Enabling decarbonization in manufacturing: insights from Wilo's Climate Strategy and Disclosure Manager

The decarbonization of the industrial sector has become a key element in the global fight against climate change. Companies like Wilo, one of the world's leading premium manufacturers of pumps and pump systems with more than 9,000 employees worldwide, are working hard to achieve sustainable and credible emission reduction targets.  

Since 2023, Cozero has been supporting the Wilo Group in implementing its emission reduction strategies. The use of the Cozero Climate Action Platform enables Wilo to precisely record and manage emissions, especially Scope 3 emissions, from various areas. In an interview, Isa Kohn, Manager Climate Strategy & Disclosure at Wilo, explains the company's progress towards decarbonization, the challenges involved and the importance of cross-industry collaboration.  

‍

Watch the deep dive interview with Isa Kohn from Wilo. The interview is part of Cozero's industry chat series where sustainability experts share their insights on real-world problems and solutions.

‍

Milestones on Wilo's decarbonization journey

In 2018, Wilo published its first sustainability report and announced comprehensive sustainability targets. Five years later, in its Sustainability Report 2023, Wilo declared the sustainability strategy to be the overarching strategy to which all other functional corporate strategies are subordinate for the first time. A central aspect of Wilo's decarbonization strategy is the switch to green electricity for all production sites by 2025. This measure particularly affects the 16 main production sites, which are responsible for the majority of company-wide emissions. Isa Kohn emphasizes that this transition is not only an essential step towards achieving the Scope 1 and Scope 2 targets, but also makes a significant contribution to the company's sustainable orientation.

Wilo has set itself the goal of halving its absolute GHG emissions in the areas of Scope 1 and Scope 2, i.e. all direct and indirect energy-related emissions, by 2030. In addition to the European locations, the plants in China were also converted to green electricity in 2023, using I-RECs (International Renewable Energy Certificates).

To achieve these ambitious goals, Wilo is developing innovative approaches to the use of renewable energies, such as the H2POWERPLANT at the Wilopark in Dortmund. This pilot plant, built in cooperation with the French electrical engineering group Schneider Electric, enables the production and storage of green hydrogen, which can be converted into energy when needed.  

The plant in Wilopark can store up to 520 kilograms of hydrogen in a 29.8 meter long tank. The modular system can produce up to 10 tons of green hydrogen per year, and the waste heat released during the electrolysis process can be used directly on site in the integrated system or converted into cooling. Initially, the system will serve as an emergency power supply or backup power supply.  According to current plans, an expansion of the electrolyzer capacity is planned in order to replace all remaining fossil fuels at the Dortmund site.  

The plant uses solar power to produce hydrogen and demonstrates the potential of H2 technology for industrial use and how Wilo combines technology and sustainability.

In early 2024, Wilo also announced the successful validation of its short- and long-term, science-based emissions reduction targets through the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). As a result, Wilo has set ambitious targets to reduce its absolute greenhouse gas emissions of Scopes 1 and 2 by 50 % by 2030, increase the share of renewable electricity to 100 % and reduce Scope 3 emissions by 25 %, in each case compared to the base year 2020. This validation serves as external proof that the targets are science-based and in line with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.

‍

Insights and challenges

‍

Wilo's sustainability team has traveled a long and challenging road to sustainable transformation, gaining valuable insights and overcoming many challenges along the way. The recently completed SBTi validation process, for example, was time-consuming and data-centric, according to Isa Kohn. It was particularly challenging to provide the multitude of data points and explain the reasons for accounting for certain emissions. The use of tools such as Cozero's carbon management software made the data sourcing process much easier, as calculation methods and emission factors were always accessible.

‍

Challenges in Scope 3 data collection

‍

In addition to significant milestones, there are also challenging aspects. The calculation of Scope 3 emissions, particularly in the “Use of Sold Products” category, is one of the biggest challenges for Wilo. Due to the large number of different pump variants, collecting and maintaining the required data is extremely complex. Isa Kohn therefore describes data collection and maintenance as a continuous process that is never complete. Data from various systems, such as sales figures and technical product information (e.g. expected service life, energy consumption and usage profiles), must be provided and combined with country-specific emission factors in order to calculate emissions.

Coordination with stakeholders and improving the database are among the biggest challenges Wilo has to face. To overcome these challenges, Regine Castilla, Sustainability Manager at Cozero, supports Wilo as an expert in data collection and effective use of the Cozero software. Regine advises companies that collect data points for Scope 3.11 emissions to focus on products with high sales volumes and perform detailed product carbon footprint calculations to optimize their sustainability efforts. In this way, calculations and assumptions can be validated through measurements on individual products.

In addition, companies can seek an exchange with selected customers to discuss ideas and opportunities for reduction, such as the use of smart meters. In general, Regine recommends pursuing a process for calculating emissions in category 3.11 that is as automated as possible from the outset and clearly defining which data points from which systems are to be used.

With regard to the challenges of calculating the “Use of Sold Products” emissions, Isa Kohn calls for more exchange and cooperation. The biggest lever for Wilo's emissions reduction lies in the emissions of the products sold, and here Isa sees great potential for cross-industry cooperation and the exchange of best practices.

Isa Kohn emphasizes that collaboration with other companies and industry players is a key part of Wilo's decarbonization strategy. She emphasizes the importance of partnerships, especially within associations such as Europump, where even competitors work together to achieve common sustainability goals. These collaborations show that climate change is a shared challenge that can only be tackled through collective action.

‍

Success criteria for sustainability initiatives

‍

Isa Kohn believes that management support is crucial to the success of sustainability initiatives. Wilo considers the company-wide sustainability strategy to be overarching, and all other functional business strategies are subordinate to it - without exception. This ensures the success of sustainability initiatives. Another crucial factor is the involvement of all employees, who are empowered to contribute to the sustainability strategy through clear communication and training. She therefore recommends clearly defining sustainability goals and regularly measuring progress. She also reports that Wilo has had positive experiences with specialist sustainability training in combination with group workshops such as “Climate Fresk”, an interactive and collaborative game to raise awareness of climate change.

‍

Conclusion

‍

Wilo's journey to decarbonization shows that large, global companies with complex organizational structures can make significant progress towards a sustainable future despite numerous challenges. Wilo's example shows how important it is to look at what has been achieved, set goals and continuously improve its data collection processes.  

The combination of ambitious and externally validated targets, innovative technologies and industry-wide collaboration provides a valuable roadmap for other companies pursuing similar sustainability goals.  

As companies like Wilo continue on their decarbonization journey, digital companions like Cozero's Climate Action Platform can play a critical role in simplifying carbon management and enabling successful decarbonization efforts. By centralizing data, automating processes and fostering cross-team collaboration and cooperation between companies and their suppliers, these tools improve human collaboration and enable companies to track, reduce and report emissions with greater accuracy and efficiency.

Want to learn how Cozero can support your decarbonization journey? Book a free demo with our experts or download our brochure.

The exciting journey continues for Wilo. Preparations are underway for the first CSRD report, which will be published for the first time in 2026. According to Isa Kohn, the team's priority is therefore on the key sustainability figures to be reported, particularly with regard to adapting the processes so that they can be audited. She is optimistic about the future, as the foundations for this have already been laid thanks to Wilo's many years of experience with voluntary reporting.

Has Wilo's journey inspired you and do you see any parallels with your company? Isa Kohn is open to discussions, particularly on the calculation of Scope 3.11 emissions and the future CSRD reporting obligation, at responsibility@wilo.com.

‍

‍