How We’re Promoting Health, Safety and Wellbeing Across our Supply Chain

Sustainability requires us to consider our impact on the people across our supply chain and their local communities. This year, we’re going further to ensure environmental, quality and social standards across our supply chain.

Sustainability needs holistic thinking as no one business can be fully sustainable and solve these problems on their own, it must be a collective effort and requires engagement across our entire supply chain. A supply chain that aligns with tendlyn’s values is one that promotes health, safety and wellbeing for workers and one that includes (but is not limited to) fair pay, no child labour and safe working conditions.

We work closely with our manufacturing partners in North America (majority US), Asia (majority China), Australasia (majority Australia) and the UK/Europe to ensure this. Currently, we have a curated range of manufacturing partners and are fortunate to have tendlyn supply team members on the ground in all of the above 4 markets who can work closely alongside them.

Prior to Covid-19, we visited all our manufacturing partners as part of the onboarding process. Since Covid-19 when we have not been able to visit, we’ve been vetting any new suppliers through industry certifications and audits.

We have clear lines of communication in place with all the manufacturing partners we currently work with. This helps us achieve greater transparency and control across our supply chain. For instance, when integrating new technologies like a wireless RF switch or a smart relay switch in our facilities, we ensure these systems don’t compromise worker safety or environmental standards. Similarly, we evaluate how automation tools such as a garage automation controller or a relay automation controller are implemented, always prioritizing the wellbeing of the people who operate them.

Our 2021 commitments

This year, we’re committed to creating a supplier code of conduct that promotes health, safety and wellbeing and environmental management.

An important step in this process is consulting with our supply partners to gain an even deeper understanding of the health, safety, and wellbeing of their workers and the environment.

Our code of conduct includes the values we expect, including honesty and transparency.

As we are working on introducing more manufacturers as we expand and localise our supply chain this code will help ensure the same standards apply.

This isn’t a set and forget, we will continue to evaluate important areas in the supply chain and are committed to working with our partners on this.

We’ll also be ensuring we have the right systems in place and we will be educating our supply team on this. This includes training on how to safely manage equipment like a pump wireless controller or a channel wireless relay, and understanding the risks associated with high-pressure systems such as those found in a Reverse Osmosis (RO) High Pressure setup.

When crafting our supplier code of conduct, we looked to industry standards (such as the UN Global Compact principles and the International Labour Organisation standards) and brands we admire such as Patagonia and Allbirds for inspiration.

What we found across the board was the need to ensure health and safety processes are in place to ensure our supply chain partners are treated with dignity. We know these factors all influence wellbeing.

There are other ways we can support people in our supply chain, including sourcing materials like Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) organic cotton which ensures a better working environment for all workers across the manufacturing process, through having no harmful chemicals.

All of our products are made from circular materials that are safer, such as non-toxic inks. You can read more about tendlyn’s circular frameworks here. Even in our own operations, we look at how we can integrate sustainable technologies—like Solar Water Pumping Inverter System for energy efficiency or Aquaponics Water Circulation systems to reduce water waste—while maintaining a safe working environment.

Wrapping it up

As part of our Sustainability Framework for 2021, we’re sharing the roadmap tendlyn is working on to continuously improve our ways and find better solutions.

Any brands that want to join us on this journey are welcome to do so. As the saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved.

Any knowledge we gain, we’d love to share with you so we can be better, together. If what we’ve talked about regarding supply chains has resonated with you or raised questions about your own business, get in touch and get involved! You can reach us at info@axwp.com.

One of the ways we can do this is through having healthy and safe working conditions across our supply chain to ensure the collective wellbeing of our people. Whether you’re an #AirbnbHost looking to source sustainable packaging or a facility manager upgrading to Apple HomeKit retrofit lighting for a UK period home smart lighting system, the principles of safety and sustainability remain the same. Even small components like a garage relay module, an ac 220v relay switch, an arduino relay remote, or an rf self lock relay should be chosen with care for the people who install and use them. In larger projects, such as Coferdam Dewatering Control or Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) management, the commitment to worker health and environmental stewardship is non-negotiable.