Guidelines, Structures and Processes
Environmental Officers for the various sites are responsible for compliance with laws, stipulations for government approval and other rules related to the environment. The Environmental Officers at ZEISS’ individual facilities store the particular specifications in the management system, e.g. by creating site-specific procedural and work instructions.
Regular external and internal audits and, at ISO 14001-certified units, compliance checks are performed to ensure all statutory requirements are met. The results are then included in the annual management reviews. ZEISS also expects business partners that, as suppliers or service providers, have a direct business relationship with the company and its production facilities to fully comply with environmental laws and regulations as well internal guidelines. The company monitors whether such contractual agreements are being put into practice by conducting on-site audits, both planned and as a result of specific incidents.
Chemical management
Through effective chemical management, ZEISS ensures that hazardous substances and materials are handled safely throughout the entire process chain and, in doing so, protects employees and the environment. The respective system operators are responsible for handling chemicals safely. These employees are supported by the sites’ occupational safety specialists and Environmental Protection Officers. A substance database and list of hazardous materials form the basis of the Groupwide information system for hazardous substances used at the company. This is also how ZEISS ensures that only those chemicals are used that are registered for the EU in accordance with REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals) and are authorized for use. In addition, care is taken to only use substances that have not been identified as Substances of Very High Concern whenever possible.
Material safety data sheets provide users with information on how to safely handle chemical products, thereby helping to ensure that chemicals are employed in a manner that is both safe and environmentally sound. ZEISS requires its suppliers to make the most up-to-date material safety data sheets available. Before introducing new hazardous substances, ZEISS takes care to ensure that suppliers observe the list of prohibited and declarable substances included in a factory standard and requests the corresponding certificates of conformity.
Substance restrictions
To implement the EU directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), ZEISS introduced the legal regulations in 2005 with the help of a software application to monitor the relevant chemicals. This is now in use at all areas of the company. Suppliers must confirm that the supplied materials, substances and mixtures are compliant with the applicable directives, laws and regulations. The suppliers are asked to submit certificates of conformity for verification. These are a requirement for product approvals as part of the CE conformity assessment process. With the CE marking, the manufacturer or distributor declares that the product meets the applicable requirements. Conformity requires that certificates of conformity be available for all items in the parts list for a product. If there is any doubt, ZEISS conducts its own chemical analysis of the supplied components.
Disposal
Modern technologies consist of a complex combination of materials and components. When not disposed of properly, these can cause major environmental and health issues. In accordance with the European Union’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which governs the collection, recycling, and recovery of electric and electronic devices, ZEISS has entered into EU-wide agreements to ensure legally compliant disposal. The company is registered as a commercial distributor of electrical and electronic devices in all EU countries.
Goals
For the company, the legally compliant operation of its facilities is a primary goal. This is associated with the objectives of preventive emergency management as well as preventive maintenance, which saves retrofitting costs.