Sustainability roadmap for Eagle Chemicals

The challenge

Eagle Chemicals in Egypt is a major manufacturer of resins, polymers and specialty chemicals in the Middle East. When it sought funds to develop and grow the business, one of the conditions from investors was for the company to prepare a sustainability roadmap to reduce negative social and environmental impact of its activities and products.

Royal HaskoningDHV was contracted to help Eagle Chemicals in their sustainability journey. We worked with the company to develop a framework to assess, improve and maintain best practice across its product cycle, supply chain management and international sales.

The solution

Change in culture as opportunities are embraced

“By focusing on the sustainability of products as well as operations, the roadmap supported the company’s strategy to grow the business towards Europe,” said Mirjam van der Velde, Sustainability Consultant at Royal HaskoningDHV. “Eagle Chemicals recognised there was a clear need to reduce the sustainable impact of its products to achieve its ambitions.

This led to a rapid change of culture with the process being approached as an opportunity rather than a risk. The excitement and enthusiasm generated in our first workshop carried through into actions which were all completed months ahead of schedule.”

The process embedded a broad understanding of sustainability - encompassing emissions and biodiversity as well as impact on people, communities and resources. “The company quickly realised that cooperation was needed across all areas of the business to make progress in developing a green product line,” said Mirjam. “People from all areas of the organisation came together in the workshops which facilitated this understanding.”

The result

How to make the transition from strategy to implementation

The roadmap connects with the company’s strategic objectives while also providing practical guidance on how to bridge the gap between strategy and implementation.

For implementation, three main focus areas were identified: the development of futureproof products that have lower sustainable impact and can be exported into EU markets; improvements in health and safety; and the transition to renewable energy sources.

Benchmarking and improvement strategies provided Eagle Chemicals with the insight and tools it needed for its journey to more sustainable products and operations.