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Sustainability

Sustainability

Sustainable Procurement

Procurement that has the most positive environmental, social and economic impacts possible over the entire life cycle.

“Procurement that has the most positive environmental, social and economic impacts possible over the entire life cycle”.

(ISO 20400 Standard)

For most organisations in the built environment, food and beverage, FMCG, aviation and other industries, 80% of their spend is with the supply chain.  Procurement is a key player in this process. Subsequently, sustainable procurement is a critical part of client and contractor policies and strategies, which is often reflected in tendering processes.

Many organisations now identify the procurement practices and actions required throughout the supply chain to allow for Value for Money through “smarter procurement”, focusing on issues such as:

  • Accountability
  • Transparency
  • Ethical behaviour
  • Innovation
  • Integration
  • Continual improvement

ISO 20400

In April 2017, ISO launched the first global sustainable procurement standard to build on, and replace, BS 8903.

The standard applies to any organisation, regardless of sector, size or location, providing:

  • An understanding of sustainable procurement
  • Sustainability impacts and considerations across various aspects of procurement activity
  • Methods of implementing sustainable procurement

The Supply Chain Sustainability School’s delivery partner, Action Sustainability, led the UK delegation to develop the standard and has created a wealth of resources to help businesses align themselves to it.

ISO 20400 Website

Connecting procurement with strategic sustainability

Procurement being the first and last point of call dealing with suppliers and subcontractors have the influence and leverage throughout their process to communicate the sustainability strategy to suppliers so that suppliers can contribute to meeting these goals.

Connecting procurement with strategic sustainability

Key sustainable procurement resources

Here are a selection of featured sustainable procurement resources. To view more, please visit our full resource library.

Sustainable Procurement
Sustainable Procurement
Sustainable Procurement
Sustainable Procurement
“A robust supply chain is vital to the successful and efficient delivery of any construction and infrastructure project. By engaging with our supply chain partners on the challenges and opportunities related to sustainability, we can ensure that sustainable methods of construction are embedded across every aspect of projects resulting in long-lasting, beneficial projects for all.”
Aaron Reid, Director of Sustainability, Morgan Sindall
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