ENSURE-Ensuring sustainability in the upstream supply chain

How can industrial companies ensure that their suppliers work sustainably? ENSURE is a research project that aims to provide companies with practical tools to measure, select and develop suppliers - and thus contribute to a more sustainable society.

New EU laws require companies to take responsibility for their entire supply chain - not just their own operations. This means that companies must ensure that their subcontractors also comply with environmental requirements, respect human rights and contribute to a more sustainable future.

At the same time, it is a major challenge. Supplier networks are often global, complex and difficult to monitor. The ENSURE research project brings together businesses and researchers to develop practical solutions. The project is interdisciplinary, combining perspectives from environmental science, business administration and industrial management, allowing sustainability issues to be approached from multiple angles.

Purpose

ENSURE will help companies understand and take control of sustainability in their supply chains. With a focus on original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) the project seeks to support companies in developing effective strategies and capabilities to meet rising expectations for environmental and social responsibility, especially upstream in the supply chain where impacts are often most significant.

Approach

ENSURE consists of three interacting sub-projects - Measure, Select and Develop - which together provide an overall picture of how companies can work with sustainability in the supply chain. All parts are based on close collaboration between researchers and companies.

Measure
To improve sustainability, companies must first know where they stand. This sub-project develops methods and tools to measure and monitor sustainability at suppliers - for example, emissions, working conditions, material use and energy consumption. The aim is to make it easy to compare suppliers, follow up over time, and meet future EU reporting requirements.

Select
It's not always easy to know which criteria are most important when choosing suppliers. Is it price, quality - or how they work with the environment and human rights? In this sub-project, researchers explore how companies can weigh up different factors and create a decision-making model that enables them to make more sustainable and strategic choices.

Develop
The third sub-project focuses on how to support and work with suppliers to make them more sustainable. This could involve sharing knowledge, offering training or developing joint solutions. Collaboration instead of control - for a more resilient and sustainable supply chain.

These three sub-projects are linked in the Synergy project, which analyzes the results, identifies links and creates a common framework for future work. Through joint workshops and dialogues, companies will test and influence the content throughout the project.

Expected results

ENSURE will result in practical tools, knowledge and recommendations that can be used both in industry and in research. Some examples of expected results:

A practical framework for companies to systematically address sustainability in their supply chains - from initial analysis to long-term partnerships.

Tools to measure supplier sustainability, which can be used to benchmark, monitor and report under new EU directives (CSRD and CSDDD).

Decision support for supplier selection, where different factors - environmental, social, economic - are weighted in clear models that work in practice.

Supplier development strategies, showing how companies can support their suppliers to take the next step in their sustainability efforts - even if they have limited resources.

Strengthened collaboration between industrial companies and research, with co-created solutions rooted in the reality and needs of industry.