impact our business and operations. Whether it is ABB’s role in capitalizing on global megatrends or our customers’ needs for increasingly energy-efficient products, systems and solutions – sustainability requirements are helping to set the agenda.

In addition to what we offer customers, we are taking further steps to save energy and cut emissions in our own manufacturing processes and at our sites, and to ensure robust processes in our business to meet health and safety, security, environmental and social challenges.

We are improving steadily on many fronts. But as our health and safety record in 2012 shows there is still some way to go, and – amid growing instability in different parts of the world – we continue to face a variety of security, environmental and social challenges.

We know that all these issues, and the way we manage them, can have a potentially positive or negative impact on our business and on our relationships with key stakeholders such as customers, investors, suppliers and the communities where we operate. In other words, intelligently integrating how we manage sustainability issues with day-to-day business must be at the heart of how we operate.

ABB started its sustainability journey nearly 20 years ago when we published the first report on our environmental impacts; in recent years, we have expanded the scope and depth of reporting which reflects both the growing importance and value of sustainability in the corporate world, and our confidence in our own performance.

We intend to drive forward on sustainability issues. We have a strong sense of purpose and we are excited to see how our efforts benefit our business and our stakeholders in the future.

Joe Hogan
CEO
ABB Ltd.