We asked Jan Lång, President & CEO of Ahlstrom, to share his views on some of the most important matters related to sustainability and Ahlstrom.
On strategy:
“Sustainability has to be a prime element in our strategy. Any critical and important matters of a business have to be embedded in the values of the company. This has to further translate into the way of working as well as the brand story of the company. The challenge for us here has been to convert that into a story.”
On waste:
“Projects that have been initiated at Ahlstrom to reduce internal waste make a good example of sustainability and profit generation going hand in hand. It is very important to pay attention to any waste – whether it is material or energy or even time spent on matters that do not create value. Waste is a measure of inefficient processes.”
On energy:
“Our energy efficiency has improved, and we have invested money every year to become even more efficient. I certainly hope that the trend of preferring renewable energy sources will continue – not only because we are making products for example for the windmill industry, but also from a sustainable point of view.”
On water:
“Water is the future gold, and it is going to be scarce. We have done great work in the organization during the last few years to improve the process of managing water from an environmental perspective. On the other hand, we need to recognize that in this industry you cannot run without large quantities of water. So we need to keep water as a high priority in the company and manage it in a responsible manner. Water is going to be very, very high on the agenda.”
On values:
“It is the consumer who drives the behaviour of corporations and society at large. We have seen a clear change in the attitudes of people towards sustainability and environmental issues in the last five years. I am also confident that the next generation will have a completely different view of the world and very high expectations for behavior of companies as well as what type of products they will buy. I think that will drive the change.”