Towards sustainable procurement

“We are a global business and our activities have an effect on people, society and the environment,” says Frederik Pind, Chief Procurement Officer at Maersk Tankers. “We feel a great responsibility to work with our suppliers to continually find ways to make our supply chain more sustainable.”

Maersk Tankers uses suppliers from every corner of the globe, insisting they apply high international standards in labour rights, health, safety, environment and anti-corruption. “Human rights have long been at the top of our agenda and our procurement contracts increasingly reflect environmental principles to ensure a reduction in the supply chain’s carbon footprint,” says Pind.  

Working towards meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals requires collaboration with suppliers to for example reduce energy consumption and promote energy efficiency in the supply chain. This includes creating transparency to develop a strategy that directly targets the reduction of emissions.

One recent example of work in this area is that being undertaken by Ivonne Gonzalez, Procurement Compliance and Content Manager, and the Procurement team. They are looking at ways to reduce the carbon footprint of moving supplies from shore to vessel, cutting both the number of journeys and the wasteful packaging all too often used.

Currently, they are collaborating with one global warehousing and logistics company which supplies vessels with everything from consumables to crucial spare parts: “We are working to reduce CO2 emissions from when goods leave shore to when they are brought onboard vessels. This involves fixing targets to reduce CO2 emissions and setting up a reporting system to flag excessive packaging,” says Gonzalez. 

This partnership is one part of a wider effort to introduce sustainability principles into procurement contracts, setting an example for others to follow. “Through long-term, strategic and close collaboration, we can work with suppliers to incorporate sustainable practices into their operations,” says Gonzalez. “By doing so, we can have a multiplier effect on the shipping industry as a whole. It is hugely satisfying work because we can make a real impact.”