How Bayer, Evonik & Henkel can Reduce Supply Chain Emissions

Collaboration is vital for sustainability, particularly in supply chains where hundreds or thousands of companies can play a part in one carbon footprint.

Together for Sustainability (TfS) is a joint initiative in the chemical industry to reduce carbon emissions.

The alliance includes giants like BASF, Bayer, Evonik and Henkel, committed to improving the sustainability of chemical supply chains whilst reaching regulatory requirements.

With more than 50 chemical enterprises globally, TfS represents a collective annual turnover approximating €800bn (US$864bn) and a cumulative global spend surpassing €500bn (US$540bn). 

Each member's Chief Procurement Officer is involved in the TfS General Assembly, a body that steers the conglomerate towards actionable solutions for improved sustainability.

TfS’s Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) Exchange is tailored to redefine how chemical industries evaluate, monitor and share emissions data within their supply chains.

Revolutionising emissions tracking

Industries worldwide are under increasing scrutiny to meet decarbonisation benchmarks in line with the Paris Agreement. 

Using Siemens’ advanced SiGREEN technology, the PCF Exchange is set to transform the emission tracking and reporting processes in the chemicals industry.

This new platform is specifically engineered to tackle the formidable challenge of managing Scope 3 emissions — usually the biggest contributor to a company’s carbon footprint. 

The PCF Exchange’s use of SiGREEN ensures secure and efficient tracking and exchange of product-level emissions data. 

This enables companies to obtain detailed carbon reports from suppliers, simplifying the task of calculating PCFs for materials handled across various intricate global supply chains.

TfS champions the PCF Exchange solution as a catalyst for heightened industry-wide transparency and adherence to GHG reduction commitments, contributing vitally to the global combat against climate change. 

“The PCF Exchange solution is a key component of our Scope 3 GHG emissions programme,” says Jennifer Jewson, President of TfS and CPO at LyondellBasell.

“With this addition, TfS offers a truly end-to-end solution for calculating PCFs across the chemical supply chain.

“Together with our established PCF Guideline and White Paper, PCF Exchange equips TfS members and suppliers with the necessary tools to generate accurate, consistent data and seamlessly exchange it. This marks a significant step forward in helping the industry reduce Scope 3 GHG emissions with greater transparency and precision.”

Solving the chemical industry’s challenges

According to TfS, the PCF Exchange directly addresses three pivotal industry challenges: 

• Scale: the platform enables large-scale solicitation and exchange of emissions data, streamlining multi-supplier data requests, therefore reducing time delays and potential errors. 
• Comparability: the employment of unified PCF guidelines ensures that carbon footprint calculations across the sector remain consistent and comparable, aiding companies in pinpointing potential areas for improvement. 
• Connection: a secure, collaborative environment fostered by the platform ensures that supply chain data is shared robustly and confidently. 

The partnership with Siemens not only enhances the initiative’s accuracy, but also allows users to provide input on the development of the SiGREEN technology.

Maria Valentina Giraldo Martinez, Co-Chair of the TfS Workstream ‘GHG Scope 3 Emissions – Data Collection and Sharing’ and LCA Manager at IFF, calls the solution a “pivotal moment” for the chemical industry.

She adds: “For the first time, companies will have a reliable, standardised platform to manage carbon data from across their supply chains.

“By facilitating the secure exchange of carbon data, this solution is not just improving how the industry manages emissions; it’s enabling proactive steps towards transparency. As we roll out this technology, we are witnessing the chemical sector take bold strides in addressing its climate responsibilities.”

Catalysing decarbonisation across industries

While initially crafted for the chemical industry, the potential for the PCF Exchange extends far beyond. 

It has the potential to significantly benefit a range of sectors, from adhesives to automotive and medical to manufacturing.

TfS is also extending comprehensive training and onboarding via the TfS Academy to facilitate the adoption of this innovative platform among members and their suppliers.

Dr. Gunter Beitinger, SVP Manufacturing, Head of Factory Digitalization and Head of Product Carbon Footprint at Siemens, comments: “We’re proud to partner with TfS on the launch of the PCF Exchange solution, which leverages Siemens’ SiGREEN technology to enable efficient data handling, reduce manual effort and errors and ensure secure, trusted data exchange.

“Its robust security and compliance with global privacy regulations make it a reliable platform for companies to confidently exchange emissions data and integrate it into their greenhouse gas accounting systems.”

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