Sustainability

Starting a year ago, Southwire launched a sustainability initiative, complet with guidelines, in an effort to measure our advancements in environmental responsibility. Last year, we released the first report detailing our environmental performance, our safety record and our community investment. At the time, we made commitments in several areas, including the conversion of our corporate fleet to hybrid vehicles, the implementation of new safety initiatives and the development of new, energy-efficient cables. I am pleased to say we have made significant progress in these and other areas.

Perhaps one of the most important initiatives is our drive to reach a level of zero waste disposals by 2017. In 2006, Southwire's facilities and offices at its corporate headquarters in Carrollton, Georgia sent 14,000 tons of solid waste to landfills. While we do not have complete measurements for all of our facilities across the country, we know that number is much higher. So our challenge is two-fold. First, we must determine an accurate amount of waste we generate and find ways of cutting that number drastically. Then, not content with just removing a percentage of our waste stream, we plan to eliminate it altogether through creative ways of reducing, reusing and recycling our waste. From company wide recycling to composting to make the impact even greater, we are encouraging our employees and neighbors to follow some of the same practices in their homes.

Not all of our objectives focus on Southwire's operations. We also want to help build stronger communities. Following the success of 12 for Life - our partnership with Carroll County Schools that encourages high school students on the verge of dropping out to rethink that decision - we are developing new efforts that assist often neglected populations. Over the next year we plan to hire veterans of our armed forces who have been injured in the current war on terror. And, Southwire is searching for a partner to help establish a program that will provide job opportunites for the mentally and physically challenged. Knowing that we must also reach out to future generations, Southwire is working with Boys Club/Girls Clubs to establish a chapter of the organization in Carrollton.

These are just a few of the major goals Southwire will work toward in the coming years There are others - including expanding the diversity among our workforce, especially among our corporate leadership; achieving a world-class safety record; and reducing our carbon footprint by 10 percent in 2012. We look forward to your particpation in these efforts and will keep you posted on our initiatives moving forward.

Tool Box

Sustainability