in our seventh Sustainability Report, we look back on an eventful 2023. Despite numerous challenges, we further enhanced our sustainability management, focusing our efforts on the EU taxonomy and the upcoming Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

Regarding implementation of the EU taxonomy, for example, we examined the taxonomy eligibility of more activities and we redoubled our efforts on taxonomy alignment. Sustainability was also integrated strategically within the organization through the establishment of a Group-wide organizational structure for CSR. In the future, this will incorporate all the company divisions in the global effort to implement the “Rosenbauer City 2030” sustainability strategy.

Especially as a technology and innovation leader in the firefighting industry, it is natural for us to take responsibility and do our part to contribute to a resource-conserving and climate-friendly economy. In the reporting year, our climate strategy was officially validated by the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), indicating that it is in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement. With this strategy, we are conveying a strong commitment in the fight against climate change and following a clear, science-based path to reducing our emissions by 2030.

Our efforts are already having an impact in the improvement of our CDP rating for climate change to B (previous year: B-). We are working tirelessly to achieve our target of an A rating by 2025. Our SBTi validation and the new sustainability organization are two key elements of this work. Last year also saw us take part, for the first time, in the CDP water security ratings. We achieved a C rating.

Non-discrimination and equal opportunities in the workplace, without gender preference, are a matter of course at Rosenbauer. We have already sent a power signal for women’s empowerment at Rosenbauer and in technology fields with the establishment of our women@rosenbauer initiative. We reinforced our commitment here with our endorsement of the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs). This underscores how seriously we are taking these targets, and we will endeavor to keep developing them further. The aim is to empower women at Rosenbauer at all levels of the hierarchy – from production right up to management. We are still striving for a proportion of women of 15 % company wide by 2025.

The sustainable transformation of our business model is designed to address not only the electrification of firefighting vehicles but also the diverse challenges that come with ensuring future-proof and sustainable firefighting and transitioning to the circular economy. For years, our refurbishment program has stood as a tried-and-trusted example of a circular business model that is already delivering mutual benefits to fire services and Rosenbauer alike.

In our 2023 Sustainability Report, we consistently demonstrate our commitment to the environment, society and the economy – because sustainability is an integral part of our long-term strategy.

We would like to thank all our stakeholders for accompanying us on this responsible and challenging journey.