ACCO BRANDS EMEASUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 2020

INTRODUCTION

2

Simplifying and organizing modern work!
That is what we aim to do at ACCO Brands. And our portfolio of wellestablished brands are at the very core of what we do. We aim toprovide our end consumers with products which delight and fulfil thenecessary tasks. And where they can feel confident, that all efforts
are being made to work toward reducing their environmental impact
and the impact on the communities and partners with which we
work.
This report aims to provide some insight into our company, how we
operate and how we work towards reducing those impacts.

COMPANY PROFILE$1.7 billion company listed on NYSE, $500+ million in EMEA
Products sold in more than 100 countries

23 factories around the world, 10 in EMEA
6 100 employees, 2 100 in EMEA
As of April 2021

3

A TURNING POINT IN MANY RESPECTS
Dear Stakeholders,Cezary Monko
EVP & President ACCO Brands EMEA

2020 is a year that everyone will remember as a tough year and a turning point. Locked-down economies
and shut-down offices affected us ACCO-Brands both personally and professionally. As we learned towork from home, so did many of our consumers and we experienced a complete shift in how people
work and what and how they buy from us.
We also learned how such a shift can affect our environmental impact for example due to vastly reduced
travel. But how long term will this effect be? And are those changes enough? It seems they are not. The
environmental crisis is an even tougher and longer-term issue than Covid-19 and one we cannot afford tolose sight of.
At ACCO Brands we did not lose our focus in 2020 and we continued to monitor the same KPIs we havebeen monitoring for many years. It is difficult to assess our final five-year results in this extraordinary year
but we believe we have made great progress on emissions and have certainly reduced our water
consumption considerably. Achieving our goal on waste has proven to be more challenging due tochanges in our company structure and the consolidation projects we had. But we will not give up!
2020 also proved to be a year where we made a great leap on products with impressive environmental
credentials. We now offer a climate neutral binder option for consumers across Europe and the Leitz
Recycle range offers the perfect option for supporting the circular economy with products made ofrecycled material and which are built to be recycled at the end of their long life! I am also pleased to see
the improvements built broadly into our new shredder ranges, with vastly reduced packaging andimproved electricity consumption.
We have progressed and improved in the past five years and we will set ourselves aggressive new targets
for the next five! Because Taking Care of Tomorrow is more important than ever!
Yours,
Cezary Monko

ACCO BRANDS EMEA SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

5STRATEGY & TARGETS 2016 - 2020
Reducing ourEnvironmental Impact

Stewardship of Paper &Paper-based Materials

Good Working
Relationships• We will reduce our scope 1 and 2 CO² emissions, at our
manufacturing and warehouse sites by 25 percent.

• We are committed to using recycled or
responsibly sourced fibers, wherever possible.

• We aim to have a transparent and principled working
relationship with all of our stakeholders, from employees
and suppliers, to customers and consumers.

• We aim to further reduce our total water consumption
by 15 percent.

• All of our manufacturing plants producing
fiber-based products have been FSC® Certified
since 2011.

• We have the ultimate goal of achieving a Zero Waste
Rate in our manufacturing and warehouse facilities.

• We aim to use FSC, Blue Angel or EU Eco label
certified paper only in our offices.

• All of our sites will be ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified.
• We aim to increase our sales of Environmentally
Preferable Products.

• We will design our products to minimize theuse of packaging.
• In addition, we will source other materials,
such as plastic and metal, in environmentally
responsible ways.

• Our principles are based on the international standards
set by the UN and the ILO Declaration of Fundamental
Principles and Rights.
• We will establish a clear set of policies on health & safety,
the environment and supply chain and create a workplace
based on high standards and fair-working practices.

• We will maintain a safe and healthy workplace with atarget of zero accidents.
• We require our suppliers to fulfil the same standards andmonitor this according to a set of specific metrics.

ACCO BRANDS EMEA COMPANY PROFILE

6

KEY PRODUCTS:
Lever Arch Files& Binders

Staplers & Perforators

Computer Accessories &Security

Pockets, Folders,
Indices & Dividers

Storage &Archiving

Binding &Lamination

Hanging Files &Presentation Folders

Paper Pads

Paper Shredders

Ergonomics &Wellbeing

Visual Communication

INTRODUCTIONGLOBAL
REACH

Letter Trays/ Moulded
Products

ACCO BRANDS EMEA COMPANY PROFILE

7

KEY PRODUCTS:
Manual Tackers

Hot Air Guns

Print Finishing Solutions (PFS)

Hammer Tackers

Glue Guns

Xyron Creative Solutions

Electric Tackers & Nailers

Riveting

Fine Art Supplies

Pneumatic Nailers

Cassette Stapling Units
Printers & CopiersSocial Distancing

GLOBALREACH

ACCO BRANDS EMEA COMPANY PROFILE

8

Manufacturing & Distribution
Ten EMEA Factories plus Shanghai:• Sint Niklaas, Belgium• Arcos, Portugal• Lillyhall, U.K.
• Uelzen, Germany
Sales Offices• Gorgonzola, Italy
Manufacturing• Hestra, Sweden
Distribution• Lanov, Czech Republic
Testing (ES), Museum (UK)
• Kozienice, Poland• Hotkovo, Russia• Cerkezkoy, Turkey• Shanghai, China
Five Additional Distribution Centers:• Halesowen, U.K.
• Barcelona, Spain• St. Amé, France• Heilbronn, Germany• Prague, Czech Republic

Also:
Shanghaifactory

ISO CERTIFICATIONACCO Brands is committed tomaintaining internationallyrecognized quality andenvironmental standards across allof our EMEA production facilities. As
such, they are all (including
Shanghai) ISO 9001 and 14001
certified. In addition, all warehouses
and Sales offices in Europe are also
certified to these management
systems.
Eight sites in Germany and the UK
are also certified to ISO 50001 forEnergy Management.

9

ACCO Brands EMEA:
Sustainable Foundations
Working in a lean way is
the foundation of all oursustainability efforts.
Reducing waste in all areas
and keeping processes
simple and short, help withmany of our objectives. Our
ISO 9001 and ISO 14001
certifications provide theframework and tools to
help achieve this.

* ISO 50001 for 8 sites in Germany and the UK only
ISO 9001 and 14001 for all ACCO Brands EMEA sites

ACCO BRANDS EMEA: SUSTAINABILITY MANAGEMENTSUSTAINABILITY STEERING COMMITTEE
We host a quarterly meeting to go over current position and plan future projects and goals attended by:• Senior Vice President, Operations• Senior Vice President, Marketing and R&D• Vice President, Operations, Production• Vice President, Procurement• Vice President, Human Resources• Vice President, Category Management• Quality Production Europe and FSC® Central Office Manager• Regulatory Product Compliance Manager• Senior Sustainability Manager, Europe

11

RESULTS

12FIVE YEAR TARGETS ON EMISSIONS AND WATER CONSUMPTION ACHIEVED!

Statistics taken from www.eea.europa.eu

13

2015-2020: GREAT PROGRESS ON RECYCLING, PAPER
AND ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTSCO2 EMISSIONS

15

SCOPE EMISSIONS

16••

Raw material suppliers
OEM suppliers
Non-European
Factories

Sales offices

Consumers

All European manufacturing facilities were monitored from the start in2010, except Arcos, Portugal, and Lillyhall, U.K. (added in 2017).
Lillyhall (pencil manufacturing) runs a biomass boiler to heat the plantusing waste material. This has been classified as carbon neutral by the
Carbon Trust and is therefore not included in the results.

Products

European
Factories

Customers /Distributors

Scope 1 (direct)
Scope 2 (indirect emissions from consumption of purchased
electricity, heat or steam)

ACCO
Brands
EMEA

Warehouses

Company cars(leased)Service
Providersowned fleet
vehiclesExternal
warehouses

Freight
companies

We continue to report the Rapid Shanghai factory as most of the
production is for EMEA and it is a key facility for us. The warehouse inShanghai has been removed.
Warehouses have been included since 2016, except Halesowen added
in 2017.
All facilities are listed on Page 8. Sales offices, which are not physicallypart of one of the listed facilities, are not included, as they are classed
as immaterial.
Scope 3 emissions are not included to date (all other indirect emissions
such as from raw materials, external logistics, outsourced activities
etc.)Total CO2 emissions in 2020 (according toscope on page 16) were 7.99k tonnes, 18%
lower than 2019. However, some of thisreduction is connected to the Covid 19
pandemic. With sites partly running at low
capacity or even closed, it is difficult to see
what the real progress was in 2020.

