Sustainability
Forster – The Green Agenda
Steel is our nature – and has been for the last 150 years. Like almost no other material, steel combines timeless design with durability and recyclability – and thus proves itself in the long term.
As a Swiss company, we have always been synonymous with nature and quality. For Forster, this means that we want to achieve our ambitious goals in harmony with the environment and to contribute to improving living conditions for everyone. We want to make a difference.
As part of our Green Agenda, we work every day to become increasingly sustainable, both on a large and a small scale. Here, we focus on four core areas:
- Environmentally-friendly production
- Circular solutions
- Sustainable buildings
- Social responsibility
We want to be carbon neutral by 2035 – and we’re already on the right track to achieving this today.
We’re reducing our carbon footprint
We have set ourselves the goal of being carbon neutral by 2035 and thus making our contribution to climate protection. We’ve already laid the groundwork for this today. Our new building in Romanshorn in Thurgau is the first industrial building project in Switzerland to be awarded the renowned international LEED certification at “Gold” level for particularly sustainable buildings. Just by generating 100% of independent electricity using solar collectors at the new location, we have come much closer to our targets for reducing direct emissions.
The use of “Low Carbon Emission Steel” is an important part of our agenda for achieving the Scope 3 objectives.
Another milestone: We want to gradually replace the steel used for our profiles with climate-friendly “Low Carbon Emission Steel”, thus also reducing indirect emissions to a minimum. We also ensure that our suppliers share responsibility. For example, our largest supplier already uses rail as a more eco-friendly form of transport to ship its products. And the journey from the train station to our factory is then handled by electric truck.
Source: own illustration based on Greenhouse Gas Protocol
We’re developing recyclable products
Steel is very suitable for recycling. However, how well a window can be recycled depends on more than the profile. At Forster, we therefore take a holistic approach by incorporating all components and packaging in our systems. That’s why we manufacture our steel profiles without synthetic insulating materials and arrange value stream analyses that show us which materials can be recycled and how well. For example, we are continuously expanding our range of system solutions which are manufactured according to the cradle-to-cradle principle.
We take a holistic design approach and ensure the recyclability of materials for products and required packaging as early as the planning phase.
Transparency is our top priority: Whether you are an architect’s office or a processing plant, we provide all those involved in the value chain with the information they need for the evaluation. These include EPDs (Environmental Product Declarations) with data on the material components, the carbon footprint, recyclability and service life of our systems.
How are we making our branch more sustainable?
Raw materials and supply chain
Sustainable site, sustainable production
Products that use energy and resources sparingly
Recycling and resource cycles
Environmental product declaration (EPD)
Forster has 14 system EPDs for doors, windows/glazing and facades in steel and stainless steel. The EPDs show how seriously we take sustainability and that we are actively working on better solutions for the environment. We focus on protecting the climate, the environment and health. The EPDs are freely accessible and can be downloaded from EPD International or the Forster website.
We’re contributing to the construction of sustainable buildings
Steel lasts. This is proven not least by countless historical buildings that still impress us today through their robustness. Due to their special structural properties, steel systems also require less material than other substances, achieve high insulation values and are easy to maintain. When it comes to dismantling, future generations of buildings will be able to completely recycle steel as a material.
Our systems offer all the requirements for achieving the highest building certifications for new and old buildings.
The many eco-friendly properties of our system solutions have a positive effect on building certifications. Regardless of whether the Minergie standard in Switzerland or international labels such as BREEAM and LEED are concerned, we have the technical expertise to provide optimum advice to planning offices and building owners regarding the systems to be used. One example of this is our Forster Campus, which is the first commercial building in Switzerland to receive LEED “Gold” certification.
Forster Campus, the new building of Forster Profile Systems Ltd in Romanshorn, Switzerland, from above
We’re taking on social responsibility
As a company with regional roots, we offer our employees a place where they can cooperate effectively as well as grow together. This requires both safe and particularly attractive working conditions – such as those found in our LEED-certified “Feel Good Factory” in Romanshorn in an appealing architectural setting. We also support local initiatives to improve living conditions throughout the region.
Our Forster Campus offers a modern working environment and reflects our special responsibility – both on a regional and an international basis.
Against the backdrop of changing technological and working standards, we are constantly investing in the qualifications of our employees. We want to offer everyone the same opportunities and promote mutual understanding between countries and cultures, from which we, as an export-oriented company, also benefit. This is also reflected in our Code of Conduct, to which we have committed ourselves.
The result? Architectural solutions with an eye on the future.
Steel as a raw material
Long-lasting and environmentally friendly
150-year-old orangeries and factory buildings from the Bauhaus era show that steel is durable. It lasts as long as the building where it is used. This durability can be a decisive factor in contemporary building certification. Thanks to their outstanding static values, steel systems also need less material during production. Additional chemical surface treatment can also be dispensed with when stainless steel is used. Meanwhile, maintenance work is also significantly minimised over the years. When it’s time for the building to be dismantled, the raw material can be completely reused for future buildings.
Recycling and the life cycle assessment
Ready for the circular economy?
For many years, steel has been the most commonly used and recycled industrial material. What sets it apart from many other materials is its ability to be recycled multiple times. Steel can be melted down and reused an unlimited number of times. At the same time, its quality is maintained with each new product cycle – with the ecological footprint reduced each time it is reused. This was proven back in 2013 in a study by the Technical University of Berlin. No wonder that around 84% of the more than 60 billion tonnes of steel produced since the second half of the 19th century is still in use in the circular economy.
