Social responsibility

Bronkhorst High-Tech B.V. has remained a family-owned company ever since it was founded in 1981. Loyalty, as well as respect for each other and for the environment, are basic principles that we don't normally bother to discuss: socially responsible - or sustainable - entrepreneurship has in fact always been an intrinsic part of our corporate culture.

Bronkhorst has grown into an international company that has been satisfying ISO 9001 quality guidelines since 1992 at our factory and headquarters in the Netherlands. In addition, spurred by the ambition to minimise the use of raw materials and energy while producing the least possible amount of waste, the company has been entitled to bear the ISO 14001 environmental quality hallmark since 1995 at our factory and headquarters in the Netherlands. Sustainable entrepreneurship, however, is far more than merely reducing your impact on the environment. At Bronkhorst, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the sum of all the issues related to customers, partners, employees and their families, the environment, science and society, thereby guided by the ISO 26000 principles.

Society

Bronkhorst attaches great value to social engagement. Our efforts are dedicated to regional as well as nation-wide projects in the fields of culture, well-being, education and health. In this context we donate generously to a wide range of charitable organisations and likewise support our employees' initiatives in this endeavour.

We respect the customs and traditions of people living in the vicinity of our branch offices all across the globe and do everything we can to promote open and honest communication in both directions.

Employees and their families

The Bronkhorst organisation could never have attained such success without the efforts of its highly motivated and loyal employees. We make every effort to ensure that our employees maintain a healthy work-private life balance and, if operating results allow, they share in the profits through additional remuneration and membership of a company pension fund. The sense of being part of the family is highlighted by the many activities organised by our staff association, such as an annual barbecue and numerous sports activities. Our dual-language staff magazine, the Bronkhorst Bode, also ensures a heightened sense of engagement with our firm, not only in Ruurlo but also in our many branches abroad.

Sustainable solutions

The sense of social engagement at Bronkhorst is also expressed in the company's active participation on the boards of various platforms and other organisations, such as the Mechatronics Platform, the Innovation Centre (service now offered by renewed Chamber of Commerce), the Achterhoek Centre for Technology (ACT), MinacNed, the Millennium Platform, the Netherlands Association for SMEs, the Instrument Federation and the Innovation Platform. Bronkhorst regularly provides support for scientific initiatives aimed at producing sustainable solutions. For example, the company acts as a sponsor of Solarteam Twente, which takes part in the Solar Challenge in Australia once every two years. Amongst many other applications, Bronkhorst^® instruments are used in the production of solar cells and for testing fuel cells, catalysts and filters

Supply Chain Management

To be of even better service to Bronkhorst customers, we invite our suppliers to contribute their ideas so that we, as a chain, can improve our performance using environmentally friendly products. Technological and ecological developments often prompt us to make modifications to a design or production processes. Additionally, our suppliers are regularly subjected to audits which not only cover their performance as a supplier, but also look into aspects such as their use of materials and employment conditions.

Bronkhorst, in turn, also feels responsible as a supplier for the successful application of the Bronkhorst® instruments installed on its customers' premises. We believe that our customers are entitled to call us to account over the performance of our products at any time, both before and after their installation.

Energy and waste

Bronkhorst has adopted various strategies to reduce energy consumption and waste production. New buildings are furnished according to the latest insights in the field of sustainability. They are – or will be – provided with climate control systems (organic PCM boxes) and innovative insulation methods, such as ultra-thick glass panes, walls and floors. Energy-reducing options are also considered for application in existing buildings, e.g. by replacing tube lighting by LEDs and switching off unused equipment whenever this is possible. Additionally, waste is separated to promote the recycling of materials. As per January 2015 Bronkhorst uses green power, supplied by the AGEM (energy supplier in the Achterhoek region), to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. In 2019, 910 PV solar panels were mounted on the roofs of 4 of our buildings, generating approx. 250,000 to 275,000 kWh of electricity annually.