Almirall revalidates its excellence in occupational health and safety, environment and energy management

Spain July 2^nd 2019

Almirall, S.A. (ALM) has achieved several important international accreditations after an external audit of its integrated corporate management system for occupational health and safety, environment and energy, developed by up to seven auditors from TÜV Rheinland, which carried out field inspections during twelve days at the company's headquarters in Barcelona, its R&D Centre in Sant Feliu de Llobregat and its chemical and pharmaceutical plants in Sant Andreu de la Barca (Barcelona, Spain).

As a consequence of the audit results, the leading global pharmaceutical company has become one of the first in achieving two of the latest standardized international accreditations, both in its sector and in the whole business network: ISO 45001:2018, for occupational health and safety, and ISO 50001:2018, for energy management.

On the other hand, after obtaining the ISO 14001:2015 adaptation's certificate in 2018, TÜV Rheinland's auditors have revalidated the company's environmental management effectivity. ISO 14001:2015 is the latest actualization of the standard ISO 140001, that Almirall reached in 2004 and is renewed periodically since then.  

"The fact that Almirall has a solid management system for occupational health and safety, environment and energy is not simply aimed to achieve internationally recognized certificates that guarantee our excellence to third parties, but it's especially important to equip ourselves with a system of continuous improvement allowing us to advance in these relevant areas", has underlined César Hernández, Almirall's Head of Health, Safety and Environment.   

A growing importance in CSR strategy

The process of continuous improvement is consubstantial to quality and excellence, so that the accreditations given by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) collect a broad set of cross-cutting policies, processes and activities that must be implemented in its entirety as part of an integrated management system, and when all this set of initiatives is properly applied, it is possible to quantify significant improvements in a series of predetermined indicators.

In the case of occupational health and safety management, Almirall has implemented an occupational risk prevention system that has allowed to achieve a low accident rate, significantly lower than the average for the pharmaceutical sector, both in Almirall headquarters and in its subsidiary Spanish centers. In addition, 16% of the hours of training that the company offers its employees are dedicated to the promotion of occupational health and safety, and wellbeing.

On the other hand, the environmental management system has allowed the company to achieve a reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases by 38% between 2014 and 2018, considering the purchase of renewable energies; to reduce the waste by 7% in its chemical plants in 2018, and to reduce the use of methylene chloride by 61% since 2013.

Finally, the energy management system has resulted in 2018 in a decrease of 3.8% in the use of electricity and 1.7% in the use of gas, while generating 401,779 kWh through solar energy panels.

César Hernández has underlined the magnitude of these achievements, a quantifiable demonstration Almirall's purposeful commitment to sustainability. Finally, he has highlighted the growing importance of the occupational health and safety, the environment and the energy within the framework of the company's Corporate Social Responsibility strategy.

About Almirall

Almirall is a leading skin-health focused global pharmaceutical company that partners with healthcare professionals, applying Science to provide medical solutions to patients and future generations. Our efforts are focused on fighting skin health diseases and helping people feel their best. We support healthcare professionals in continuous improvement, bringing our innovative solutions where they are needed.

The company, founded almost 75 years ago and with headquarters in Barcelona, is listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange (ticker: ALM). Almirall has become a key element of value creation to society according to its commitment with its shareholders and its decision to help others by understanding their challenges and using Science to provide solutions for real life. Total revenues in 2018 were 811 million euros. Almirall has more than 1,800 employees.

For more information, please visit almirall.com