The new Green is Orange.
At WALTER Surface Technologies, we strive to provide customers with the means to achieve greatness and to contribute to their success by helping them work better.
As the world grows more aware of health and environmental issues, conscious metalworking businesses aim to improve their processes and add new, cost-effective solutions that help minimize negative environmental & social impact.
WALTER meets the challenge of sustainability with environmentally safe, productive, and long-lasting products that outperform the competition while being less harmful and helping reduce energy consumption and waste. We also implement and regularly monitor internal initiatives to ensure we work more safely, responsibly, and sustainably.
We are in the process of setting new priorities and targets as we approach sustainability through the three ESG pillars:
 | ENVIRONMENT |
| We work to deliver durable products and continuously improve our product designs to meet customer needs as well as reduce the impact on the environment such as through low-VOC or VOC-free chemical solutions. We are looking to minimize packaging, make it reusable, or find recyclable alternatives to reduce waste. | |
 | SOCIAL |
| We seek to improve safety by tracking incidents, consolidating best practices, putting corrective measures in place, and by having Health & Safety training refreshers across all our facilities. We ensure our products exceed safety standards and comply with all regulations relating to such products. We also continue to provide free safety seminars to end-users, in addition to creating long-lasting, durable products that reduce danger and risks to end-users. | |
 | GOVERNANCE |
| We strive to promote transparency and timeliness in communication with stakeholders and partners on ESG matters. We want to lead with strong governance and promote sustainable business ethics by collaborating with suppliers and partners who share our commitment to environmental stewardship. We also want to encourage women in leadership roles and promote woman in trade by increasing their visibility in advertising. |
E N V I R O N M E N T
Product Design
WALTER prides itself on offering a diverse range of environmentally preferred products and solutions to meet the evolving needs of environmentally conscious industries. From innovative cutting and grinding tools to eco-friendly metalworking fluids, our commitment to a holistic approach is embedded into every aspect of our product lines. Our website allows customers to browse our “Environmentally Preferred Solution” and products by selecting “Environmentally preferred” in the search criteria. These products will contain a green icon and further details on how they are considered green.
Manufacturing Waste
We strive to reduce the amount of waste created during the manufacturing process. We ensure we minimize the disposal of hazardous materials by recycling resources and allocating them efficiently. For example, our GFI drill bits utilize blanks produced from 90% + recycled HSS and 80% + recycled cobalt steel. In addition, 15% of boxes received from our suppliers are re-used for outbound shipments. 45-50% of our shipping cardboard boxes are made from recycled fibers.
Reducing GHG Emissions
We are in the process of completing our data collection for our SCOPE 1, 2, & 3 emissions. The goal is to create a benchmark analysis in order to properly develop and implement initiatives that will help us reduce our GHG emissions. There will be a greater focus on larger impact operations first, such as retrofitting energy consuming equipment and helping facilities reduce their total Scope 1 and 2 emissions. In addition, there will be efforts in consolidating our outbound shipments to deliver products responsibly, reduce costs, and help our customers meet their emission reduction goals.
Reduce Waste via Lifecycle Management
We ensure that we extend product life via design as much as possible through our after-sales services. For example, our SURFOX ™ brushes can be trimmed to expose new bristles, just like our ENDURO-FLEX™ discs that can also be trimmed to expose more abrasive flaps. Launched in 2023, our ZIP™ XX cut-off wheels were also designed to self-sharpen thanks to our new SMART RESIN™ technology. Additionally, we offer after-sales repair services for many products such as our power tools, as well as resharpening services for our annular cutters.
To view our 2024 Environmentally Preferred Solutions, download the brochure here.
S O C I A L
Ensuring the Health and Safety of our Employees
We are committed to preventing employee injury by actively tracking and analyzing incidents with the goal of preventing them completely. We track data such as number of injuries, frequency rate, impact on efficiency, and more, in order to deliver the safest environment. Maximizing safety has been a priority for WALTER for many years and we are constantly upholding and enhancing our very thorough and long-standing employee safety trainings. We ensure to have first-aid trained personnel in case of an emergency on-site at every facility to increase safety for our employees.
Customer Safety
Not only do we focus on our employees’ safety but also that of our clients. We regularly improve our existing products as well as design new ones based on customer feedback and data on productivity and safety as well as based on NSF/CFIA approval requirements. This enables us to attract customers and meet their needs by embodying a sustainable mindset that meets their values. We also aim to innovate with the goal of offering highly effective solutions with less toxic or harmful chemicals, like our VOC-free cleaners. Moreover, WALTER has delivered free Safety Seminars to clients since 1987. The trainings are designed to inform clients on proper product use and handing and have reached well over 62,000 metalworkers since their inception. We will continue to help welding instructors by partnering with welding trade schools to support future welders by offering the right tools, training, scholarships & resources. Through meticulous testing procedures and quality assurance protocols, we guarantee that our offerings uphold the highest levels of performance and reliability while prioritizing the safety of our customers and end-users. By prioritizing product liability in our operations, we demonstrate our dedication to delivering trusted solutions that inspire confidence and contribute to a safer and more sustainable future.
Supporting Women
WALTER is breaking the glass ceiling with the goal of reaching parity in senior leadership. Through its advertising, social media initiatives, and literature, WALTER is also looking to give more visibility to women in welding and metalworking roles, encouraging women in the field.
G O V E R N A N C E
Business Ethics
We continuously promote ethical values and principles within the company. These principles seek to serve and protect others above the organization's self-interest and demonstrate strong moral character from our leaders and employees. To promote compliance, each year the Company requires the employees to signoff policies by all employees including but not limited to Code of Conduct, Anti-Bribery, and Whistleblower policies,. We ensure our employees commit to, represent, and embody our company values by ensuring they align with our many initiatives, goals, and procedures through training. As of recently, WALTER will annually report on the Forced Labor and Child Labor regulations in relation to Bill S-211.
Diversion Equity and Inclusion
WALTER is breaking the glass ceiling with the goal of reaching parity in senior leadership. Through its advertising, social media initiatives, and literature, WALTER is also looking to give more visibility to women and support employees that have historically been underrepresented in welding and metalworking roles, encouraging diversity equity and inclusion in the field.
A P P R O A C H
WALTER will align itself with SASB standards, a well-established standard approach and methodology, to track and report on ESG risks and opportunities, and measure efficiencies. At WALTER we believe that consideration of ESG factors not only enhances our assessment of risk but also helps us identify opportunities for value creation. We believe that our ESG commitments and initiatives help strengthen our company, drive value, and create better outcomes. Through discussions with stakeholders, management, customers and the Board, we have pinpointed specific ESG focus areas critical to our business operations. As a result, we are committed to allocating additional time and resources to establish clear objectives and targets for these identified areas.
WALTER Surface Technologies has been on the road towards sustainability for decades and has earned prestigious international awards throughout the years, including: The American Eagle Award, the Environmental Choice Program “Eco-Logo”, CleanTech’s Cleaning Technology Award, the Deutscher Material Effizienz Preiz, the NRW Effizienz Preiz and recognition by The Wall Street Journal’s Technology Innovation Awards, among many others.
