Responsibility is at the core of everything we do. Behaving responsibly toward people, the environment, and all our stakeholders is an integral part of our culture. We are convinced that this will also have a decisive influence on our success in the future.
Our pledge to responsibility
Climate, resources, and people are precious to us. We pledge to always act accordingly. To systematically decarbonize our business. To always look for new ways to conserve resources and promote a circular economy. To prioritize the well-being and interests of the people in our company, in nearby communities, and along our value chain. Just as importantly, we expect the same from our business partners, both upstream and downstream.
Due to their high value and unique properties, precious metals have been mined, processed, and used for thousands of years. As this is unlikely to change, it is very important that these activities are carried out as responsibly and with as little harm to the environment and people as possible.
Read more
Argor-Heraeus provides services that place us right in the middle of the precious metals value chain. This puts us in a unique position to act as a bridge between the producers of raw precious metals, collectors or intermediaries, and our clients. We consider it our responsibility to use this position to keep driving the continuous improvement of responsible practices and industry standards.
We actively engage with stakeholders adjacent to our value chain, including representatives from our industry, politics, academia, and civil society (NGOs). This helps us to continuously improve our own approach and work toward greater sustainability, transparency, and traceability in our industry’s supply chain.
We are convinced that our industry can make a successful transition toward sustainability, but we can only achieve this by working together: from miners to refiners, processors, and users of precious metals. Our aim is to lead by example and to propel positive change in our industry. We set rigorous standards for our own business and actively encourage the adoption of similar standards along the entire value chain.
Our value chain & stakeholders
While our position at the center of the precious metals value chain makes us uniquely suited for addressing the sector’s key challenges, we are aware that we cannot achieve the transition toward a responsible precious metals industry on our own. That is why we cultivate long-term relationships based on respect, transparency, dialogue, and mutual trust with all our stakeholders.
*Precious metals business partners are all those who deliver precious metals for a refining service, regardless of whether we purchase the precious metals or not.
Engaging with stakeholders
Our goal is to set an example by sharing the importance of responsibility in our business practices with all our stakeholders. We contribute our expertise and vision and work together with the aim of improving the sector. Open and transparent dialogue on topics of mutual interest plays a key role in this. For instance, we regularly engage with NGOs to jointly address the key challenges in our supply chain. We have established a Sounding Board, composed of representatives from the corporate, academic, and NGO sectors whose names and roles can be found on our website. Together, we discuss issues in sustainability and responsibility, with the aim of fine-tuning our practices and ensuring continuous effort toward excellence in our business conduct, meeting not only the requirements of relevant rules and regulations, but also the expectations of the general public.
Stakeholders
Topics of interest
Engagement examples
Associations and working groups
- Economic performance
- Ethics and integrity
- Projects on Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM)
- Membership and/or presence in the boards of sector associations
Civil society representatives and NGOs
- Accreditations and certifications
- Environmental impact
- Ethics and integrity
- Management of supply chain
- Sounding Board
- Optimized grievance mechanism
Competitors
- Ethics and integrity
- Collective action for improvements within the value chain
- Partnerships on topics related to the sector
- Joint work within the national Swiss Association of Manufacturers and Traders in Precious Metals (ASFCMP)
Customers and suppliers
- Compliance
- Engagement in environmental protection and responsible use of resources
- Ethics and integrity
- Quality of products and services
- Traceability of precious metals
- Traceability solutions and traceable product lines
- Project with the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) supported by Innosuisse to monitor mining activities
Employees
- Diverse and inclusive workplaces
- Engagement in environmental protection and responsible use of resources
- Fair working conditions and wages
- Safe and healthy work environment
- Task Force Energy
- Precious Ideas contest
- Subsidies for public transport
- Leadership training
- Employee Engagement survey
Institutions, public services, and general population
- Tax payment
- Community activities
- Environmental impact
- Ethics and integrity
- Relationship with institutions
- Working and living conditions
- Together Sounds Better project
- Donations to selected organizations
Workers and communities in our value chain
- Community activities
- Environmental impact
- Ethics and integrity
- Relationship with institutions
- Working and living conditions
- Fairtrade, Fairmined, and Swiss Better Gold Association (SBGA) partnerships
- Solidarity fund to support development projects in countries where gold is extracted
Sustainability Governance
Sustainability topics are embedded in our existing management structures and are integrated into our decision-making processes. This reflects the importance that we attach to sustainability, ensuring it receives the necessary visibility as is the case with other topics, such as earnings performance and financial situation. We have a dedicated governance set up for sustainability overseen by the Heraeus Precious Metals Responsibility Committee–as described in the Responsibility path in the image on the side.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals developed by the United Nations as part of the 2030 Agenda are a universal call to action. The aim is to preserve the planet and improve the lives of all people.
03 Climate is precious to us
Climate protection is one of humankind’s biggest challenges. Rising sea levels, forest fires, water shortages, severe weather events, and loss of biodiversity are just a few of the adverse impacts of climate change.
Our business activities result in carbon emissions at our company and along our value chain. We pledge to our responsibility by putting a high priority on a significant and timely reduction of our carbon footprint.