Brazil
Setting a good example
KHS has operated its own factory in São Paulo, Brazil, since 1962. At the oldest production site outside Germany within the KHS Group we manufacture machines and components for our process engineering, filling technology and conveyor systems. KHS service teams based at our plant in São Paulo provide our customers in Brazil and the neighboring regions with direct local support. We attach great value to making our production processes as gentle on resources as possible and thus reducing the impact our company has on the environment in the long term.
KHS’ high quality requirements apply to the manufacturing process and products constructed on site. Our Brazilian plant is certified according to the international ISO 9001 management system and complies with the KHS Group’s quality and process specifications. Moreover, the factory is audited by SMETA/SEDEX and EcoVadis on a regular basis.
Thanks to the various measures in place here in São Paulo, we ultimately also help to have a lasting positive influence on the social environment and well-being of our employees and their families in the neighboring communities.
Focus on waste reduction and energy and water consumption
We want to continue to meet the growing requirements dictated by a sustainable production setup which is why we have made waste reduction and energy and water consumption in particular the focus of our efforts. In doing so, we are also complying with official regulations. The local authorities are the decisive entities here when it comes to preventing potential risks to the environment in commercial and industrial operations. The prime concerns in this respect are wastewater treatment and disposal and the correct recycling of hazardous materials such as paint, coatings and liquids used to clean stainless-steel surfaces. A dedicated team for occupational health, safety and environmental protection organizes monthly meetings and draws up regular detailed reports on specific projects. Annually, we invest approximately 15 to 20% of our entire measures budget in the sustainable further development of our site.
Occupational health and safety key pillars
Besides optimizing the use of energy and other resources in our production processes, the occupational health and safety (OHS) of our personnel is also a key pillar of our site policy. The plant in Brazil has its own OHS team that identifies day-to-day risks at work and trains our workforce accordingly. This allows us to alert our employees to potential accident hazards that they can then largely avoid themselves. The OHS team has introduced additional safety measures in the truck loading process or operation of cranes, for instance. Automated procedures and emergency stop systems actively protect our personnel from potential dangers within the operating radius. Finally, all executive managers receive specially devised safety instruction at regular intervals. This sensitizes them to these important topics; they then pass on this knowledge to their team and anchor it in day-to-day operations.
My personal commitment is to participate as part of a team in a company whose aim is to act responsibly for its stakeholders and future generations.
Projects in the reporting period (selection)
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In-house water and wastewater treatment
At KHS Brazil we have a system for capturing rainwater and a well that collects water at a depth of 480 meters. This water is treated in house and the final quality is so good that it can be used throughout the entire factory, including for our employees’ own consumption. The entire system has been in operation for several years and helps us to save around 40% of the company’s water costs and to cut down on the amount of water drawn by the company from the community.
Furthermore, all wastewater produced (water from the cleaning of parts, oil from the machine process and liquids from the deburring process) is physically and chemically treated at a special treatment station and then drained off. This system operates in full compliance with the regulations and requirements of the local authorities.
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Replacement of wood and reusable packaging
All of the wooden pallets used at the factory have been replaced by more durable plastic pallets for the provision and transportation of materials in house. KHS Brazil is also implementing a recycling program in cooperation with local companies. During the reporting period a program for the reuse of wooden pallets provided by suppliers with deliveries of parts was launched. These pallets are now sold on to other companies who can reuse them as part of their life cycle. As regards packaging for new lines and machines, KHS Brazil also takes this back from local customers and uses it for new projects in order to extend its lifetime for as long as possible.
All cardboard boxes from suppliers, and especially from KHS GmbH, are reused and marked with a label specifically stating this fact. This greatly helps to lower the number of new boxes procured, plus waste is reduced and with it energy consumption and carbon emissions.
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Greenhouse gas and toxic emissions
The search for systems and solutions that reduce our impact on the environment forms the core of our activities. We therefore use various equipment designed to avoid or cut our carbon emissions and monitor this. This includes apparatus for the surface treatment of metal parts and devices used for in-house transportation and logistics.
Our blasting cabinets and spray booths have a local exhaust system equipped with filters for particles and organic vapors.
All of our forklifts are powered by gas which considerably reduces our air pollutant emissions (especially carbon monoxide).
Since 2020 KHS Brazil has also operated a plant to generate nitrogen gas (N2) that is used in several of the company’s processes. In installing this plant we have reduced the environmental and climate impact of the truck traffic previously used to transport the gas to our factory to zero.
KHS Brazil only uses ethanol fuel in its fleet vehicles. This biobased fuel is an important keystone of the site’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
In addition, the factory’s old air conditioning units are currently being replaced by more modern devices. The new units will save more than 50% energy compared to the older models. Besides saving energy, the new devices consume less greenhouse gas coolant and in doing so also reduce KHS Brazil’s carbon footprint.
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Electricity consumption
All of the electricity provided on site is made from renewable sources of energy. Moreover, at its plant in Brazil KHS endeavors to cut the energy consumption of its processes and activities wherever possible.
In this context the entire factory has been fitted with LED lights and a roof with plastic skylights that enables natural light to be used during the day, thus reducing the number of artificial lights needed to an absolute minimum.
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Social responsibility
Every two years KHS Brazil employs around ten trainees from state technical colleges as part of their apprenticeship. These trainees are usually aged between 15 and 19 and stay at the company for two years, during which they receive a vocational training wage. They are all encouraged to learn as much as they can in a special training program that includes practical modules on subjects such as maintenance through to assembly. At the end of this period they have the chance to be taken on by the company as regular employees. The majority of the workforce in Brazil has gone through this program.
