On the strength of 30 years of action, UNICEM asks the public authorities for recognition of its sectoral CSR Label

It is taking advantage of this anniversary to reiterate the profession's appeal to the public authorities for recognition of its CSR sector label.

For Louis Natter, president of UNICEM committed companies: “The future invites us to continue our efforts and strengthen our ambitions. »

The quarrying and building materials industries extract and produce the mineral materials needed for the construction and public works sectors. The UNICEM (National Union of Quarry and Building Materials Industries), which represents the profession, brings together nearly 1400 companies, VSEs, heritage ETIs, groups of international scope, which operate more than 7000 sites spread over the whole of the territory.

Through this territorial network, these companies play a full part in maintaining economic and industrial activity and employment in the heart of the regions. It also makes it possible to establish geographical proximity between the extraction and production sites and the implementation areas (construction sites), thereby reducing the distances and therefore the carbon footprint linked to the transport of materials.

Aware of their societal and environmental responsibility and anxious to contribute positively to the challenges of sustainable development, the sector and its players have made these subjects a priority and have been deploying numerous actions for three decades now...

The symbolic celebration of these 30 years of commitment to sustainable development is an opportunity to look back on the highlights that have marked these years: the actions implemented, the progress made and the results obtained. It is also an opportunity for the profession to launch an appeal to public authorities, both national and European, for the recognition of sectoral CSR labels, and for support for SMEs that engage in CSR.

1992-2022: 30 years of progress in sustainable development

1992: Creation of the professional charter for aggregate producers

As early as 1992, aggregates producers, anxious to better understand the environmental impact linked to their quarrying activity, mobilized and created the professional charter for aggregates producers.

Thanks to the membership of many sites and in partnership with recognized research centres*, more than a hundred scientific studies** have been carried out over just over 10 years. These studies led to recommendations and the drafting of a common set of good practices relating, among other things, to the preservation of water resources, the improvement of landscape integration, respect for biodiversity , reduction of dust emissions, energy management, organization of consultations with stakeholders.

* The partners of these studies: BRGM (Bureau of Geological and Mining Research), Cemagref (Center for the Study of Agricultural Machinery and Rural Water and Forest Engineering (CEMAGREF), CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research), National Museum of natural history, Roads and Bridges Laboratory, INERIS (National Institute for the Industrial Environment and Risks) and several universities.

** These studies are now grouped together in a catalog made available via this link

2004: The Environmental Charter for Quarrying Industries

As an extension of the recommendations and good practices formulated by the professional charter for aggregate producers and in order to encourage the progress of players in the quarry industries sector on the environmental level, a reference system has been created: the Environmental Charter for Quarry Industries, of which the objective is to evaluate, on the one hand and then to promote, the progress made by manufacturers in terms of sustainable development. More than 900 sites have committed to this process. As such, they have been able to benefit from support that will have enabled them to progress in controlling their environmental impact and to develop, thanks to specific recommendations and training, their skills and those of their employees.

2017: Creation of UNICEM committed companies

After several decades of actions undertaken and deployed in the field, it is from the desire to bring together the various players in the quarry and building materials industries that UNICEM Entreprises Committed was born.

In order to facilitate and promote the integration of CSR into the strategy and practices of players in the sector, UNICEM Entreprises Committed is launching the CSR Charter for its members, a solid benchmark, assessed by independent third-party organizations. First deployed in companies producing ready-mixed concrete, the CSR Charter was extended to extractive activities in 2018.

UNICEM committed companies partner of the CSR Platform

In 2018, UNICEM was selected by public authorities to participate in a national experiment led by the CSR Platform (a government body directly attached to the Prime Minister) on CSR sector labels. The CSR reference framework carried by UNICEM, committed companies has been able to respond to the recommendations of the platform and contributes to the recognition of the sector as a player committed to CSR.

2021: CSR label and CAP Environnement, the new signatures of the profession's commitments

The UNICEM Entreprises Committed association has adopted a charter of commitment and thus formalizes the vision and values ​​common to all of its members, as well as the objectives they pursue. At the same time, the names of the procedures are changing.

The environmental charter for quarrying industries becomes Cap environnement and the CSR charter takes the name of Label RSE.

CAP Environnement signs the commitments of the profession

Cap environnement, the progress approach for quarrying industries, is based on an environmental reference system applied site by site by the members of the association, with the intervention of an external auditor consultant.