CO2 EMISSIONS: ACCO BRANDS EMEA
FACTORIES AND WAREHOUSES (kg CO2)
13.507.645

Target2020:
9 450 000 kg

2015*

10.513.247

2016

10.893.258

11.687.678
9.744.506

2017

2018

Factories

Warehouses

20197.985.879

2020* 2015 is the base year for the 2020 goal of 30% reduction
3 ACCO sites added in 2017 (Arcos, Halesowen warehouse, Derwent), 2020 goal was not changed
2019 figure is slightly higher than reported at the time due to a correction of the Santa Perpetua data

We do know however, that we were alreadyvery close to achieving our goal in 2019 with
28% lower emissions than in 2015. We also
know that in 2020 we gained the full extent
of efficiency from the new compressors in
our Uelzen plant and the LED lighting in ourwarehouses. We are therefore confident that
we are on the right path and should have hit
our target in a “normal” 2020.
We should also note that we added threesites in 2017 without adjusting the goal!
We still have much to do but we have madegreat progress in the last five years andintend to continue in this way!

EMISSIONS: ELECTRICITY IN KWH

Total ACCO Brands EMEA electricity
consumption (according to the scope on page16) was 9.5 percent lower in 2020 than in
2019. Again some of this reduction is due tothe Covid 19 pandemic, with some sites
running at lower capacity during lockdowns.

Electricity used in kWh

30.000.000
25.000.000
20.000.000

To get an idea of our progress in the past five
years, if we compare the same sites in 2019
to 2015, electricity consumption is down
12%.

15.000.000
10.000.000
5.000.000
0

2015

2016

2017

Factories

2018

Warehouses

3 ACCO sites added in 2017 (Arcos. Halesowen warehouse, Derwent)

2019

2020

The focus and investment of the past years
on energy reduction are showing through.
The lighting has been steadily replaced byLEDs and investments made to reduce theenergy needed for compressed air.
Finding ways to reduce further will become
more challenging but we are learning that
there are often hidden opportunities!

Our five year target ofachieving a 25% reductionin emissions per tonne
produced was achieved*.

ACCO BRANDS EMEA MANUFACTURING
CO2 Emissions in kg/tonne Production

180,0

170,0

160,0

145,9
140,0

126,9

Target 2020: 25% reduction:
127 kg CO2 / Tonne

129,1
119,5

120,0

116,5

100,0

80,0

2015

2016

2017

2018

*Data points and target are higher than originally reported due to a correction in the tonnes produced figure.
The original target of a 25% reduction has been maintained

2019

2020

This shows that not only
total emissions but ourfactory efficiency has
improved greatly over the
past five years.
Using less electricity, gas
and oil to manage our
production remains a
constant focus and we aim
to achieve more on this in
the coming years tofurther reduce our CO2
emissions.

ACCO BRANDS EMEA WAREHOUSESCO2 Emissions in kg/m³ shipped
3,50

3,12
2,93
3,00

2,61

2,55

2,50

2,46

2,50

2,00

Target 2020: 2.09 kg CO2 /m³
1,50

1,00

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

Some corrections to gas and electricity consumption in Halesowen in 2017 & 2018 and volumes shipped in Prague in 2018 mean that the figures for 2017 & 2018 are now
slightly lower than reported in those years.

Although the pandemic
meant a slow down of
economies across the world.
our warehouses remained
open throughout the year
and even slightly improvedon their emissions efficiency.
Along with the energy
reduction initiatives, the shift
towards more larger andvoluminous goods including
business machines, whiteboards helps drive theimprovements.

ENERGY SAVING PROJECTS: COMPRESSORS, UELZENIn the latter half of 2019, our Uelzen, Germany facility replaced threeolder compressors in the facility that are used for various production,
maintenance and warehouse operations. The new compressors haveupdated technologies and include heat recovery systems which makethem much more energy efficient. The site estimates that the newcompressors save approximately 150 000 KWh per year in energy over
the old compressors.

21

ENERGY SAVING PROJECTS: PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE

We are running a Lean philosophy across our company and an
important part of this is TPM or Total Productive Maintenance – withthe aim of achieving “near perfect production”. The goal here is no
breakdowns, no small stoppages or slow running, no defects (lesswaste) and of course, no accidents.
Constant monitoring and maintenance of the machines before issues
arise and thorough checks of raw materials before they are used help
to increase machine uptime and hence efficiency which all leads tolower energy use and lower carbon emissions as well as less waste.
The teams in all the factories are constantly working and improving on
this which in turn leads to continual improvement on our sustainability
goals!
Machine in the Gorgonzola plant during aplanned maintenance phase.

