Responsible sourcing addresses raw material provenance, processing and product manufacture
Developed by the BRE, the BES 6001 responsible sourcing standard supports traceability for construction products. With traceability, we can understand where products have come from and reduce risk by making informed decisions about the responsible use of resources. The standard also provides reassurance that the supply chains providing those products are responsible.
As part of this transparency, product manufacturers are independently certified. For Tata Steel, the certification process not only means looking at how we manage our own production facilities, but at every stage of the steelmaking process, starting at the mines where iron ore is sourced.
In 2010, Tata Steel became the first steel sector operation to achieve BES 6001 certification, for the Colorcoat® range. This was followed in 2014 by certification for all UK-manufactured steel construction products, with a rating of ‘Very Good’. Recertification has been granted every year since and now covers all of Tata Steel Europe’s main manufacturing sites.
Certificate BES 651382
Valid until 04/08/2024, UK product group: Hot rolled coil, cold reduced coil, metallic coated strip, insulated panels, cladding profiles, decking, pipe, structural hollow sections, conveyance tube, Catnic Building Products (lintels & profiles), Colorcoat® pre-finished steel products, Colorcoat Aquatite rainwater management products, Polymer laminated products
Certificate BES 562396
Valid until 04/08/2024 UK product group: Colorcoat® pre-finished steel, metallic coated strip
Certificate BES 643794
Valid until 04/03/2024, NL product group: Hot rolled coil, cold rolled coil, metallic coated strip, Colorcoat® pre-finished steel, structural hollow sections, precision tube, general hollow sections, cladding profiles and insulated panels.
Further benefits of BES 6001 certification
Specifying products that have BES 6001 responsible sourcing certification means additional credits can be claimed in building certification standards such as BREEAM and LEED. This is often cited as one of the main reasons for including responsibly sourced products, if it isn’t already a client requirement or a core value of the specifier/purchaser.
With greater awareness of challenges surrounding raw material availability, responsible sourcing is seen more and more as an effective way of managing risk as well. Transparency and traceability are key parts of how many organisations in the construction industry now choose to do business.
Being certified to a responsible sourcing standard like BES 6001 covers a much wider range of areas than might be first imagined.
Certification covers energy and resource use, and impacts such as transport, ecotoxicity and water abstraction. Selecting responsibly sourced products therefore stands to deliver a much wider array of benefits.
BES 6001 is ‘sector agnostic’ and can be applied across all industries
Although originally developed for the construction sector, BES 6001 has since developed into a framework for responsible sourcing across all industries. This is a positive reflection of its robustness as a standard, and the scope of its certification.
As a result, Tata Steel has achieved responsible sourcing certification across its complete portfolio of activities, such as packaging products and automotive steel.
Other areas of BES 6001’s scope that may be less familiar include aspects that deliver wider social value, such as community engagement, and employment and skills - which includes training and apprenticeships. Tata Steel has been assessed in all of these areas to achieve certification across its different operations, independently verifying its approach to being a responsible steelmaker and an active member of local communities.
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