This rigorous framework put in place in order to best combine economic development and respect for the ecosystem while promoting mutual and constructive listening with local actors has enabled considerable progress within the profession: better control and reduction of impacts, enhancement of biodiversity, redevelopment and improvement of sites, development of the circular economy, strengthening of consultation, etc.

Assessed by third-party organizations, more than 600 quarry sites are, to date, committed to the Cap environnement approach.

Number of sites committed to the Cap environnement approach (April 2022)

635 sites / 262 companies

50% of UNPG production

The CSR Label: recognition for the profession

The commitment of companies to CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) corresponds to an expectation reinforced by the health crisis. Calling companies, whatever their size, to be more resilient, CSR is becoming a real guarantee of performance that must be promoted through sectoral and voluntary approaches.

Companies that engage in this approach first carry out a self-assessment of their practices and their performance according to the 35 items of the reference system. They are then subject to a more in-depth evaluation carried out on site by an independent third-party organization (OTI), on all the main themes of the label:

• Governance
• Human capital
• Environmental
• Clients consumers suppliers
• Local anchor

An evaluation committee involving external stakeholders validates the level assigned by the OTI.

To date, more than 1000 sites are committed to the UNICEM CSR label process.

Number of sites committed to the CSR label (April 2022)

Ready-mixed concrete: 685 sites, 47% of SNBPE ​​production

Quarries and Recycling of inert materials: 406 sites / 28% of UNPG production

Success factors

Tools, training and support

In order to encourage and help companies to invest more and more in its initiatives, UNICEM Entreprises Committed has developed a strong culture of support through the implementation of numerous methods and tools:

• Publication of educational guides accessible via an internet space reserved for members,
• Organization of targeted regional training sessions,
• Regular programming of webinars,
• Deployment in regions of pilot CSR support operations.

Consultation and dialogue with stakeholders

Dialogue with stakeholders (local authorities, associations, etc.) is at the heart of the approaches taken by UNICEM, committed companies. Partnerships have been developed in this direction with, in particular, the association Humanité et Biodiversité. A stakeholder committee meets at least once a year. Many local and territorial initiatives are also implemented (open and discovery days, awareness raising in schools, solidarity nature projects).

Testimonial Sandrine Bélier, Humanity and Biodiversity

As a member of the stakeholder committee and of the evaluation committee of the UNICEM CSR label, what do you think of this label?

“I think it's a very interesting and important tool for continuous improvement in both environmental and social aspects. It is a demanding, serious and robust label. »

What does it bring to businesses?

“I think this brings credibility to the company both vis-à-vis its employees and its customers, but also vis-à-vis the players in the territory where it is established. Through this commitment, it can participate in creating ethical value. »

What is your role as a stakeholder?

“I have been, in the name of “Humanity and Biodiversity” associated with all the stages of development of this label, from its creation and our proposals to develop the evaluation reference system have been taken into account and integrated. I participate, with high standards, in the process of evaluating companies applying for the UNICEM CSR label and ensure the seriousness and reality of the steps taken by these companies. »

And tomorrow ? Prospects and objectives for the years to come

For Louis Natter, president of UNICEM committed companies: “In 30 years, we have demonstrated our ability to respond effectively to the environmental and societal issues related to our activities. We have done this gradually and collectively, by welcoming into the association companies that are still united by this desire to constantly improve their practices.

The future invites us to continue our efforts and strengthen our ambitions. If the expectations of our stakeholders, in particular those of our customers, support us in this momentum, the complexity of the regulatory and normative obligations that we will all have to meet tomorrow will not make our task any easier. Developments in non-financial information and transparency are a good illustration of this point.

We will therefore pay particular attention to supporting companies of all sizes, in particular SMEs, by helping them to anticipate these changes. Inevitably, we will adjust our benchmarks and our training programs; We will also make sure to establish, as soon as possible, as much equivalence as possible between our approaches and the increasingly numerous and demanding CSR evaluation systems, public or private.

And above all, we will mobilize so that this label, which validates all the required conditions, obtains the recognition it deserves. In particular, after having participated in the experiments conducted by the CSR Platform, we are impatient to see this sectoral label recognized - finally! - by public authorities. »

Federate and expand the circle of committed companies

UNICEM Entreprises Committed (UEE) intends, in the years to come, to federate more SMEs and family businesses in its actions and to broaden the typology of the activities concerned.

To this end, it develops various tools and sets up support operations. In 2020, it published a methodological guide for SMEs to facilitate their commitment to CSR and will soon publish a collection of CSR best practices and offer, in the form of a quiz, an educational approach to raising awareness of CSR. CSR.