22

WATER CONSUMPTION

23SCOPE WATER24

SCOPE WATER CONSUMPTION
Total water consumption for all ACCO Brands EMEA
plants and warehouses.

Raw material suppliers
OEM suppliers
Non-European
factories

Sales offices

Consumers

Europeanfactories

Customers /Distributors

ACCO
Brands
EMEA

Serviceproviders
Products

Warehouses

External
warehouses

Freight
companies

Data shown covers all ACCO Brands EMEA plants
and warehouses plus the Shanghai factory. All
facilities are listed on Page 8.
Local Sales offices, which are not physically part ofone of the listed facilities, are also not covered but
as these are generally small, we can conclude thatthese would not have a material impact on the
result.

ACCO Brands EMEA Water Consumption

We were pleased and proud tohave already achieved our 2020
target in 2019, in fact we overachieved by almost 10%
including the additional 3 sites
from 2017! Some of the further
reduction in 2020 is due to the
Covid 19 pandemic andresulting slow-down in thefactories.

Water consumption in 000 L
50.00045.00040.00035.000Target 2020: 33 000K Litres

30.00025.000

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2017: Arcos, Halesowen & Lillyhalll (Derwent) added.
Some small corrections were made to the Lillyhall and Halesowen, U.K., figures for 2017 & 2018 means that the figure shown here is slightly different thanreported at the time.

We have mostly gained thesesavings by becoming more
efficient, using less space forthe same or higher levels ofactivity in the plants andwarehouses and by changing
our behaviour such as watering.
Leaks and breakages in the fire
prevention systems remain a
key area of focus moving
forward.

WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING

26

SCOPE WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING

27

SCOPE WASTE MANAGEMENT
Aim: Zero Waste
Raw material suppliers
OEM suppliers
Non-European
factories

Europeanfactories

Customers /Distributors

Hence, data for all types of waste is collected from all sites. We have some difficulties withrecycling companies which do not disclose if waste has been “thermally recycled” but will
work further to see if we can gain more knowledge on this.

Sales offices

Consumers

ACCO
Brands
EMEA

Serviceproviders
Products

Warehouses

External
warehouses

Freight
companies

Zero Waste is generally defined as 98 percent of waste being recycled. “Thermal recycling”(burning) is not counted as recycled and hazardous waste is not included.

Data shown covers all ACCO Brands EMEA plants and warehouses plus the Shanghai factory.
All facilities are listed on Page 8.
Local Sales offices, which are not physically part of one of the listed facilities, are also notcovered, but waste volumes here are far smaller than at the plants and warehouses,
meaning we can conclude that these would not have a material impact on the result.

WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING

93% of all waste (excluding

28

Waste in kg 2020

hazardous waste) was recycled in
2020, which is a 3pp improvement on
2019 (Target 98%).
It is difficult to say how much of thismight have been influenced by the
pandemic conditions in the factories& warehouses. Total waste was down
12% (see next page) but neverthelessthe mix of waste improved, resulting
in more recycled and less nonrecycled waste.
There was certainly a clear
improvement in the warehouses, inparticular in Heilbronn, our largest
warehouse after the consolidation
work has been finalized.

7%
9%

20%

Recycled metal

Recycled paper / board
16%
Recycled plastic

Other recycled

Non-recycled waste

48%

WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING
Total waste was 12% lower in 2020
than in 2019.
Some of this may be resulting fromthe pandemic conditions. But thewarehouses in particular reduced
total waste by 25% overall in 2020
compared to 2019 which we see asa clear improvement.
We have been striving to reduce
waste for many years under our
Lean philosophy and we will not
lose our focus on this important
topic. The Circular Economy(reduction of waste through reusing and recycling) is now a hot
topic; consumer waste is often
highlighted and a focus for our R&D
teams. Managing industrial waste ishowever equally important for us
as the volumes are much higher
and we have direct control overwhere this waste ends up.

