Sustainability Report 2024

Our approach to sustainability

As a global manufacturer and provider of indoor climate solutions, Zehnder Group operates within an industry with a significant environmental impact. We are committed to sustainable development, aligning our efforts with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the principles of the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), which we joined in 2022. Our sustainability strategy, based on a Double Materiality Assessment, addresses key areas such as environmental responsibility, social issues, and governance, focusing on reducing environmental impact, promoting fair labour practices, and enhancing transparency within our own business operations and throughout the supply chain.

Sustainability is deeply embedded in our operations through a range of policy commitments, including our Code of Conduct (CoC), Supplier Code of Conduct (SCoC), and the new Human Rights Directive. These policies are designed to align our activities and guide our suppliers toward adherence to international standards, such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions. We regularly review and update these policies to keep pace with evolving standards and expectations. Our Human Rights Due Diligence framework, overseen by the CEO and the Sustainability Steering Committee, aims to ensure that human rights are integrated into all operations, from risk assessments to ongoing monitoring.

We have established clear processes to address and remediate negative impacts that may arise from our operations. This includes regular risk assessments and implementing corrective actions, with a focus on adherence to our sustainability policies. We are committed to promptly investigating and resolving any issues that arise, maintaining our commitment to responsible business practices.

We offer multiple avenues for our employees and stakeholders to seek advice or raise concerns. Through our Zehnder Group Integrity Line, individuals can anonymously report any misconduct or violations of our policies. This ensures that all concerns are handled confidentially and with the utmost care, with safeguards in place against retaliation for those reporting in good faith.

We actively participate in various sustainability and industry associations. These memberships help us stay aligned with global engineering best practices and engage with other organisations that share our commitment to sustainable development. At Zehnder, we are dedicated to continuous improvement and upholding high standards in sustainability across all aspects of our business.

Our approach to reporting

Zehnder Group AG is a publicly listed – yet family-controlled – stock corporation headquartered in Gränichen, Switzerland. The Sustainability Report covers the entire scope of the business segments and all consolidated companies within the Group. These entities are aligned with the details provided in Zehnder Group’s Annual Report, ensuring that the Sustainability Report includes data and insights from all relevant operational units of the Group across its global footprint. Following a same-year, all-year approach, acquisitions¹ executed in the reporting year are considered in the same reporting year on a full-year basis, and divestments² in the reporting year are removed from consideration. All data points collected and disclosed follow this principle, unless otherwise stated. Value chain information, both upstream and downstream, may be included through direct engagement with strategic suppliers and customers, as well as with end-users. Any remaining value chain information is based on research and the knowledge gathered from relevant stakeholders.

The Sustainability Report covers the reporting period from 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, in alignment with the Annual Report. Selected KPIs have undergone limited assurance by PricewaterhouseCoopers AG and have been marked with a checkmark , as described in the Limited assurance report.

With this Sustainability Report, we aim to further increase transparency for our stakeholders by providing insights into Zehnder Group’s sustainability strategy, highlighting our progress, and addressing the challenges we face. To meet evolving requirements, our annual Sustainability Report is a continuous effort. Starting from 2024, we report in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards, and as in 2023, we report in compliance with the Swiss Code of Obligations. We are already collecting data according to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) as we aim to report under ESRS starting next year. Additionally, our reporting on “Climate action” complies with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

The report is structured into chapters on Governance and Strategy, followed by focus topics on Environmental matters, Employee-related issues, Social issues, Combating corruption, and Respect for human rights. These topics have been identified using the principle of double materiality and align with the five non-financial reporting areas under the Swiss Code of Obligations. Each focus topic includes a section on “Impacts, risks, and opportunities” and a “Management approach”, detailing how Zehnder addresses these risks through specific policies. The “Implementation and outlook” section outlines the actions taken, assesses their effectiveness, and includes KPIs. Adjustments based on new or updated data are noted, and figures that were unavailable or unpublished last year are marked as “n/a”. The indices section includes the GRI content index, a Swiss Code of Obligations index, a TCFD index, and a List of abbreviations.

The key financial figures were finalised as part of Zehnder’s 2024 Annual Report and can be accessed via the Zehnder website.

¹In 2024, Zehnder Group acquired Siber.

²In 2024, Zehnder Group divested its Climate Ceiling Solutions business.

Further information

Contact

Zehnder Group AG
Investor Relations
Moortalstrasse 1
5722 Gränichen (CH)

Phone +41 62 855 15 21
investor-relations@zehndergroup.com
www.zehndergroup.com

Publication date: 26 February 2025

An Integrated Report (financial and non-financial information) for the 2025 reporting year is planned for the first quarter of 2026.

Additional information on our commitment to sustainability is available on our Sustainability website.