Every year, on the occasion of Earth Day, we organize Polpharma Open Days, during which you can, among others, exchange waste paper and other waste for tree seedlings and ecological gadgets. Every day, we encourage employees to save water and energy, duplex printing, and waste segregation. At the entrance to Polpharma, there are a CD shredder and containers for used batteries, light bulbs, and expired medicines.
The development of the Polpharma Group and international expansion were also an opportunity to develop ecological solutions. Instead of going on frequent business trips, employees use teleconferencing systems. The transport needs associated with the delivery of documents have been reduced thanks to electronic data transmission systems and invoice circulation.
To enable direct bicycle access to our manufacturing facilities, we have built comfortable roofed cycle parking lots at several locations on the premises of the company, having consulted our employees first. We have also developed a system of rewards for cycling to work regularly. Each time an employee commutes by bicycle to work, they are given 1 zloty which they can exchange for rewards in the MyBenefit cafeteria system.
We have also provided our employees and local communities with safe cycling training. We have used the money we earned for empty toner cartridges to buy a Bike Safety Town and a bicycle obstacle course that we use during our Open Day, the Polpharma Festival and the Sustainable Transportation Week.
Green Tickets
The goal of the Green Tickets project is to encourage our employees to come to work by public transport. They receive points in the MyBenefit cafeteria system when they purchase the following monthly tickets:
- for bus communication,
- for rail communication,
- for streetcar communication,
- for trolleybus communication,
- on the subway.
Benefits for the environment from the program of subsidies for monthly tickets:
- lower CO2 emissions,
- fewer cars on the streets,
- lower fuel consumption for employees,
- noise reduction,
- more free parking spaces in the company.
The Green Process Program
The Green Process Award was established to recognize and appreciate the employees of our organization who contribute to improving the eco-efficiency of our products and services. Due to their activities, Polpharma implements the Environmental Sustainable Development Policy and can achieve a competitive advantage. The idea of the program is to encourage employees to search for and implement innovations, and to root the principles of Green Processes in research and development, production and other areas.
Initiatives submitted for the Award are assessed in 4 categories:
- sustainable development (65%)
- knowledge transfer (15%)
- financial benefits (10%)
- scientific value (10%)
In 2018, we celebrated t
he 10th anniversary of the Awards:
- 158 initiatives submitted in the years 2009-2019,
- PLN 18 million benefits from previous applications.
Circular Economy
In 2018, the Polpharma Group conducted an analysis of the possibilities of implementing the principles of circular economy in a wider scope in accordance with the BS 8001 standard. Key issues were analyzed:
- waste management,
- packaging management,
- water management,
- energy policy,
- cooperation with suppliers,
- good practices.
In the next few years, Polpharma will undertake recommended activities in line with the idea of circular economy. These include:
- including environmental criteria in the supplier selection process,
- striving to implement the zero waste to landfill assumption,
- resignation from the use of disposable packaging: during events organized by us, in company canteens / canteens, in the purchasing process,
- educating employees on sustainable consumption.
We also conducted a diagnosis of the Polpharma Group’s maturity in the field of circular economy. It has been defined at level 2, which means that we have defined and started implementing measures for all key principles of circular economy. These include:
- recovery and recycling of generated waste,
- solvent regeneration,
- the use of unit packaging from waste paper,
- implementation of the Energy Saving Program.