A controlled supply chain is a value chain

Stefano Luciano – Health Safety and Environment

Enel’s Global Procurement initiative to involve its suppliers globally, across 13 product categories, in order to enhance the environmental performance of their products through the EPD environmental label, is certainly ambitious and cutting-edge. How ready was your organization for this type of request?

Prior to the Enel GP, Prysmian had accumulated experience in the field of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA – Life Cycle Assessment), with the aim of using this methodology as a tool for quantifying and analyzing the environmental impacts of its products. In fact, the LCA – which, as is well known, constitutes the basic scaffolding for the elaboration of EPDs (Environmental Product Declarations – Environmental Product Declarations) – had long since been developed for some types of cables, including those with low and medium voltage and with particular recyclability requirements. This is not only to meet the requirements of some customers in terms of sustainability, but also for the implementation of one of the guidelines established in the HSEE Group Policy, namely that relating to the life cycle perspective. Also worth mentioning are the Carbon FootPrint certifications developed for some low and medium voltage cables, whose assessment methodology – albeit limited to greenhouse gas emissions (when the EPD requires the assessment of a wide range of impacts on the environment) – it rests on a common basis with the EPD. Also worthy of mention are the EPDs developed in accordance with the relevant PCR of the French PEP and relating to two Telecom fiber optic cables, as well as the participation in the drafting of EPDs certified according to the PCR cables of the “Norwegian EPD Foundation” and developed together with the various operators of the chain distribution, each involved for the part of its competence on the initiative and under the coordination of the customer who has placed said EPDs among the tender requirements.

Which product of your company has obtained the EPD? What are its main features?

Up to now, as part of the Enel GP, five EPDs relating to a dozen Prysmian products – consisting of medium and low voltage cables – have obtained certification in accordance with the relative PCRs of EPD Italy (PCR no. 16 and no. 7). Another 7 EPDs – consisting of 12 products, including low and medium voltage cables and conductors – are currently undergoing certification.

The EPDs published on the EPDItaly Program Operator enjoy national and international visibility. Based on your experience, what are the main benefits obtained from the publication of the Environmental Product Declaration? What are the repercussions on the final consumer / or on your stakeholders?

The EPDs – certified compliance with cable PCRs – are published on the EPDItaly website, with an undoubted commercial and reputational advantage in a context in which the EPD is increasingly placed among the tender requirements. The resulting reputational element contributes to enhancing the company within the financial community and towards other institutional stakeholders. In addition to those who have explicitly requested it for the purpose of participating in the tender, all customers – current or potential (in most cases consisting of large companies in the case of Prysmian), as well as end consumers can have access to the published EPDs and have thus immediate visibility of the environmental implications linked to the specific life cycle of those Prysmian products covered by the publication itself. In this regard, it should be emphasized that according to the guidelines of the “program operator”, the EPDs of certain products cannot be automatically extrapolated to other products, however similar, however the presence of the certifications increases the overall credibility of the company’s commitment in this regard. of product sustainability.