Coroplast Global | Insights The Compliance Committee

Merta: First of all, we want to explain the topic of compliance at Coroplast in a way that our customers and employees can understand. Compliance simply means behaviour that adheres to the rules. These rules of conduct are important, if you like, among other things in order to strengthen the trust of employees and the public in our company. We also want to document to the outside world that we adhere to the rules and laws that apply to us as well as our own self-imposed standards.

Merta: The Code of Conduct exists for the benefit of our customers and our employees. For a company of our size, having a Code of Conduct has become standard practice and, in some cases, is actively demanded by our customers. The new IATF 16949 standard (quality management system standard of the automotive industry) also stipulates that a certified company must provide a Code of Conduct for its employees, which is known as “corporate responsibility”. So in the meantime there is a lot more to it than mere regulations and limits.

Merta: The Code of Conduct fits seamlessly into Coroplast’s corporate culture. The topics of practical relevance to Coroplast are summarised in a brief and concise way. We didn’t want an excessively long 20–30-page pamphlet like some other companies do. We held discussions with a great many managers, including those working at our foreign locations, and adopted many of our colleagues’ practical suggestions on the subject of compliance.

Merta: We are committed to transparency with our Code of Conduct – and for that reason it can be downloaded from our website at any time. It is also available to our employees in the company’s intranet system. As an initial step we have published the CoC in German and English. In a following step, it will also be available in the languages relevant to Coroplast worldwide.

Merta: The text alone is not enough, which is why we also train our employees on the relevant topics via e-learning, among other methods. It is also particularly important that the members of the Coroplast Compliance Committee have specific people to contact worldwide to answer questions or clarify matters relating to compliance.

Merta: No, not for the time being. There is the Compliance Committee and locally based managers are also playing a greater role in the field of compliance. In the medium term, the Compliance Management System is to be further expanded and then it will be quite conceivable that local employees also take up additional compliance-related tasks.

Merta: Compliance issues and the Code of Conduct are not meant to burden employees with administrative work, restrict them in their daily work or even unsettle them. In fact, we want to give them a sense of security and provide guidance in situations that may possibly be unclear. Of course, we also expect our employees to adhere to these rules in order to avert possible damage to Coroplast. In the end, the Coroplast Code of Conduct does not contain any regulations that are not already covered by law and which must be observed in any case, regardless of the Code of Conduct. Our aim is to make these rules transparent for our employees, but for our customers and the public, too, and as Coroplast we also want to show that we act in accordance with ethical standards and take the issue of compliance seriously.