29

Waste in kg

2018

2019
2020

Recycled metal

Recycled paper /board

Recycled plastic

Other Recycled

Non-recycled waste

Total waste

WASTE REDUCTION & RECYCLING
WASTE REDUCTION PROJECT EXAMPLES
Sint Niklaas:
Big drop in cardboard waste after packaging Kaizen

Kozienice:Re-using waste from production for parcel packaging

Uelzen:Continual reduction of residual waste through training,strict control on waste separation and more refined waste separation
down to recyclable parts

30

PAPER STEWARDSHIP

31

Forests cover 38 percent of the global habitable land area and are key to climate change and protecting
biodiversity. In the 1700s, forests covered 57 percent of the habitable land area. The protection of forests andlife on land has been declared a “Sustainable Development Goal” by the UN.
At ACCO Brands, we understand the importance of protecting these landscapes and have made it a priority tohelp protect them.

SUPPORTING THE SDGS

33

Protecting life on land, forests in particular, has been
identified by the UN as one of the 17 Sustainable
Development Goals. At ACCO Brands, we are supporting
this important goal through our Paper Stewardshipstrategy and targets. By using recycled and FSC® certified
fibres, we are working toward SDG Goal 15 targets 15.2
and 15B.
Read on to find out more about how we are working
toward these targets.

PAPER STEWARDSHIP34

ACCO Brands EMEA FSC® Certification
The Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) is dedicated to thepromotion of responsible forest management worldwide. It
helps take care of forests and the people and wildlife that callthem home.
ACCO Brands EMEA is proud to hold FSC certification for our
relevant manufacturing and administrative sites. Our FSC certified paper and board products are independently audited
and help to promote and support the responsible managementof forests.
We continue to launch new products with FSC certification in
2020, including notebooks and binders in the new Leitz Cosy
range and a range of FSC certified CO2 neutral Lever Arch Files.

31.12.2020
FSC-certified factories and warehouses11

FSC-certified sales offices(additional sites)16

FSC-certified paper-based raw
materials (by weight)

72%

FSC-certified products 31.12.20

1 578

FSC® certified Leitz “Wow” notebooks

PAPER STEWARDSHIP

36

PAPER USAGE IN MANUFACTURING AND SHIPPING

2018

2019

2020

Percent of paper purchased which is
FSC®-certified, or recycled

99.5%

99.2%

99.1%

Paper/Board from non-FSC, virginFibres

0.5%

0.8%

0.9%

Paper types in use

Recycled paper total*

96.2%

95.1%

93.3%

FSC-Certified paper*

80.1%

78.8%

71.7%

* Paper can be both recycled and FSC-certified.
2018 not including packaging in Lillyhall, U.K. (Derwent® products)• ACCO Brands is committed to the
responsible use of paper and paper-basedmaterials in the manufacturing of our
products and used for our packaging.
• Our long-term target is to source 100
percent of our paper used in the
production of our products from FSCcertified or recycled sources.
• Overall, over 99% of our paper & board iseither recycled or FSC certified.

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS

37

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS

38

Replacing broken or worn out products
uses valuable material & energy
resources
FSC® certification is one way toconfirm that materials are
sustainably sourced
Using recycled materials saves
resources and reduces the carbon
footprint of the productCreate products which can bedisassembled into separate
material types at end of life

Reduce packaging as far as possible,
use recycled materials where
feasible, avoid complex mixes ofmaterials to aid recycling

ACCO BRANDS ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS

39

2533

1677

Products with 3rd party labels

Products with FSC® Certification

755

204

Products with Blue Angel
Certification

Products with other
Certification

124
As of 29.12.2020
Some products have more than one certification!

Products with Climate Neutral
Certification

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS
BRANDED PRODUCTS WITH ENVIRONMENTALLABELS
We aim to increase the environmental credentials of our products in line withthe product philosophy outlined on page 38. Currently however, the only way tomeasure this precisely is to look at products awarded with a third-party label
such as Blue Angel or FSC®. Not all products within a category can gain such alabel and not all categories have applicable labels (e.g. computer accessories).
We therefore view only categories where it is possible for labels to be gained.
2020 was an exception year. With many offices closed and people working fromhome the mix of products sold changed completely, away from more classic
filing products and large office equipment towards computer accessories andnotebooks. The labels in question are mostly for paper-based products such as
binders or suspension files. The overall percentage therefore of products soldwith an environmental label went down. But within the categories, theproportion of products sold with a label remained stable or even increasedslightly, underlining the increasing interest in environmentally friendly products.
* Please note that the goal of 54% on page 52 was set before the merger of ACCO Brands
with Esselte in 2017. This led to a different mix of products in the relevant categories whichchanged the overall proportion of products with labels.

