At WACKER, we control our operational processes with the help of an integrated management system (IMS). This system regulates workflows and responsibilities by taking equal account of productivity, quality, environment and health & safety. It is based on customer demands, legal regulations, our own sustainable business principles, and national and international standards. WACKER’s voluntary commitments regarding the Responsible Care® and Global Compact initiatives exceed legislative requirements. The IMS at WACKER builds upon groupwide regulations for implementing our corporate policies. It complies fully with ISO 9001 (quality) and 14001 (environmental protection) standards, and partially with OHRIS/OHSAS (plant safety and occupational health & safety), ISO/TS 16949 (quality) and HACCP (food hygiene).
We are working on replacing individual certification for business divisions and corporate departments with Group certification to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 by 2011. One exception here is WACKER subsidiary Siltronic, whose sites are all certified to ISO/TS 16949, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 due to the company’s specific processes and customer requirements. We moved a step closer to achieving Group certification by gaining approval for inclusion of the following sites in the period under review:
- Germany: Burghausen, Munich, Nünchritz, Kempten, Cologne and Stetten
- USA: all sites
- WACKER Greater China: all sites
- Czech Republic: Plzeň
- South Korea: Ulsan
- Technical competence centers: Dubai, Moscow and Shanghai
With the exception of the sites in Brazil, India and Jena as well as new acquisitions in 2010, all production sites have been included on the Group certificate. In granting certification, the certifying company is confirming that our specifications are implemented across all WACKER sites.
In the next few years, WACKER sites will be certified to OHSAS, an internationally recognized occupational health & safety management system. Preparations began in 2009/2010. We compiled a checklist to help the sites assess their degree of compliance with OHSAS and where there are gaps to be filled.
Siltronic has submitted all its sites to an independent quality audit every year since 2006. From the Executive Board right down to production staff, Siltronic is evaluated for compliance with international standards ISO/TS 16949, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.
WACKER and Siltronic launched an energy management system at their German sites in Burghausen, Nünchritz and Freiberg in 2009, with the goal of recording and lowering energy consumption. In the period under review, the energy management systems of WACKER’s Burghausen and Nünchritz sites as well as Siltronic’s Burghausen and Freiberg sites were audited for the first time by an external auditor and certified to ISO 14001 in accordance with the German Renewable Energy Act (EEG).