Resources and Raw Materials

In buying and using raw materials, we strive to conserve resources, avoid damage to the environment and protect the health of our employees and the public. In line with the company’s commitment to Sustainable Development and based on the Precautionary Principle it is Roche's responsibility and intention to avoid any actual or potential unacceptable risk arising from the use of environmental damaging compounds.

We also invite our suppliers to work jointly with us on improving supply chain sustainability. By engaging proactively, we aim to promote innovation, manage performance and risk, ensure business continuity and form emergency response plans. Roche’s suppliers are asked to commit to the principles outlined in the Roche Supplier Code of Conduct.

For Roche, energy consumption is a material issue. As part of our commitment to a sustainable development and the responsible use of resources, we continuously endeavour to cut energy consumption while increasing the proportion of sustainable energy. Our strategy is to reduce our use first, then look for ways to substitute fossil fuels with sustainable energy.

We seek to improve energy efficiency throughout our global operations. This, in turn, will reduce the environmental impact, the strain on the energy supply chain and costs. Our systematic approach to energy management includes:

• constructing energy-efficient buildings

• retrofitting heating, cooling and air conditioning installations

• adjusting the range of acceptable temperatures in offices and other workplaces

• purchasing energy-efficient equipment, including hybrid and diesel-efficient cars

• changing work processes

• reviewing employees’ travel needs

Roche is dependent on clean water for the production of pharmaceutical and diagnostic goods. We support global efforts to protect and conserve water and to improve access to clean drinking water. Our efforts to stabilise water consumption have resulted in our water use remaining relatively unchanged over the past five years, despite the growth of the company.

We adopt water conservation and reduction programmes according to local conditions and needs. For example, our Californian sites use drought resistant landscaping. We reduce water consumption at other sites by:

• collecting and recycling water from cooling towers, creating a closed-loop system

• reusing cleaning water for next ‘first rinse’ and recycling used water

• reducing cooling requirements and improving cooling processes

• improving heat recovery resulting in lower cooling water demand