Global coatings provider Beckers Group names first CSO

Beckers Group, a German company supplying paint coatings to industrial customers in 58 countries, has promoted its Global Sustainability Director, Nicklas Augustsson, to the new position of Chief Sustainability Officer.

As CSO, Augustsson will continue to report to Chief Technology Officer Gavin Brown, but will now be a permanent member of the executive committee.

"In creating a Chief Sustainability Officer seat on the executive committee, we want to strengthen what we do to reach our 2030 sustainability targets. This is a strong message to our internal organisation, and also to our customers and stakeholders, that Beckers is committed on sustainability," said the company’s CEO, Christophe Sabas.

Augustsson has been at Beckers since 2001 and became Global Sustainability Director in 2016. As such, he led the company’s efforts to set its current sustainability targets and structure sustainability governance.

Sustainability governance at Beckers: sustainability council and annual contract

Beckers Group, which is owned by Swedish industrial group Lindéngruppen and reported total sales of about €660 million in 2022, has a formal sustainability governance structure that includes a sustainability council chaired by Augustsson and consisting of representatives from all key functions and regions. 

The council is tasked with monitoring progress on Beckers’ 2030 sustainability strategy, but also help set the annual “sustainability contract”, a list of milestones and targets submitted every year to the Beckers board of directors, as well as Lindéngruppen, to ensure progress towards the 2030 goals.

Beckers Group sustainability progress

As of 2022, the company has cut Scope 1 and 2 absolute emissions by 42% compared to 2013 and is firmly on track to meet its 55% reduction goal by 2030. Beckers has also decreased landfill waste by 76% and now sources 56% of its energy from renewables (with the goal of achieving 70% by 2030).

In order to clean up its supply chain, the company has developed its own sustainability index, classifying the sustainable impact of coating systems from the point of view of materials used and durability. 

Based on this assessment, Beckers says it is promoting the use of renewable raw materials, and looking at using bio-sourced raw materials and recycled plastic content. The company is yet to set an official Scope 3 target.