We strive to be a leading manufacturer and supplier of innovative building envelope solutions that enable greater building energy efficiency. Our recently launched strategic plan, Vision 2030, builds on our track record of success following the pivot of Carlisle’s portfolio of general industrial businesses to a pure-play building products company. Vision 2030 aims to leverage mega trends around energy efficiency, labor savings, and the re-roofing cycle to generate above-market growth driven by innovation, the Carlisle Experience, and the Carlisle Operating System ("COS").
Climate-related risks and opportunities have influenced Carlisle's businesses, strategy, and financial planning in the following areas:
Products and Services:
Opportunities related to the growing demand for energy and carbon-efficient products have influenced our product strategy. For example, 2023 marked the opening of our Sikeston, Missouri polyiso manufacturing plant, the very first domestic manufacturing plant built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ("LEED") Platinum standards. This new facility manufactures energy-efficient polyiso insulation, which reduces cooling and heating costs for buildings and, in turn, reduces a building's carbon footprint.
We’ve recently released Polyiso Eco, our ISCC Plus-certified insulation containing 5% bio-based material, lowering the product footprint and providing an eco-conscious insulation solution that upholds performance.
Carlisle is well suited to capitalize on strong industry megatrends that are expanding our market opportunity, including pent-up re-roofing demand, growing energy and labor-saving efficiencies, and increased customer preference for full building envelope solutions.
Supply Chain and Value Chain:
Carlisle’s Environmental Sustainability Policy establishes a process to engage our supply chain and monitor compliance with Carlisle's policies for fair labor practices and our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. We maintain appropriate procedures to evaluate and select suppliers considering their performance and commitment to meeting the requirements of the Environmental Sustainability Policy. We utilize life cycle assessments as a transparent, objective report that communicates a product line's material composition and how it impacts the environment across its entire value chain. These actions allow for significant environmental impacts to be identified and addressed throughout our supply chain.
We make it a priority to work collaboratively and to foster strong relationships with our key suppliers. While our supplier engagement strategies around environmental and social impact are still evolving, we remain dedicated to creating an innovative environment underpinned by shared values. This is exemplified by the initiation of our first major environmentally focused supplier survey in collaboration with Assent. This survey, distributed to our top 100 suppliers, aims to identify areas where we can make the most substantial impact in reducing emissions based on the maturity of our supplier’s sustainability strategies and emissions reduction goals.
We also distribute risk assessment surveys to our top suppliers annually. These surveys cover key environmental and social indicators such as alignment with international sustainability frameworks, emissions management strategies, health and safety performance, environmental and ethics policies, and compliance methods related to bribery, corruption, and human trafficking. We also regularly connect with our top suppliers for progress updates on their internal sustainability targets and projects and advocate for increased transparency of environmental metrics. Working with our suppliers to drive decarbonization and the development of a sustainable supply chain strategy is crucial to achieving our goal of net zero by 2050.
Investments in R&D:
Another fundamental element to Carlisle’s business strategy is to drive innovation through enhanced focus on research and development to continue to introduce proprietary, differentiated value-add products and solutions.
Our research and development activities include the development of new product lines, the modification of existing product lines to comply with regulatory changes, and the research of cost efficiencies through raw material substitution and process improvements. Risks and opportunities related to climate change are considered in Carlisle’s R&D investments as Carlisle aims to provide products with proven long-term performance, lasting energy efficiency, greater weather resistance, excellent heat and UV resistance, and industry-leading resilience. Our new product pipeline currently represents 15% of our revenue. Carlisle’s Vision 2030 goal is to achieve 25% of revenue through new product introductions, driven by our commitment to increase R&D investment to 3% of sales by 2030.
In 2023, Carlisle achieved more than a 250,000 metric ton of CO2e reduction in our emissions due to the reformulation of our products, including transitioning hydrofluorocarbon ("HFC") blowing agents to hydrofluoroolefin ("HFO") alternatives that have minimal global warming potential. Additionally, we have increased the volume of recycled raw materials that are used in the manufacture of our products, including the use of carbon black made from recycled tires and polyiso facer paper made from post-consumer corrugate waste. These initiatives decrease the embodied carbon in our products.
Innovation is a fundamental practice at Carlisle and is integral to our ability to achieve both our economic and sustainability goals aligned through Vision 2030. The growing demand for energy and labor-saving efficiencies, as well as increased preference for full building envelope solutions, creates opportunities for Carlisle to provide new, innovative solutions that create value for both our customers and the environment. In recognition of these trends, we have committed to tripling our investment in research and development as part of our Vision 2030 strategy.
We plan to continue innovating by leveraging energy efficiency trends, bringing solutions to solve contractors’ need for more labor-saving efficiencies, and driving more content per square foot with integrated system solutions.
Operations:
Carlisle utilizes the Carlisle Operating System (COS) to drive operational excellence using principles of Lean and Six Sigma. COS is a continuous improvement process that defines how we conduct business and is deeply embedded in our culture throughout Carlisle’s operations. Waste is eliminated and efficiencies are improved enterprise-wide, driving both improvements to our sustainability efforts by reducing our carbon footprint and increasing profitability. These efforts expand beyond production areas, as COS drives new product innovation, engineering, supply chain management, warranty, and product rationalization. With the accelerating demand for energy-efficient solutions for sustainable buildings of the future, we will continue to seek ways to improve our manufacturing processes to lower carbon emissions through COS.
2023 also marked the opening of our LEED Platinum Sikeston, Missouri polyiso manufacturing plant. Contributing LEED attributes include solar power generation, LED motion sensor lighting, daylighting, noise isolation and control systems, and the restoration of local wetlands.
As a primary initiative of our Environmental Sustainability Policy, Carlisle utilizes COS to further our endeavor to certify all our manufacturing facilities to the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System by the end of 2025. In 2024 we are certifying ten additional manufacturing facilities to the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System standard, bringing our total ISO 14001 certified footprint to over 35 facilities, representing over half of our manufacturing footprint. The ISO 14001 standard contributes to the management of our environmental impacts, mitigating our operational and value chain emissions. We have also begun the process of installing real-time energy meters in our plants in preparation for ISO 50001 implementation. ISO 50001 will aid us in ensuring that our plants are running at a best-in-class energy efficiency standard.
Acquisitions and investments:
We focus our mergers and acquisitions strategy on building envelope opportunities. We intend to continue to seek synergistic acquisitions that will enhance our ability to service our customers with a broader set of energy-efficient solutions, while also seeking to divest businesses that no longer fit well into the strategic direction of Carlisle.
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