Sustainability audits support suppliers in improving their business practices

Ensto conducts sustainability audits on its suppliers located in risk countries to ensure compliance to our Code of Conduct. Audits are also a way to engage our suppliers and to communicate our expectations regarding sustainable and ethical business conduct.

One of the audited companies is Cixi Jiayu Elevator Components Co. Ltd., a Chinese hardware manufacturer and one of Ensto’s suppliers of overhead line parts. Cixi’s Sales Manager Floyd Kang sees the audits as a great opportunity to review the company’s advantages and shortcomings in sustainability, and to plan corrective actions where needed.

The audits include interviewing selected workers, reviewing documentation and conducting onsite observations. A fair representation of workers is interviewed, and interviews are conducted in an area where the interviewees feel comfortable. The level of a supplier’s sustainability is evaluated from many different angles, including social, environmental and governance perspectives.

At Ensto, we want to ensure sustainable and ethical business conduct beyond our direct partnerships. Therefore, we also involve the suppliers of the audited companies in the process. Floyd Kang explains that following Ensto’s example, the company conducts yearly audits on its own suppliers through interviews, documentation, and other methods. As part of Cixi’s sustainability audit, key sub-contractors of the company were also audited by Ensto.