Corporate responsibility at Festo, a family-owned company

Corporate responsibility

Our contribution to sustainable development

Sustainable business practices and lifestyles are the core elements of a forward-looking life together on our planet. Reconciling economic and environmental considerations is a multigenerational undertaking and is each individual’s responsibility. We understand corporate responsibility (CR) as our economic, environmental and social contribution to sustainable development. Our activities are aligned with those UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are especially relevant to Festo.

The impact that Festo can have on the 17 SDGs of the United Nations varies widely. We carried out a materiality analysis to identify the following seven SDGs to which Festo as a company can make a relevant contribution as part of a sustainable development:

  • Good Health and Well-Being (SDG 3)
  • Quality Education (SDG 4)
  • Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG 6)
  • Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8)
  • Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (SDG 9)
  • Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG 12)
  • Climate Action (SDG 13)
The seven relevant Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Festo

The areas of action defined in our Sustainability Strategy 2020+

The areas of action defined in our current Sustainability Strategy 2020+ were developed after having identified those Sustainable Development Goals that are relevant to our company. In autumn 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 17 SDGs.

The SDGs are the centrepiece of the 2030 Agenda – a global action plan that aims to tackle current challenges such as extreme poverty, inequality and injustice and protecting our planet, while making economic progress both environmentally friendly and socially equitable. At Festo, we are committed to supporting the goals formulated in the SGDs as part of our own sustainability strategy.

In identifying the key SDGs and developing associated areas of action, we supplemented the results of the stakeholder analysis with observations of external changes in the fields of legislation, business and politics, technology, energy, the environment and society. On this basis, we regularly review our strategic focus and also our sustainability goals and measures.

Areas of action defined in our Sustainability Strategy 2020+

The areas of action defined in our Sustainability Strategy 2020+

On the way to CO2 neutrality

Festo will massively reduce its CO2 footprint in the coming years. From 2023, all our buildings in Germany as well as our global production and logistics sites will be CO2 neutral with regard to Scope 1 and 2. From 2026, the entire Festo Group will be CO2 neutral. After that, we will continue to work on energy-saving measures and the retrofitting of our heating technology in order to continuously reduce the need for compensation.

Our Sustainability Report 2021

Festo is a product of many hands created over generations. We shape our future through our financial independence as a family-owned company. That is our mission. In doing so, we involve all our stakeholders – customers, employees, suppliers and society – in the collective and sustainable creation of value. With our expertise in automation and technical education, we increase our customers’ productivity and create opportunities for sustainable economic, environmental and social development. That is our ambition.

In our Sustainability Report 2021, we document our global responsibility using examples from 2021.

Partner of the Blue Competence initiative

We are a partner of the Blue Competence sustainability initiative. Blue Competence is an initiative of the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA) to promote sustainability in the machine and system building sector, and also to foster sustainable solutions throughout industry. Through our partnership, we are committed to complying with the 12 sustainable guiding principles for machine and system building.

The sustainable guidelines for the machine and system building sector (PDF)