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Silver rating for a shining example of ethical business

16th August 2016

A County Durham manufacturer is celebrating after achieving a silver grade in a corporate assessment of its ethical, environmental and social performance. 

Newton Aycliffe based Formula Plastics was asked by one of its key automotive customers to undertake a third party assessment of its corporate social responsibility (CSR). Faurecia a major player in the automotive industry, and as part of their supply chain, Formula Plastics went through an accreditation process using the EcoVadis assessment tool. 

EcoVadis looked at four main areas of the business: environmental issues; labour practices; fair business practices; and sustainable procurement. The company provided detailed evidence of their performance in each aspect of CSR, citing examples such as their works council, environmental improvement, transparency on purchasing processes and legal compliance. The resulting evaluation gave the injection moulding company a grade of ‘silver’, putting it in the top 30% of organisations assessed.  

Formula Plastics’ managing director, James Goodliffe, said: “Faurecia want suppliers who take CSR seriously and we saw this as an opportunity to show our positive ethos within the company and demonstrate our capabilities in these areas of business.

 “I’m proud that we achieved the silver grade, putting us in the top 30% of companies who have undertaken this process. In addition to demonstrating that SMEs can implement effective CSR policies, it has also highlighted areas where we are able to improve and obtain a better result in the future.”

EcoVadis work with over 120 leading multinational companies to monitor environmental, ethical and social practices of business partners and suppliers, with the aim of reducing risk, driving innovation, and increasing transparency and trust.