Built on Progress. Focused on the Future.
At Bakelite Synthetics, our 2030 goals are grounded in science, driven by innovation, and aligned with global sustainability frameworks. These goals reflect our commitment to environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and ethical governance.
- Reduce energy intensity by 10%, against a 2023 baseline.
- Reduce water intensity by 10%, against a 2023 baseline.
- Reduce waste disposal intensity by 10%, against a 2023 baseline.
- Reduce Occupational Injury and Illness Rate (OIIR) to 0.5.
- Implement a sustainability management system (SMS) to measure, manage and report our progress in sustainability.
Our Environmental Sustainability Progress
We are reducing our environmental footprint through:
ENERGY STAR® Partner since 2023.
Site-specific water scarcity assessments and pilot water mapping projects.
Continued publication of verified Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions.
We are designing safer, more sustainable products:
- Biorenewable Raw Materials
Our recent acquisition of Sestech, with its 100% bio-based adhesives, provides us even more opportunity to design products with biorenewable raw materials. - Enabling Energy Efficiency
Products like Bakelite Resi-BoostTM provide significant advantages in increased throughput, lower application rates, and energy savings while maintaining performance improving press times without any decrease in bond quality. - Reused and Recycled Content
We aim to reuse and recycle by-product streams wherever possible. Responsible production benefits both the environment and business, when the maximum value is extracted from every molecule.
We are advancing circularity through:
- Waste Reduction 10% reduction in disposal intensity by 2030
Focused efforts on reducing landfill waste and increasing recycling. - Product Lifecycle Management
Exploring closed-loop systems with customers on packaging. - Investing in adhesives which are 100% bio-based and designed to minimize environmental impact.
- Reused and Recycled Product Content
We are constantly seeking opportunities to reduce, eliminate, or recycle by-products. Responsible production benefits both the environment and business, when the maximum value is extracted from every molecule.
We are building a resilient, inclusive, and ethical organization:
- Associate Engagement
70% participation in the 2024 Associate Engagement Survey. - Governance & Ethics
Strengthened policy frameworks and launched Responsible Care® in the U.S. - People and Belonging
Launched the Bakelite Women’s Network and Employee Resource Groups (ERG) framework in 2023.
Our Sustainability Aspirations
We believe in continuous improvement and have a longstanding history of viewing our work with a critical lens and striving to get better every day. It’s simply part of our DNA. This mindset extends to sustainability, which is not just a strategy or initiative, but a core part of our identity and purpose. Our commitment to sustainability is reflected in various aspects of our operations.
2030 Goals and Metrics
2030 GOAL |
2023 BASELINE |
2024 PROGRESS |
IMPROVEMENT |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Reduce energy intensity by 10%
|
0.471
|
0.421
|
10.6% Reduction
|
|
Reduce water intensity by 10%
|
2.893
|
2.203
|
23.8% Reduction
|
|
Reduce waste intensity by 10%
|
0.0176
|
0.0163
|
7.3% Reduction
|
|
OIIR < 0.5
|
1.2
|
0.67
|
44% Reduction
|
|
Implement a Sustainability
Management System
|
– Scope 1-3 greenhouse gas inventories
– 2030 Goals and targets
– Annual Reporting
|
Centralized energy and water metrics
for all sites
|
Focus on Water
As the effects of water stress continue to be measured and felt in various geographies across the globe, we began using tools to help predict water stress at our sites. In 2024, our sites did their part, collectively reducing water intensity by 23.8% compared to our 2023 baseline. This proactive approach to understanding water at our sites has strengthened our long-term water resilience across multiple regions.
These efforts include:
- Rainwater collection and reuse
- Rate reductions
- Water recycling
At the Kitee, Finland site, these efforts resulted in the recycling of 550 MT of wastewater.
Focus on Energy
In 2024, we were proud to commission a steam turbine on our Botlek site in the Netherlands. Capturing steam generated naturally as part of the manufacturing process, the excess energy is transformed via the turbine into electricity that supplies up to 70% of the site’s energy needs.
2024 also saw the majority of work completed on our first two solar panel farm installations, at our Barry, UK and Lantaron, Spain sites. Commissioned in April 2025, solar energy is supplying ~20% of the site’s energy needs, with a corresponding reduction in Scope 2 carbon emissions.
Many small improvements across our plant sites led to an overall 10.6% reduction in energy for every metric ton of product produced.
Focus on Waste
Innovation in 2024 was driven by our workforce, resulting in a more than 7% reduction in waste intensity.
- The Concordia, Aregentina site found a way to recover and recycle 20 MT of catalyst
- The U.S. team saved 3 million pounds of molecule-rich by-product from going to waste by utilizing it in another site’s production process.
- R&D teams continue to find creative ways to reduce Bakelite’s reliance on virgin raw materials and provide products with reduced carbon footprint and superior performance.
