Moving forward for sustainable development

In the strategy we announced in Leverkusen, Germany, at the beginning of 2022, we committed to making sustainability a key driver of our business in the years ahead. We are now more committed than ever to promoting sustainability throughout our value chain.

Timo Pirskanen, CFO, iLOQ

Sustainability is a choice

Since its inception, iLOQ has built its business on digital solutions. All our activities use the best available technologies, and sustainability is no exception. From the very beginning, our technology solutions have emphasized energy efficiency, minimized battery waste and built reliable and long-lasting performance. Our current strategy has outlined that sustainability must be taken into account in the design of all our new products, in line with our Designed for Sustainability philosophy. Reducing the environmental impact of our products during use is just as important as reducing the downstream carbon footprint of the value chain.

Sustainability and the measurability of responsible performance are increasingly influencing major procurement decisions. Reporting is therefore an important part of all iLOQ’s environmental, social responsibility and governance activities. In fact, it gives us a significant competitive advantage over many other players. Responsible behavior is one of the criteria for selecting solution providers. We are a responsible supplier of access management solutions for our customers, and therefore sustainability is also an important criterion in the selection of our own partners.

Others matter too

A key element in the implementation of our environmental, social and governance strategy was the development of a supplier code of conduct. We have made a conscious decision to demand the same commitment to quality from our suppliers as we demand from ourselves. We want to see our partners and suppliers actively reducing harmful emissions in all their activities. We also want our suppliers’ socially responsible and safe practices to stand up to closer scrutiny.

Part of this closer scrutiny of environmental and social responsibility is carried out by us. We have clearly expressed our desire and intention to favor suppliers who are the strongest and most effective in contributing to sustainable performance. Our scientific and systematic approach to performance monitoring helps us to improve the performance of the entire value chain. As mentioned earlier, our entire business, including our sustainability activities, is based on proven data.

Accountability based on knowledge

The debate around sustainable development can easily become emotional and often subjective. It is therefore important to base environmental, social and governance activities on evidence-based management. It can also be used to examine trends, trajectories and the impact of choices. It also has the unique ability to reveal areas where there is room for improvement. We have therefore decided that everything we do must be documented and evaluated. We want to continuously improve and develop our own activities.

One of our most significant data-driven sustainability projects has been the development of real-time reporting of carbon emissions in the supply chain. As we needed a comprehensive view of our climate impact, we partnered with Snowfox.AI, a specialist in economic data and artificial intelligence. Carbonfox, a cloud-based AI developed by Snowfox.AI, calculates the carbon footprint of purchases directly from the company’s purchase invoice data automatically, in real-time and transparently.

Based on a global AI model, Carbonfox provides a comprehensive and continuously updated picture of the carbon footprint of iLOQ’s office chain, that being the emissions generated by the manufacture of our products. This is a completely new approach for iLOQ and a significant strategic investment, which has attracted interest in other Nordic countries and beyond. iLOQ’s own operations are already carbon neutral, which is why we are using it to actively monitor emissions upstream in the value chain.

Committed to a better future

We are very proud of our position as a pioneer and challenger in the market for truly sustainable smart living solutions. Early on, we decided that we wanted to change the world of access management, and for the better. This goal is reflected in our daily operations, our technologies and the decisions we make. Responsible behavior is, and will continue to be, one of iLOQ’s core values. Sustainability makes sense – for business, but also for building a clean, safe and prosperous world for future generations.