The new Green is Orange.
At WALTER Surface Technologies, we strive to provide customers with the means to achieve greatness and to contribute to their success by helping them work better.
As the world grows more aware of health and environmental issues, conscious metalworking businesses aim to improve their processes and add new, cost-effective solutions that help minimize negative environmental & social impact.
WALTER meets the challenge of sustainability with environmentally safe, productive, and long-lasting products that outperform the competition while being less harmful and helping reduce energy consumption and waste. We also implement and regularly monitor internal initiatives to ensure we work more safely, responsibly, and sustainably.
We are in the process of setting new priorities and targets as we approach sustainability through the three ESG pillars:
 | ENVIRONMENT |
| We work on improving product design, reducing packaging and manufacturing waste, lowering GHG emissions and minimize long-term waste. | |
 | SOCIAL |
| We seek to increase and ensure the health and safety of our employees, support women in the industry, and deliver safe products and free safety trainings to clients. | |
 | GOVERNANCE |
| We strive to establish a responsible and sustainable company culture through various governance initiatives that put an extra emphasis on business ethics. |
E N V I R O N M E N T
Product Design
We work to deliver sustainable products that meet customer needs and goals with the least amount of impact on the environment such as through low-VOC or VOC-free chemicals. Through our partnerships with distributors, we strive to provide them with the tools to capture both new and crossover opportunities with end users looking for greener solutions. We also looking to minimize packaging, make it reusable or find recyclable alternatives to reduce waste.
Manufacturing Waste
We strive to reduce the amount of waste created during the manufacturing process. We ensure we minimize the use of hazardous materials by recycling resources and allocating them efficiently. For example, more than 80% of boxes received from our suppliers are re-used for shipments to customers.
Reducing GHG Emissions
We are initiating the collection of data on our SCOPE 1, 2 & 3 emissions with the goal of developing and implementing initiatives that help us move towards decarbonization and the reduction of GHG emissions. We will focus on larger impact operations first, like for example, consolidating our inbound and outbound shipments to deliver products responsibly, reduce costs, and help our customers meet their emission reduction goals.
Reduce Waste via Lifecycle Management
We ensure that we expand product life as much as possible such as through our after-sales services. We also extend product life via design. For example, our SURFOX 305™ brushes can be trimmed to expose new bristles, just like our ENDURO-FLEX™ discs that can also be trimmed to expose more abrasive flaps. Launched in 2023, our ZIP™ XX cut-off wheels were also designed to self-sharpen thanks to our new SMART RESIN™ technology. Additionally, we offer after-sales repair services for many products such as our power tools, as well as resharpening services for our annular cutters.
S O C I A L
Ensuring the Health and Safety of our Employees
We are committed to preventing employee injury by actively tracking and analyzing incidents with the goal of preventing them completely. We track data such as number of injuries, frequency rate, impact on efficiency, and more, in order to deliver the safest environment. Maximizing safety has been a priority for WALTER for many years and we are constantly upholding and enhancing our very thorough and long-standing employee safety trainings.
Customer Safety
Not only do we focus on our employees’ safety but also that of our clients. We regularly improve our existing products as well as design new ones based on customer feedback and data on productivity and safety as well as based on NSF/CFIA approval requirements. This enables us to attract customers and meet their needs by embodying a sustainable mindset that meets their values. We also aim to innovate with the goal of offering highly effective solutions with less toxic or harmful chemicals, like our VOC-free cleaners. Moreover, WALTER has delivered free Safety Seminars to clients since 1987. The trainings are designed to inform clients on proper product use and handing and have reached well over 60,000 metalworkers since their inception. We will continue to help welding instructors by partnering with welding trade schools to support future welders by offering the right tools, training, scholarships & resources.
Supporting Women
WALTER is breaking the glass ceiling with the goal of reaching parity in senior leadership. Through its advertising, social media initiatives, and literature, WALTER is also looking to give more visibility to women in welding and metalworking roles, encouraging women in the field.
G O V E R N A N C E
Business Ethics
We have many governance initiatives in place, such as our code of conduct and anti-bribery and corruption policy, which guide our culture of honesty, integrity, and accountability. We also ensure our employees commit to, represent, and embody our company values by ensuring they align with our many initiatives, goals, and procedures through trainings.
A P P R O A C H
WALTER will align itself with SASB standards, a well-established standard approach and methodology, to track and report on ESG risks and opportunities, and measure efficiencies. By addressing our ESG priorities we are mitigating risks for our investors, delivering profit responsively, and ensuring a more sustainable long-term strategy.
WALTER Surface Technologies has been on the road towards sustainability for decades and has earned prestigious international awards throughout the years, including: The American Eagle Award, the Environmental Choice Program “Eco-Logo”, CleanTech’s Cleaning Technology Award, the Deutscher Material Effizienz Preiz, the NRW Effizienz Preiz and recognition by The Wall Street Journal’s Technology Innovation Awards, among many others.
