Sustainable Purchasing Policy

We employ a wide range of measures to ensure that we only source raw materials from socially, ethically, and ecologically sustainable sources. Sustainability is a constant watchword in our purchasing policy and is defined in our Code of Conduct. To meet our own standards, we are working on implementing a platform for assessing suppliers with regard to ESG (environmental, social, governance) criteria.

Responsibility means commitment: Responsible procurement of tungsten and tantalum

As one of the world's leading manufacturers of products made from refractory metals such as molybdenum, tungsten, and tantalum, we carry great responsibility. Some tungsten and tantalum mines are located in conflict zones and other high-risk regions. It is our duty to ensure that the raw materials we procure are not financing armed conflicts.

We only select suppliers that comply with rigorous procurement guidelines as per our Supplier Policy and Code of Conduct. Raw materials suppliers must not only meet our strict quality guidelines, but they must also unreservedly respect human rights, labor laws, and international trade law, and provide proof that their raw materials come from "conflict-free" sources and meet strict environmental requirements.

We implement the guidelines of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) ("Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas") and the EU Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2017/821) establishing supply chain due diligence obligations.

As a sustainable company aware of our responsibilities, we exercise due diligence in sourcing our raw materials. Compliance with this commitment is confirmed by the Responsible Minerals Initiative in the course of regular audits as part of the RMI Downstream Assessment Program.

Our duty of due diligence in the supply chain of tungsten and tantalum is defined in the following documents:

Code of Conduct

Supplier Policy

Raw materials supply chain policy

Due Diligence Report

RMI certification letter for tantalum (Plansee SE)

RMI certification letter for tungsten (GTP Towanda)

Re-auditing for the above RMI certificates is currently underway. The audit of Plansee SE for the material tungsten is also taking place and will be completed soon.

Concerns and violations of the guiding rules of our Code of Conduct and due diligence in our supply chain can be reported here:

Whistleblower system

Do you have any questions about conflict materials? We're here to answer them.

Alexander Tautermann
Director Marketing and Sales Organisation
+43 5672 600 2664

Our Conditions of Purchase and Sales

Other countries, other customs. Legal requirements sometimes differ too. Would you like to sell us something and read our Conditions of Purchase? Or would you like to read our Conditions of Sales as a customer? Here you will find these conditions for all of our locations:

To the Conditions of Purchase and Sales

REACH

REACH is the regulation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals. As of 2007, all substances produced in or imported into the EU in quantities in excess of a ton must be registered with the European Chemicals Agency. Would you like to learn more about our REACH activities? Our sales staff would be happy to provide you with more information.

Closing the Circle to Protect the Environment

The Plansee Group uses chemical and thermomechanical processing in its own recycling plants to treat returned customer materials and production waste. But the environment is not the only consideration. There are also good economic reasons for re-using these "secondary raw materials":

Security of supply
Careful use of natural resources

Our in-house team of scientists is constantly fine-tuning the adopted methods and processes and guarantees that only top-quality powder is obtained. In the case of tungsten in particular, a large proportion of the Group's material requirements is covered by recycling.

The input material for the recovery process consists of sintered hard tungsten carbide scrap, as well as soft scrap such as powders and grinding sludge and other secondary raw materials with a tungsten content of at least 60%.

Alloys and other materials such as cobalt, nickel or tantalum can also be recycled. To enable us to reprocess as much waste material as possible, we have long-term take-back agreements with many of our customers.