Compliance

Trust and integrity are crucial elements of a modern corporate culture. A company which is to stand its ground in the market and grow in a sustainable manner, depends on the trust of its working environment, its customers and suppliers, its workforce, both locally and globally. With this in mind, we have made a commitment in our Code of Conduct, which describes the implementation and application of our corporate principles in everyday business situations.

Our globally applicable Code of Conduct allows us to protect our employees, our company, as well as our customers and partners. Preventive and control measures, including dual control principle and regular audits, aim to support our web-based compliance system. In addition to this, a mandatory Compliance training programme is in place for our employees.

The Compliance System is supplemented by a whistleblowing system. Employees have the ability to report any behaviour that violates laws or regulations at any time. This is because we want to be sure that the principles and rules of our company are observed by all employees at all times. With our whistleblowing system, all employees can draw attention to ethical misconduct and possible violations, for example fraud, corruption, undue influence, harassment and discrimination, or environmental damage. The reports are treated as strictly confidential as long as there is no obligation to pass on the information to an authority. In addition, sanctions by the employer are excluded.

Since responsible behaviour and lawful conduct are important to us beyond our company boundaries, we have also implemented a Code of Conduct for suppliers. Compliance with legal regulations, transparency and fair competition are key elements of our day-to-day business. As such, we place high demands on ourselves, but also on our suppliers when it comes to fair competition, combating corruption, data protection, environmental protection, occupational safety, avoiding conflicts of interest and safeguarding assets and information.

In a rapidly changing environment, we are continually testing our Compliance System, in order to align our rules and processes with new legal and technical developments.

Further information on compliance in procurement can be found here. The certificates for our sites can be found here.