Anti Slavery

Edwards is part of the Vacuum Technique business area of Atlas Copco Group (Atlas Copco), a world leading provider of sustainable productivity solutions, employing circa 46,000 people in 2017, which is listed on the Swedish Stock Exchange. Edwards is a leading developer and manufacturer of sophisticated vacuum system products, abatement solutions and related value-added services with a global workforce of approximately 4,800 in 2017, of which 750 are employed in the UK.

We require all of our suppliers, as part of our General Terms and Conditions of purchase, to adhere to the Atlas Copco Business Code of Practice, and our Ethical Purchasing Policy. Failure to adhere to these codes can result in termination of any business relationship. Any member of staff, business partner(s) or any third party can raise concerns via the company’s confidential whistle blowing email address: hotline@se.atlascopco.com.

During 2017, Edwards migrated from the Edwards Business Code of Practice to the Atlas Copco Code of Practice. As part of this migration, a new online training module was rolled out. Completion of this training module is obligatory for all of our existing employees and any new joiners. We aim to embed the Atlas Business Code of Practice in our culture and those members of staff that are considered to be more exposed to potential corrupt practices must annually sign a Compliance Statement to ensure they are reminded of their obligations under the Business Code of Practice.

All Edwards’ product companies are third party certified via a common global management system to ISO14001, the international standard for environmental management systems; OHSAS18001, the international standard for safety management systems and ISO9001, the international standard for quality management systems – and we have the same expectations of our suppliers.

In addition, Edwards is proud to be a member of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), formerly the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC). The RBA isthe world’s largest industry coalition dedicated to electronics supply chain responsibility. RBA members commit and are held accountable to a common Code of Conduct and utilise a range of RBA training and assessment tools to support continuous improvement in the social, environmental and ethical responsibility of their supply chains. All of our suppliers are required to adhere to the RBA’s code of conduct which defines the acceptable safety, environmental, product quality, product stewardship, labour, human rights, social and legal standards, under which products shall be made and services provided. This includes all work contracted or sub-contracted.

We assess all of our potential suppliers using the RBA risk assessment tools. Initially, an internal desk-top assessment is carried out. Depending on the outcome of this, suppliers will be sent follow-up questionnaires to complete to ensure they are the right business partner for us. Any suppliers categorised as high risk would be subject to an on-site audit prior to engagement. During 2017, we did not have any suppliers who had been categorised as high risk according to the RBA assessment tools.

We also assess all of our potential suppliers using a Business Partner Criteria Checklist. This is based on the UN Global Compact and the International Labour Organization Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. It includes two red flag points; ‘elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour’ and ‘rejection of child labour’. We use this when carrying out on-site audits of selected suppliers and we systematically carry out internal audits on our companies.

This statement is made pursuant to section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes the slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 31 December 2017 for Edwards Limited and its subsidiaries which are required to have a statement.