Hisense Europe Sustainability Report: A Year of Mastering Efficiency

Ever since its foundation almost 75 years ago, Gorenje (now part of Hisense Europe) has strongly emphasized environmental and social responsibility. Gorenje was the first company in Slovenia to voluntarily join the EMAS scheme, which requires companies to meet even higher environmental protection standards than those prescribed by the ISO14001 environmental management system. This has led to significant improvements in the efficiency of our appliances. Today's washing machines, e.g. use 60% less energy and 70% less water than appliances used just a few years ago.

Our commitment to sustainability is also reflected in our sponsorships at various levels. As a sponsor of the UEFA European Football Championship for the third time in a row, we are using this platform to promote our message of sustainability and responsible investment across Europe. Our commitment is global, as we were a proud sponsor of the FIFA World Cup in 2018 and 2022. Gorenje is also an official partner of the men's and women's European Handball Championships. This decision underscores our commitment to equality and inclusion, while expanding the reach of our sustainability message to a wider audience. Our support of these events is not only a platform to strengthen our brand - it is also an opportunity to promote sustainable values and practices. Our investments in sports sponsorships at the European and global level enable us to actively contribute to the promotion of sustainable development and to raising awareness of the key role of responsible investment for the future of our planet.

Our proactive commitment to sustainable development is reinforced by the EcoVadis certificate, which demonstrates our commitment to responsible business practices. This internationally recognized business assessment places us in the top 11% of all assessed companies, which confirms our continuous efforts to reduce our environmental footprint and advocate for social responsibility.

In 2023, when developing appliances, we focused on improvements in three key areas: the energy efficiency of appliances, the development of recyclable packaging and the optimization of the length of the user manuals and the sustainable design of appliances. We started by renovating and adapting the design of the appliances we manufacture, taking into account the guidelines for their display capacity. The purpose of the project is to improve the possibilities for the integration of appliances into the circular economy. By removing decorative elements, using cleaner materials, prioritizing detachable joints or by joining and reducing material consumption, we reduce production and servicing costs, facilitate the recycling of appliances and the possibility of their processing and reuse. Based on the EN45554:2020 standard, we are also developing a repairability assessment methodology that will enable the quantification of repairability and degradability of products.

Energy efficiency

One of the key constant tasks of development is increasing the energy efficiency of appliances. This includes improving the properties of appliances according to energy labels. At the same time, in 2023, we focused on the development of solutions for monitoring the consumption of appliances through our own mobile app, which enables the connectivity of appliances and is primarily intended for remote use. The key function offered by the application is also the user awareness about reducing the consumption of appliances and the possibilities for more efficient use. This feature is already covered by the in-app user support and is being upgraded by developing usage display and monitoring solutions that will be available to users.

Development of recyclable packaging

The development of recyclable packaging includes alternative packaging solutions to replace Styrofoam packaging for all categories of large household appliances. The key challenges that slow down the implementation of such packaging relate to higher production costs, the achievement of high internal requirements for packaging durability testing in order to prevent damage during transport, and legislative requirements that differ from country to country, which increases the complexity of packaging production.

Optimization of the instructions for use

The optimization of the instructions for use is a project to gradually introduce double user manuals, a shorter printed version and a longer digital version. All necessary information on safety measures, installation and basic use are indicated in the shorter printed version that comes with the appliances. The longer version that users access via the link in the printed manual, and is on available in digital format, all additional Information is given. In this way, we ensure that the users have access to all the necessary information at the same time and we reduce production costs and the impact on the environment resulting from the consumption of material and the resulting waste.