40

Product Categories

2018

2019

2020

Lever Arch Files & Binders

80%

80%

81%

Indices & Dividers

43%

41%

42%

Pockets & Folders
Document Presentation &Organisation

1%

1%

2%

31%

31%

33%

Archive Boxes & Storing

46%

47%

45%

Suspension Filing
Paper Products (pads, forms andbooks)

48%

50%

49%

61%

69%

73%

Desktop (Moulded)

0%

0%

0%

Lamination Machines % Suppliers

0%

0%

0%

Visual Communication

2%

2%

1%

General Office Articles

7%

6%

7%

Total

45.5%

45.9%

42.2%

Binding Machines & Supplies

0%

0%

0%

Shredders

0%

0%

0%

Drawing & Writing Instruments

0%

0%

0%

LEITZ 1080 – NOW ALSO CLIMATE NEUTRAL
As of 2020: Blue Angel and FSC® Certifications as well as climate neutral production.

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS
FURTHER CLIMATE NEUTRAL PRODUCTS LAUNCHED
Following the Swedish Jopa binders in 2019, in 2020 we launched a range of Lever
Arch Files so that we can now offer climate neutral binders across Europe. We
continue with the maxim that we only consider environmentally sound products forthis label which means: Quality products which last, made of recycled materials andwhich can be recycled. We started by taking the number one, million-selling,
German Leitz paper Lever Arch Files. These files are made of recycled materials andBlue Angel, FSC® and now also climate neutral certified!

Much of Europe is used to using files covered with plastic, which makes themslightly more robust and are available in attractive colours. But it also means thatthey are not easily recyclable. To try and persuade consumers to consider a more
eco-friendly version, we have now launched ranges of Esselte and Bene branded
coloured paper-on-board files which are Blue Angel or Austrian Eco-label certified,
FSC® certified AND climate neutral!
More details and the certification can be seen on the Climate Partner Tracking
Pages: https://fpm.climatepartner.com/tracking/11538-1902-1001/de

42

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS
LEITZ RECYCLE
REFLECTS YOUR CHOICE FOR THE ENVIRONMENTWith the new Recycle range from Leitz you can improve both theglobal environment – and your own. Every product in the range is climate
neutral, 100% recyclable and made from a high percentage of recycledmaterials. Built with Leitz premium quality and design excellence, theRecycle range truly reflects your choice for the environment.

The Leitz Recycle Lever Arch Filecan be dismantled into separate
material types for easy recycling
using the small tool provided
behind the compressor bar. Thisphilosophy runs throughout thewhole Recycle range.

43

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS
SHREDDERSOur new ranges of shredders under the Rexel and Leitz brands have many new
and exciting features and look great in your office or home. But in addition tothis, the products were improved to reduce their environmental footprint,
compared to the previous models.
Firstly, the electricity consumption of all models was improved by an efficient
stand-by mode which switches on after 30 minutes of non-use.
Secondly, the new autofeed Rexel Optimum and Leitz IQ models have beenequipped with removeable rollers, which are available as spare parts and canbe easily and quickly installed by an authorized service agent.
Finally, the team has designed an attractive yet robust box for the machines,
which means that the additional brown carton previously needed to protect
the product in transport is no longer needed. This technically challenging but
effective solution will save around 125 tonnes of carboard a year!

44

ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS

45

PACKAGING IMPROVEMENTS
The best packaging is no packaging at all! But this is often not practical as products must be protected andinformation conveyed. In 2020 we explored different ways to improve our packaging. As well as the
packaging savings on shredders featured on page 44, the Leitz Cosy range was launched with plastic-freepackaging (pictured right) and the Leitz Recycle range was launched with recycled packaging including our
first experience with lightweight pre-consumer recycled plastic bags.

Kensington also launched a new packaging
concept, with a brown-box approach forbusiness customers and redesigned retailpackaging which is easy to read, open andrecycle. The roll-out is underway on existingproducts and of course all new products arepacked in the new design. Read more here:
https://www.kensington.com/engb/solutions/sustainab
le-packaging/GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIPS46

We can succeed at what we do, when we work together. We rely heavily on the hard work and expertise of our suppliers in order to be able tosupply our customers with the high-quality products and service they expect. We can only deliver the quality and innovative designs expected ofour brands with the support of our suppliers and a solid supply chain.
Therefore, good relationships with our suppliers are key. We value long-term relationships with a clear understanding of what is required fromboth sides. We ask all of our suppliers to sign our Supplier Code of Conduct, which covers social and environmental topics and we administer
audits based on this code where we judge it to be necessary.

