VitrA wins EBAE environmental award

Eczacıbaşı Building Products won the Management category of the prestigious European Business Award for the Environment, for Blue Life, the sustainable integrated management system designed by VitrA, one of the Group's brands. This is the first time a Turkish enterprise has won the award, which was founded by the European Community in 1987.

The prestigious award was given to Erdal Karamercan, Chairman and CEO of Eczacıbaşı Group, at the awards ceremony in Lyon, France, on 1 December. In his acceptance speech, Karamercan said: "Sustainability is an integral part of the corporate culture of Eczacıbaşı Building Products, and this is the context that gave rise to Blue Life, as a structural element of our design, production and management processes. Blue Life was developed and implemented collectively by all our employees - from purchasing personnel to R&D experts, and from heads of production planning to product managers - and it ensures that every step is integrated in every respect."

Blue Life is the approach to design, production and management adopted by the VitrA and Artema brands. Its aim, explained the Chairman, is to: "minimise the consumption of non-renewable resources in the production phase, and the per capita consumption of water by end-users, by means of intelligent design. It is also intended to generate projects that promote sustainability and open the way to social change in this direction, by training employees of Eczacıbaşı Building Products in approaches to saving energy and water."

PHOTO: Right: Mr. Erdal Karamercan, CEO Eczacıbaşı Group; Left: Karmenu Vella  (member of the European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries).