Working with Stakeholders for Sustainable Procurement

Engaging with stakeholders is crucial for sustainability in procurement, as it creates an environment in which collaboration can flourish, transparency can be found and all parties can align on goals towards a number of issues — including sustainability.

Stakeholders, which can include suppliers, customers, employees and community members, each bring unique perspectives and insights that can identify potential risks and opportunities within the supply chain.

By working alongside these groups, organisations can improve their decision-making, mitigate environmental and social impacts and build strong, more resilient processes.

This also promotes increased accountability and trust, essential building blocks for achieving and making a lasting impact on the sustainability mission, while fostering a culture of continuous improvement in procurement practices.

How DP World is implementing sustainable practices

DP World is a global leader in marine terminal operations and a pioneer in sustainable trade logistics, aiming to enhance global trade flows and positively impact the communities and customers it serves.

With more than 111,000 employees spanning 77 countries on six continents, it uses ports, terminals, logistics, marine services and technology to streamline global trade.

Its use of smart logistics — integrating cutting-edge technology such as IoT, AI, big data analytics and automation into the supply chain — helps to increase efficiency, improve accuracy and reduce operational costs.

DP World is actively pursuing decarbonisation with five-year strategic plans that emphasise electrification, low-carbon vessels, renewable energy, operational efficiency and enhanced monitoring and reporting. Committed to the Science-Based Targets Initiative, DP World aims for a 42% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030, a 70% reduction across scopes 1, 2 and 3 by 2040 and net-zero operations by 2050.

Changing from diesel to electric 

As part of its broader strategy to decarbonise global operations, DP World has made significant strides in transitioning from conventional diesel to electric equipment. But there are several challenges that stem from transitioning to electric technologies.

Infrastructure development is a common challenge. It is critical to not only establish the necessary charging infrastructure, but to ensure that it caters to the operational needs of a busy terminal.

This involves physical installations as well as integration with the local power grids, which may not always be geared towards high-demand industrial usage.

Switching from diesel to electric also requires changes in operational procedures and requires training staff to not only handle the new equipment, but to adjust their maintenance protocols accordingly.

There are also cost implications. The initial shift to electric equipment can involve significant capital investment.

Although there are long-term savings and environmental benefits, the upfront costs and equipment availability can be a barrier. There is also the pace of change; keeping up with rapidly evolving technology involves continuous investment and upgrades.

Morten Johansen, COO and EVP of DP World Americas, says: “Despite these challenges, we’ve successfully advanced our electrification initiatives in several regions. Here in the Americas, we recently integrated 15 electric cranes and 20 electric ITVs at the Port of Callao in Peru, where we also host the first electric charging station for trucks in Latin America.

“We’ve installed 19 electric ITVs at the Port of Caucedo in the Dominican Republic and replaced 22 diesel RTGs at Brazil's Port of Santos with electric versions that will be powered through an overhead cable system, similar to electric buses.”

By engaging with stakeholders – including fuel suppliers, regulatory agencies and industry partners – which has been crucial to address supply chain challenges and foster collaborations aimed at scaling the use of sustainable fuels.

Implementing DP World’s sustainability across Its partners

At the heart of the work in the Americas is Sarah Mouriño, the Senior Director of Sustainability for DP World Americas, who is focused on integrating sustainability into the global movement of goods and decarbonising freight operations across North America and Europe — all with an emphasis on innovative and collaborative initiatives.

Sarah works with a diverse array of people. Operational and engineering teams are key focuses, as they help to champion and turn sustainability ideas into action.

She also collaborates with commercial teams to understand customer demands and anticipate future needs, ensuring that DP World can integrate these into its operations.

“I work with our people department because sustainability also means promoting diversity and inclusion,” Sarah adds. “I work with our sustainability teams, but also with health, safety, security and environment because that umbrella of sustainability is really across everything.

“It touches everyone's job in some different way. For instance, finance is critical in getting support for spending money on capital improvement projects.

“And then procurement integrates sustainability needs into how we purchase anything, whether it be big pieces of equipment or office supplies. We can make choices within all of our daily decisions that support sustainability efforts.”

Outside of DP World, Sarah focuses on two key areas: working with customers to understand their sustainability needs and targets and cross-industry collaboration.

“I spend time working across the different modes of transport, working with competitors, working with non-profit organisations and government organisations to provide expertise to influence policy, to provide operational insights about how a programme, a policy, an initiative will or won't impact international trade from a transportation point of view,” Sarah adds.

“I work  with organisations like the Smart Freight Centre. DP World has a partnership with the “Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping - we work with organisations like that to  build cross-industry knowledge and move the industry forward so we can continue a sustainable evolution.”

Working alongside service partners

DP World is ambitious and forward-thinking, with its ‘Our World, Our Future’ strategy aiming to positively impact the communities, environment and economies where it operates. The company prioritises safety, security, wellbeing, ethics and community engagement and actively addresses climate change and personal development. 

Sarah, who has over 25 years of experience in the industry, believes the company’s commitment is impressive, seeing it translated through every level within the organisation. This commitment underpins DP World’s desire to be the “supplier of choice”.

“DP World strives to be number one when it comes to not just operational excellence and providing the services skills that they need for transportation, but we want to be the supplier of choice for meeting their sustainability goals as well,” she adds. 

“We’re attuned to asking, whether it be a shipping line, a cargo owner, whoever it is that we are working with, to tell us what their sustainability goals are, tell us what they expect out of DP World in terms of our sustainability goals.

“Then we take that to heart and use it to refresh Our World, Our Future sustainability strategy to make sure that we're constantly evolving with what the market needs, trying to respond to our customers’ needs and finding ways to work together to meet that.”

DP World’s sustainability efforts are evident through the implementation of decarbonisation plans at each of its ports and terminals globally, using data to report progress to customers. These efforts include operational changes, equipment upgrades and procurement changes for electricity, all contributing to its sustainability goals.

Measuring success

DP World takes a comprehensive approach to measuring the effectiveness and efficiency of new technologies. Using a combination of environmental, operational and financial metrics to ensure a balanced assessment of technological advancements.

Morten adds: “It measures impact using several internationally recognised reporting frameworks from GRI, WEF Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics and CDP.

“By collecting detailed Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) metrics data for all terminals, logistics and marine divisions identify any inefficiencies that would contribute to high carbon intensity.”

In 2023, DP World initiated an assessment of the impact of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), based on the defined thresholds, and is continuing this work throughout 2024.

Environmental metrics include reductions in carbon emissions (Scope 1, 2, and 3), energy consumption savings and improvements in waste management.

For example, it reports against 11 categories under Scope 3 and aims to continuously improve reporting by moving more sub-categories to unit-based calculations.

Operational metrics involve measuring improvements in operational efficiency, such as increased cargo handling speeds, reduced equipment downtime and enhanced safety records. These help to quantify the direct benefits of new technologies in daily activities.

Key financial indicators include return on investment, total cost of ownership and cost savings generated from technological innovations. These metrics are crucial for evaluating the economic viability and financial benefits of investing in new technologies.

To read the full story in the magazine click HERE

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