SUPPLY CHAIN RESPONSIBILITY

48

Supply Chain Responsibility
ACCO Brands-Owned Facilities

Suppliers• ISO 9001 and 14001 certified• Focus on long-term relationships• The ILO Declaration on Fundamental
Principles and Rights at Work forms thebasis for social standards on every site.

• Must comply with REACH and areasked to comply with the ACCO Brands
Restricted Substances List

• Follow the ACCO Brands H&S policy
and Comprehensive Environmental &Safety Management Plan with regulartraining• Suppliers in risk countries
must sign Supplier Code of Conduct• Sustainability reporting: CO2, water,
waste, paper and board use.

• Finished goods suppliers in risk
countries are risk segmented and audits
covering social and environmental
aspects are carried out and followed up
on by a third-party service provider
where required with close monitoring by
the ACCO Brands Vendor Complianceand Sourcing teams.

Products/Marketing• Comply with REACH, RoHS, WEEE,
packaging and all relevant EU
regulations• Environmental labels:
FSC®, Blue Angel, Nordic Swan, UL
Recycled Content, Climate Neutral
certifications held for 2,500+ products• Use FSC® -certified/recycled paper andboard• Honest and transparent communication.

SUPPLY CHAIN RESPONSIBILITY
SUPPLY CHAIN MONITORING
In 2020, we launched a new audit model to transition from ageographical risk model to a segmented approach. This new
approach aims to better align risk, influence, action andinvestment. This robust segmentation approach has been applied
to assess how to manage each supplier relationship. Suppliers
falling in the high and moderate segments are required to pass anaudit. If the pass level is not acceptable, further audits are
required.
In addition, our third-party audit firm has begun incorporating
Worker Sentiment Surveys into our audit process using Laborlink
technology, a mobile platform that provides workers a way toshare their viewpoints on topics such as grievance mechanism,
work atmosphere, wages and hours, production efficiency,
workforce stability and demographics. This survey offers insight totopics otherwise difficult to surface and provides workers’
perspectives that help validate the progress made in factories.
The Worker Sentiment Survey was completed at 30 EMEA
suppliers in 2020.

49

SUPPLY CHAIN RESPONSIBILITY

50

SUPPLY CHAIN MONITORING: RESULTS

In-scope suppliers attested to compliance with the
ACCO Brands’ Supplier Code of Conduct

Target2020 Result

Highlights

100%

88%

Launched updated Code of Conductcampaign with third-party online platform

Percentage of Priority and Moderatelevel (>$100K annual spend) supplierfactories audited

100%

87%

38 EMEA suppliers determined to be in-scopefor audits in 2020 using a risk-based supplier selection;
67% audited by our third-party auditors; 33% using
other standards (SMETA,BSCI, RBA)

Social responsibility audit
assessment overall performance

100%

98%

98% of all audit checklist points indicatedconformance with applicable standards

Priority issue non-conformance rate

0%0%

Priority non-conformances are defined as
the highest severity of non-conformance

Other non-conformance rate0%2%

All other non-conformances

HEALTH & SAFETY

51

HEALTH & SAFETYAt ACCO Brands, we are committed to pursuing continuous improvement in Health& Safety within all our locations and attaining our goal of zero accidents andincidents. This is our

We strive to achieve a culture where all employees contribute and take ownershipfor creating and maintaining a safe working environment. Our Health & Safety
management system is laid out in the “Comprehensive Environmental and Safety
Management Plan,” which is activated in every ACCO Brands EMEA location.

We are proud to have been awarded the Royal Society for the Prevention of
Accidents (RoSPA) gold medal for 24 years running and to hold the RoSPA Order ofDistinction. RoSPA is a leading and well-respected Health and Safety organization
with the aim of reducing accidents both in the workplace and at home. RoSPA
present awards to organizations for their occupational health and safety excellence
annually.

52

COVID-19 RESPONSE

53

At ACCO Brands, we were fast to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic with theformation of a task force already at the end of February 2020. EMEA played
an important part on this global team which provides guidance, protocols,
signage and updates on COVID-19 related topics.

The team created a dashboard showing the situation across all oursites which is updated and reviewed by executive management
weekly. We are proud of how our sites have responded to be able
to keep running and keep our people safe at the same time. Office
workers across Europe have been enabled to work from homesince early in the pandemic and now the team is providing reopening training and guidance where this is appropriate.

