Coats set out seven ambitious targets for 2022 across five priority areas. © Coats

Coats, a leading industrial thread company, has published its first sustainability report, which covers key sustainability performance data for the period 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2018. The report Pioneering a sustainable future also launches a sustainability strategy, which sets out seven ambitious targets for 2022 across five priority areas in order to accelerate the company’s progress towards a more sustainable future.

The five priority areas are water, energy, effluent and emissions, social and living sustainably. Coats identified the areas by first considering the values and ethics which are most important to employees, customers and investors as well as the end consumer.

These key stakeholder groups are making increasingly influential demands for action on sustainability across all markets and industries, the company explains. Coats then looked at where there was the most potential for improvement in its own manufacturing and operations.

“Sustainability is a core component of our value system. We are a company that not only performs well but does good. Our 2022 ambition and priorities build on the good work already done and importantly further align us with consumers and customers by putting sustainability at the heart of our strategy and business. We have set ourselves challenging targets that can make a difference to society and the environment. Sustainability will enable Coats to grow, innovate and thrive as a business well into the future,” said Rajiv Sharma, Group Chief Executive, Coats.

Having identified the five priority areas, Coats has set seven ambitious targets to be achieved by 2022:

• 40% reduction in water used in litres/kg thread produced
• 7% reduction in energy used in kwh/kg thread produced
• Source renewable energy where feasible
• Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals effluent standards
• Great place to work or equivalent awards for all key sites
• All employees involved in community activities
• 25% reduction in waste

There is also an additional target of manufacturing 100% recycled premium polyester threads by 2024. All reductions are against the 2018 baseline.

Last year, the company became a strategic investor in Twine Solutions, an Israeli based sustainable technology start-up. Twine has created the world’s first standalone digital thread dyeing system, which applies the features of small-scale digital printing to the traditional dyeing process.

The plug and play machine dyes thread using digital printing technology and can produce any length and colour, whenever or wherever they are needed. The technology is based on waterless dyeing and will feature inbuilt colour software integrated with Coats ColourStitch.

www.coats.com