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The Saint-Gobain Group has developed principles that lead its employees' actions and that define its relationship with its stakeholders.
All the employees of the group are concerned and respecting these principles constitutes a sine qua non condition to be part of Saint-Gobain.
In this frame, and in order to satisfy its customers, Saint-Gobain wants its purchasers to be totally committed into this approach. The objective is that suppliers and subcontractors adhere to these principles as well and broadcast them into their own sphere of influence.
The responsible purchasing approach has been developed among purchasers, on the one hand, and on the other hand, among suppliers, thanks to adapted communication means
The Suppliers Charter:
This Charter formalizes the Group's expectations regarding its suppliers and subcontractors. It also invites them to adhere to the Group's principles.
A Charter validation campaign has been launched in 2012, and is still on-going. The first target includes especially Group Headers whose turnover with the Saint-Gobain Group is over 100 k€/year. The Charter validation is indeed an essential element to develop business with Saint-Gobain.
The clauses:
- Responsible development clause: To be included in all contracts, this clause guarantees that the supplier adheres to the Group's principles, and more particularly, to the Suppliers Charter.
- Timber clause: This clause has to be incorporated in contracts concerning timber products or timber-based products. It aims at ensuring that suppliers provide us with legal woods, that respect human rights and the environment.
Sand Silica Traceability Template
CSR assessments and social audits:
- Suppliers CSR assessments: In order to know better the CSR performance of our suppliers, we work with a third party which sends questionnaires to suppliers that purchasers select and which analyses the answers. We then receive a scorecard, showing the strengths and weaknesses of the suppliers. The goal here is to give purchasers means to integrate CSR criteria in supplier selection, to monitor the risks thanks to additional information on suppliers and to compare suppliers one with another.
- Suppliers social audits: The suppliers which are potentially riskier can be audited by a third party. The audit takes place during 1 to 3 days, on the site designed by the purchaser. The goal of the audit is to check the supplier's practices regarding the environment, its ethical approach, its social engagement, its working conditions and its management systems.