Far reaching environmental practices outlined in APL’s new Sustainability brochure aim to turn the company from being “part of the problem” to part of the solution.

The Waikato-based window systems manufacturer and its parent company, Profile Group, are deep into a multi-year investment in designing out waste and pollution, and keeping products and materials in use.

The group, which markets Altherm, First, and Vantage windows and doors nationally, as well as AGP glass products, emphasises three key goals in the new brochure: closing the loop with renewable packaging and full-circle reuse; designing out waste with a range of carbonzero products; and regenerating nature by manufacturing with renewable energy.

The brochure serves as a programme to measure the sustainability performance of all parts of the highly diversified group, committing to targets and, “openly sharing our learnings so that we not only reduce our own impact as a group but reset industry expectations and provide a model for circular success.”

The Group became the first New Zealand company to use the international sustainability tool, Circular Transition Indicator (CTI), that allows businesses to measure and validate the circular flow of products, packaging, energy and water. From this baseline, business units have adopted targets and monitor progress towards them.

Starting in 2021, greenhouse gas emissions across the whole supply chain were baselined in cooperation with Toitū, and reduction planning undertaken. Action points focused on energy efficiency and securing renewable electricity. A relationship with Kawatiri Energy, on the West Coast, generators of hydro electricity, has seen Profile Group purchase New Zealand Energy Certificates from Kawatiri to offset its carbon footprint. The energy certificates scheme, similar to the Emissions Trading Scheme, enables businesses to report on electricity usage as if it was sourced directly from specific power stations.

Profile Group has also become the first participant in an innovative new biodiversity credit scheme. The market was launched by New Zealand carbon management and certification company, Ekos, with the aim of raising funds for conservation management through the sale of biodiversity units. The group’s purchase of biodiversity units currently provides Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, in the South Waikato, with the financial resources required to look after an 83-hectare block. The total reserve is a 3,363ha forested ecological island with a 47km-long predator-proof fence and, previously, the organisation struggled to raise enough funds to meet its annual operating budget.

The Sustainability brochure acknowledges that with APL Window Solutions being the country’s largest manufacturer of windows and doors, “we believe we have a responsibility to improve the way we do things and reduce our environmental impact. We don’t see this as compliance. We see it as an opportunity. We firmly believe we can create a better world — for our customers, our communities, and our employees - and, at the same time, create a better, more profitable business.”

View the 2024 Sustainability brochure