• Systems supplier awarded 71 of 100 possible points 
• Significant improvements in all assessed categories 
• KHS aiming for net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 

Sustainability achievements officially recognized: in the internationally influential EcoVadis rating system, KHS has earned the coveted gold status for the very first time. Compared to the last audit from 2022, the Dortmund systems supplier to the beverage and liquid food industries has improved by 12 points to 71 out of a possible total of 100. According to EcoVadis, KHS has made significant progress in all assessed categories. 

Since 2012 KHS has taken part in the annual audit run by the internationally recognized certification platform for sustainability achievements. To date, EcoVadis has awarded the Dortmund systems provider with seven silver and two bronze accolades. “With our first gold medal EcoVadis has honored the KHS Group’s ever-growing commitment and certified our well-functioning system of sustainability management,” says Kai Acker, CEO of KHS GmbH. “The much-improved rating result is a clear manifestation of the continuous steps we’ve been taking in this field for many years now. We’ll be continuing to consistently pursue this policy with the aim of reaching net zero by 2045.” 

The allocation of this higher award is all the more noteworthy considering that since the signing of the European Green Deal in December 2019 and thus the growing significance of the rating in the context of ESG¹, EcoVadis has considerably broadened its assessment criteria. Furthermore, the French company also toughened up its scoring system as of January 1, 2023.  

KHS convincing in sector comparison 

EcoVadis assesses the sustainability achievements of companies based on the four central criteria of environment, ethics, sustainable procurement and labor law, and human rights. In all areas, KHS has made considerable improvements over the previous year. The manufacturer’s largest gain was in the sustainable procurement category, where it went up 20 points on the scoring system. KHS also bettered last year’s results by ten respective points in the environment, labor law, and human rights and ethics sections. “Through various targeted measures we’ve been able to prove that we turn important requirements into processes, thus making these fixed parameters in a system of practiced sustainability,” says Acker. 

According to the EcoVadis rating, KHS is among the top 2 percent of general machinery manufacturers. In the environment and sustainable procurement categories, in particular, the Dortmund turnkey supplier is way above average for the industry. Our positive rating sends an important signal to our customers and helps us to provide a credible response to the growing interest in sustainability assessments from the financial market. Our sustainability achievements demonstrate that we’re a reliable, future-proof partner,” Acker emphasizes. 

EcoVadis: internationally recognized sustainability certificates 

EcoVadis is one of the world’s key platforms for the assessment of corporate sustainability achievements. The company was founded in Paris back in 2007. It aims to provide interested parties from various sectors and markets with a reliable summary of the quality of management systems and the associated risk management setup of companies in the supply chain. The EcoVadis database currently contains more than 115,000 assessed companies from 175 countries and 200 different sectors. 

1 “ESG” stands for the three sustainability-related areas of responsibility within a company: environment, social, and governance.