Focus Topics – Employee-related issues

Occupational health and safety

Impacts, risks, and opportunities

Impacts

Zehnder Group’s manufacturing processes, particularly in radiator and ventilation production, pose risks due to hazardous materials, heavy machinery, and energy-intensive operations. If not properly managed, these risks may result in workplace accidents or long-term health issues. Our occupational health and safety (OHS) work therefore focuses on preventing harm and mitigating negative impacts through hazard identification, risk controls, and continuous monitoring. While prevention is our primary objective, a safer workplace supports employee well-being and helps sustain productivity by reducing injuries, absenteeism, and unplanned downtime.

Risks and opportunities

Inadequate health and safety standards can lead to work accidents, operational disruptions, legal liabilities, reputational damage, and increased costs resulting from workplace incidents or regulatory breaches. OHS-related risks may also increase due to evolving regulations or greater scrutiny of safety practices by stakeholders. Supporting ongoing improvement with employee training and engagement helps create a safer work environment and supports long-term business resilience. Adhering to international health and safety standards can also strengthen relationships with external stakeholders, particularly regulators and investors, who increasingly value robust safety performance.

Management approach

Zehnder Group promotes OHS across the organisation, aiming to provide safe working conditions in all its operations and to eliminate fatalities and serious work-related injuries.

OHS is overseen at Group level by the COO Radiators EMEA, with a standardised reporting process implemented in 2025. Each relevant production site has an appointed OHS manager responsible for KPI collection and compliance. Regular internal and external audits, along with certification processes, form part of Zehnder Group’s due diligence in managing safety risks. By tracking metrics, such as the work-related injury rate and certification rate, we are able to monitor the effectiveness of our OHS initiatives.

Occupational health and safety management systems

The international standard ISO 45001 offers a robust framework for accident prevention and the management of workplace risks. This standard forms the basis for all our European production sites that have complex manufacturing processes. This certification is particularly important for our radiator production facilities and other sites involved in metal forming or injection moulding.

The Occupational Health and Safety Group Directive defines the key elements of our approach. These include establishing clear safety guidelines, conducting machinery and process risk assessments, and analysing all work-related incidents to prevent recurrence. Measures range from technical improvement, such as setting minimum safety standards for equipment, to enhancing work organisation and training practices.

Implementation and outlook

Implementation of the above management approach and policies is structured around one focus area with defined targets and KPIs.

Targets

Ambition: Create an environment in which we promote occupational health and safety across the organisation

Target: Obtain ISO 45001 certification (or equivalent) of all production sites where metal forming or plastic injection takes place

• Status: The ISO 45001 certification process has been successfully completed. In May 2025, our production site in Germany achieved certification, bringing the total number of certified sites to six: Lahr (Germany), Bolesławiec (Poland), Gränichen (Switzerland), Manisa (Türkiye), Maidstone (Great Britain) and Vaux-Andigny (France). All European sites involved in metal forming and plastic injection are now certified under ISO 45001.
• Outlook: No further certifications are planned at this stage. Sites outside Europe will continue to operate under equivalent local occupational safety standards, such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in North America.

Target: Create and implement an Occupational Health and Safety Group Directive

• Status: The OHS Group Directive was approved by the Group Executive Committee in early May 2025 and officially published in the same month. It is now accessible via the company intranet.
• Outlook: Implementation across all business units will ensure consistent application of OHS principles and alignment with ISO 45001 requirements. Ongoing monitoring and feedback from sites will support continuous improvement and integration of best practices in workplace safety.

Metrics

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety 2018
Disclosure 403-8 Workers covered by an occupational health and safety management system

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety 2018
Disclosure 403-9 Work-related injuries
Work-related injuries for all employees

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety 2018
Disclosure 403-9 Work-related injuries
Work-related injuries for all workers who are not employees, but whose work and/or workplace is controlled by the organisation

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety 2018
Disclosure 403-10 Work-related ill health