Also investing in the field, UNICEM Entreprises Committed launched a support operation in 2021 in six regions. Since the beginning of 2022, around fifty new sites from SMEs and family businesses have joined the process. The latter currently represent nearly 70% of companies that have adhered to the CSR label.

The association also intends to broaden the typology of the activities it represents. Today, extractive industries, inert waste recycling platforms and ready-mixed concrete production units can commit to the CSR label. The recent changes made to the standard now make it applicable to the “ornamental rock” activity and the first granite makers will soon join the approach.

UNICEM committed companies remains ready to support any other activity in the mineral sector in order to facilitate its commitment to the CSR label.

Some testimonials

Stephan HELMBACHER, CEO of Helmbacher sandpits and ballast pits

Why did you commit to the CSR label?

“After more than 10 years of commitment to the Environmental Charter, we wanted to question ourselves and reinvent ourselves through the CSR label, which presented a broader vision of our responsibilities. »

What are the results / benefits of this labeling?

“Internally, the first results are the great ability to mobilize a team. More generally, the approach allows us to gain credibility and respectability with our stakeholders. »

Pierre-Yves BEAULIEU, Director, Quarries and Concrete B. BRONZO

Why did you commit to the CSR label?

“Being committed to the Environmental Charter approach since the beginning in 1992, the commitment to the CSR label is an extension for us. All the items in the process are already part of our daily lives. »

What are the results / benefits of this labeling?

“I remain convinced that in the medium term this will make the difference in terms of hiring, job sustainability and the opinion of our stakeholders, local authorities, residents, suppliers. Our relationships will be calmer and more lasting while showing that our profession is sincerely Responsible. »

Encourage the commitment of SMEs and VSEs to the CSR approach

Very often the lack of time and resources proves to be an obstacle for SMEs and VSEs in the deployment of CSR. Based on this observation and their observations, UNICEM entreprisesengages would like the public authorities to provide support for the development of CSR in SMEs by:

• Partially financing the support of an expert to carry out an inventory, build an action plan and then implement it,
• Facilitating access to public aid schemes granted by certain regions (such as Pays de la Loire*) to companies that commit to a CSR label,
• Encouraging the creation of a CSR loan with advantageous conditions (lower interest rates or without guarantee) like the green loan financed by BPI France and ADEME for VSEs-SMEs

* Subject to eligibility, the Region can co-finance this support, by means of a subsidy of a maximum of 50% of the amount excluding taxes (HT) of the costs of the study, and this within a limit of €15.000. More information at this address.

Accelerate recognition of the CSR label

UNICEM Entreprises Committed pleads for recognition by the public authorities of sectoral labels responding to the recommendations formulated in the reports published following the PACTE law and calls for the establishment of a public charter which will serve as a framework for the recognition of these labels.

In addition, UNICEM Entreprises Committed would like companies with the CSR label to be exempted from answering questionnaires from principals on CSR aspects. SNCF Réseau has shown itself to be a pioneer in this area: material service providers benefiting from the UNICEM CSR Label can take advantage of this reference system without having to go through another evaluation method.

The UNICEM CSR label recognized by SNCF Réseau

For Bérangère GALLAND, Head of the CSR & Communication Department DGFA - SNCF RESEAU PURCHASING DEPARTMENT: “The assessment carried out within the framework of the CSR label UNICEM companies engaged by an independent third-party organization makes it possible to meet the obligation of diagnosis of CSR performance requested by SNCF Réseau from its suppliers. Thus, our suppliers of materials benefiting from the UNICEM CSR Label can take advantage of this reference system without having to go through another evaluation method. »

UNICEM committed companies have been asking for several years that public procurement be a real lever to encourage CSR. To meet this challenge, UNICEM proposes that the State and local authorities be encouraged to use CSR-certified companies.

At the same time, the debate must be re-engaged on European public procurement rules, in order to authorize principals to promote CSR-certified service providers.

Finally, to go further, UNICEM entreprisesengages also proposes that companies with the CSR label can benefit from:

• An improvement in public aid relating to innovation, ecological transition, decarbonization;
• Public guarantees making it possible to limit the guarantees to be provided vis-à-vis banks and insurance companies;
• A reduction in the amount of financial guarantees for rehabilitation (quarries, waste treatment facilities);
• Preferential rates with banks and insurance companies.