HEALTHY AND SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT
Total Statutory Reportable Accidents at Factories and Warehouses

Facilities EMEA

2018

2019

2020

Warehouses EMEA 2018

2019

2020

Kozienice, Poland

3

3

3

Heilbronn, Germany

7

7

4

Uelzen, Germany

0

0

2

St. Amé, France

3

2

0

St. Niklaas, Belgium

3

2

0

Halesowen, U.K.

0

1

0

Gorgonzola, Italy

3

1

1

Barcelona, Spain

0

0

1

Cerkezkoy, Turkey

0

0

0

Lanov, Czech Republic

3

3

0

Total Accidents

25

21

15

Hotkovo, Russia

0

0

0

Hestra, Sweden

2

1

1

Arcos, Portugal

0

0

0

Lillyhall, U.K.

0

0

0

Shanghai, China

1

1

3

RESULTS & OUTLOOK55

ACCO Brands EMEA Sustainability Scorecard 2020: Environmental Impact and Paper
Target 2020

Emissions:
Total CO2
CO2 Factories*
CO2 Warehouses
Water Consumption:
All Factories & Warehouses

Zero Waste

FSC® /recycled paper used in
manufacturing
Env. Preferable Products
Percentage of sales of branded
products which have an Eco
Label in categories where label isavailable

Target change
from 20152019 Result

2020 Result

Progress

We made good progress in the past 5
years, reducing our CO2 emissions byaround 30%. The pandemic has blurred
the picture a little. We will see the morestable picture in the coming 2-3 years.

J

9 450 T CO2
127.5 kg/Tonne
2.09 kg CO2 /m³

-30%
-25%
-20%

9 745 T CO2
119.5 kg CO2/T
2.52 kg CO2 /m³

7 986 T CO2
116.5 kg CO2/T
2.46 kg CO2 /m³

33 000K Litres-25%

29 817K Litres

27 228K Litres

Target achieved!

J

98% of total waste
recycled+21pp

90% of total
waste recycled

93% of total
waste recycled

Factories and warehouses are pushinghard to improve. There is more to do!

K

100%

+0.7%

99.2%

99.1%

New product ranges alter the result andneed further focus (e.g. Viscom)

K

42.2%

See note on page 40. The pandemic
affected the mix of products sold but wesell more and more products with labels
within the affected categories. A growing
range of products with great
environmental features!

J

54%

+2%

45.9%

* Amended due to a correction in the tonnes produced figure. Please see slide 19 for details

ACCO Brands EMEA Sustainability Scorecard 2020: Good Working Relationships
Target 2020

In scope tier 1 suppliers signed up to the
ACCO Brands Code of Conduct

100%

2020 Result

Progress

88 percent of non-European OEM suppliers
have signed our Code of Conduct.

Although we are close, we are still
missing the documentation on a few
small suppliers. Our supplier base iscontinually changing, so we have to work
hard to keep up!

K

K

Percentage of Priority and Moderatelevel (>$100k annual spend) supplierfactories audited*100%

87 percent

38 suppliers are defined as being in scopeas explained on page 49. Covid-19 madeaudit planning difficult in some cases.

Priority issue non conformance rate
Other non-conformance rate

0%
0%

0%
2%

Of those suppliers audited, only 2% ofaudit lines were assessed as nonconforming and improvement plans wereagreed on together with the suppliers.

J

100%

Finished goods and raw material suppliersfor EMEA are known but not fully
documented (mapped and risk assessed),although judged overall as low risk.
Overseas suppliers have been thoroughly
assessed.

This task has been strengthened via thenew segmentation approach for thehighest risk group of suppliers, nonEuropean OEM. Fulfilling this target
completely is currently challenging.

K

0

15

A further reduction in the number ofaccidents. But we aim for zero!

J

Supply Chain (tier 1) mapped in detailand risk assessed

Zero Accidents* Due to the change in corporate strategy for risk assessing and auditing suppliers, these figures are different to pre 2019 reports and cannot be compared.

CLOSING THOUGHTSWorking towards Taking Care ofTomorrow is at the heart of what
we do at ACCO Brands. We knowthat it is what consumers expectof our brands and it is what we
expect of ourselves. Our focus oncontinuous improvement andreducing our impact therefore
remain at the core of what we do.