For our company and our impact on the environment and people, it is crucial where we source our raw materials from and what specific material properties they have. In 2025, Festo purchased a total of 26,672 tonnes of raw materials. Polymers, aluminium and (stainless) steel are among the materials used most often in our production. As resources are finite and their extraction has an impact on the environment, it is important to develop comprehensive concepts to reduce material consumption. That is why we rely on circular economy approaches, for example.
One key focus is aluminium. This is because bauxite, the raw material used in aluminium production, is a critical raw material with significant environmental impacts. One approach is to increasingly replace primary aluminium with secondary aluminium. In 2025, Festo achieved a secondary aluminium content of 78.1 per cent.
In Hungary, we go one step further. There, aluminium waste is melted down directly to produce the raw materials needed, thus bypassing various intermediate steps. We are currently testing the feasibility of using this technology at German sites.
The direct and indirect procurement volume at Festo (production materials and non-production materials) has continued to decline slightly from 1.536 billion euros (2024) to 1.519 billion euros (2025). This is partly due to the economic situation.
The non-production materials relate to all production sites (Festo Global Production Centres, GPCs for short) and the sales companies. The production materials include all production sites. Festo is constantly expanding its global supplier network, consisting of both local and non-local suppliers. By 'local' we mean procurement within the region of a particular Festo national company.
The number of local suppliers fell slightly in 2025, compared to the previous year.
We continued to pursue the 'Local for Local' strategy in 2025 in order to reduce, among other things, delivery times and improve flexibility throughout the supply chain and transportation routes. The objective is to continue to increase procurement of goods in those countries and regions where production also takes place.
The graphs below show the regional distribution of the direct and indirect purchasing volume of the Festo Group as well as the proportion of local and non-local suppliers.
Our customers can find out from a variety of user manuals and descriptions how to use a newly purchased product safely and professionally. Notes on possible misuse as well as information on maintenance, cleaning, care and disposal help the user to avoid expensive and climate-damaging costs. This also extends the service life of the products. Various tutorials clearly explain how users can, for example, replace spare parts kits themselves.
Product approval processes are described in internal guidelines. Festo must comply with the applicable law in order for its products to be considered safe. Different product safety regulations and laws are in place around the world that govern whether products can be placed on the market. This requires the appropriate approvals in the different regions.
In our Application Note (available in English only), you will find an overview of these issues and further information on material compliance topics that may affect Festo products.
We are convinced that technological progress and sustainability must go hand in hand. As a family-run company, we pursue a sustainability strategy that combines environmental, social and business responsibility and that determines our actions.
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