We’ll pass it on. Through
collaborative partnerships.
3.2 Innovation and co-operation
3.3 Social responsibility
We greatly value responsible corporate governance.
Today, we already enact corporate social responsibility beyond what is legally required of us while at the same time taking into consideration the needs of our stakeholders.
3.1 Sustainable corporate governance
Because a family business takes care of its team.
We work every day to achieve our goal. Our Code of Conduct guides our behavior in our day-to-day business. It ensures that we act responsibly and in compliance with the law, both within the company and in our dealings with business partners and other stakeholders.
In 2023, we celebrated a special anniversary: A family business 150 years in the making. A milestone that we celebrated accordingly with numerous events.
We know that we did not write this story all by ourselves. A family business that has been around for one and a half centuries does not come into being alone. It takes an extraordinary team and strong partners by its side. This is even more the case when working in the service sector as we do. Clocking up 150 years in business is not just a sign of success, but also evidence of a sustainable mindset.
In the year of our anniversary, there is one thing we wanted to do above all else: Give thanks! Thanks to our clients and partners, some of whom have been with us for decades, and with whom we were able to grow so successfully. Naturally, a huge thank you goes to our employees who give us their best every day. Without them, FIEGE would not have become what it is today – a genuine success story.
The significance of our company anniversary is underscored by these remarkable figures: 44 events, spanning 134 locations, and involving 12,000 employees. That’s the spirit.
The Büssing 8000, an articulated lorry showcasing FIEGE’s original livery, built in 1951 and lovingly restored.
We celebrated the trusted relationships with our partners and clients with a special programme. This included regional client events featuring inspiring speakers, engaging discussions and valuable networking opportunities.
Another highlight was the creation of our new image clip, “This is us”, which beautifully portrays our journey thus far. We were even happier to learn that the video was also very well received amongst professionals. We are proud that This is us was nominated for two prestigious accolades: the 56th Deutsche Wirtschaftsfilmpreis from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action as well as the HR Excellence Award.
As a family-owned business, we are committed to human rights and environmental stewardship.
We continually reflect on our actions to become better and more sustainable step by step. As part of this commitment, we have issued a Statement of Principles on Human Rights.
Every day, we diligently strive toward achieving our long-term objective: passing on a robust company to the next generation. Our Code of Conduct guides us in our daily business operations. It signifies that our actions, both internally and in our interactions with business partners and other stakeholders, are responsible and compliant with applicable laws.
Human Rights Principles
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Resolution 217 A (III)) of 10 December 1948
The Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact of 25 September 2015
The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work of 1 June 1998
The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals of 25 September 2015
The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights of June 2014
Outlook
For the first time, we are implementing a standardised procurement policy across the Group. This initiative aims to consolidate efforts for improved supplier management and, consequently, to support the implementation of our sustainability strategy.
In addition to general process updates, the policy will incorporate enhancements to sustainability aspects. This may involve including data on greenhouse gas emissions throughout a product’s lifecycle, assessing the recyclability of products and materials, and determining the proportion of recycled materials in a product.
Our objective is to optimise business unit structures to the point of improving our management system, while taking the individual requirements of the business units into consideration. Continuing with the roll-out of Eticor compliance solutions (formerly GEORG Compliance Software) will remain a strong focus and, with an eye to the future, is a declared goal for the whole FIEGE Group. As part of this, we will optimise the efficiency of our audit processes, improve data integrity, and meet compliance requirements.
Starting in 2024, we will introduce a Supplier Code of Conduct. It will outline our expectations in relation to the implementation of ethical, social and environmental standards, supply chain management and complaints procedures.
We will repeat the EU taxonomy analysis, this time by submitting to a voluntary audit carried out by an auditor. Furthermore, FIEGE will perform a FIT Gap Analysis in 2024 in preparation for its reporting obligations in line with the CSRD starting in 2026 for the 2025 financial year.
3.2 Innovation and co-operation
Because we constantly
revolutionise our sector.
Automation processes
At FIEGE, we employ modular automation solutions to precisely meet our clients’ requirements while also assisting our colleagues in their daily work routines. Additionally, we take a predictive risk approach to address the ongoing shortage of
skilled professionals.
Autostore
Autostore is an innovative and automated storage and order picking system based on a grid of stacked bins that are moved by robots.
The system offers many advantages for FIEGE and our clients, including more efficient order processing, increased warehouse capacity and improved cost efficiency.
Moreover, it reduces waste by requiring less packaging materials during restocking. Additionally, our electricity consumption is reduced because robots require neither light nor heat.
Packaging machine
A packaging machine is an automated system which customfits products into their packaging and seals them securely. The flexibility of these machines enables us to meet a variety of customer requirements and packaging formats.
Using custom-fit cardboard boxes reduces resource consumption and eliminates almost entirely the need for filler materials. We screen potential new clients to determine if the direct integration of these machines into their processes is both feasible and advantageous.
Through the implementation of this sustainable solution, we are already seeing promising results. As a testament to its success, the project, which commenced with a pilot in Q2 2023, has since been expanded further.
Creative approaches and new ideas are the key to greater sustainability.
Innovation is one of our five strategic pillars and plays an important role in
securing our competitiveness,
backing long-term economic growth
and creating new jobs.
To achieve this, we cooperate with our value-chain stakeholders in sustainably revolutionising not only ourselves, but the entire sector.
F-LOG Ventures and XPRESS Ventures are our units that specialise in venture capital funds and Company Building.
F-LOG Ventures uses smart money to fund start-ups offering logistical solutions, especially within Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Software as a Service (SaaS). A two-digit million figure is available for investing into this field.In 2019, we launched our own Company Builder with XPRESS Ventures.
Under this brand, we promote technology-driven ideas from within our own organisation as well as from outside founders. We then connect the network and our logistics know-how via scalable business models. We select potential start-ups and back them through financial support to benefit from opportunities that present themselves.
Outlook
Additional sustainability analyses on packaging machinery
We are planning to install additional packaging machines at our locations by calculating the corresponding added value for our client’s business
For the future, we are planning to focus our investments on startups that integrate ESG components
3.3 Social responsibility
Because we want to give back.
To us, social responsibility means working with municipalities, residents, initiatives, and associations to ensure that our business activities contribute to creating a safe and liveable environment in our region.
Josef Fiege Stiftung
Since 1998, we have funded charitable organisations as part of our corporate social responsibility.
Outlook
Implementation of the FIEGE Volunteer Award 2024
Corporate volunteering campaigns with our colleagues
Encourage employee volunteerism and support projects
Additional relevant topics
Digital ethics
Even in the digital realm, we continually strive for our work to be safe and ethically correct. As for digital ethics, it is important to us to develop standards and guidelines on how to use Big Data systems as well as Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Supply chain transparency
We want to know: Where, how, and who offers and produces the products or services that we buy? Transparency in supply chain management helps us and our clients to avoid negative impacts on the environment and human rights violations and to promote a sustainable development. The FIEGE Group has been consistently implementing the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) since the beginning of 2023.
Reliable Partnerships
Our goal is to establish transparency as a fundamental value within our partnerships. We want to give clients, partners and all stakeholders a clear insight into our sustainable actions.
FIEGE Sustainability Report 2023
Detailed information, figures and content on all fields of action can be found in the full Sustainability Report 2023.
