environmental, social & governance

Hexion is a leading, global producer of adhesives and performance materials that enable the production of engineered wood products and other specialty materials used in a variety of residential and commercial building applications, as well as high performance coatings. Key end markets include residential and non-residential construction, repair / remodel, furniture, energy, agriculture and automotive. In 2022, the company continued to enhance its ESG profile with governance and product lines aimed at driving industrial sustainability. Hexion conducts sustainable product stewardship under the guidelines of the American Chemistry Council’s Responsible Care Product Safety Code, and the company is advancing environmental initiatives and product design under the governance of its Sustainability Steering Team. One of these products includes Hexion’s ArmorBuilt™ Wildfire Shield, a durable safeguard that protects critical infrastructure and building materials from the increasing wildfires caused by climate change. The state-of-the-art smart material is triggered by heat to protect wooden utility poles and minimize the cost of disruption and repair. In September 2022, during the California Mosquito Fire, ArmorBuilt Wildfire Shield protected numerous utility poles from burning, despite significant damage to nearby vehicles. ArmorBuilt Wildfire Shield protects more than 100,000 utility poles in the field today.

MSG is an industry-leading, vertically integrated ingredient manufacturer focused on the processing of raw dairy inputs into value-added ingredients for human and animal well-being, performance nutrition, and functional food. In 2021, the company captured 13 million pounds of solids that would otherwise have become dairy industry waste. American Securities sold MSG in February 2023 after a period of ownership investing behind attractive, long-term macroeconomic trends in health and wellness and sustainability. One such initiative was the acquisition and retrofit of a Monroe, Wisconsin plant to collect and process what would otherwise be waste whey from local cheese producers. The solution doubled the capacity of the facility without increasing its footprint or adding trucks on the road for collection. Local small to-medium sized cheesemakers gained access to whey processing resulting in nearly 380,000 pounds of whey solids (approximately 161 full truckloads) saved from disposal annually. In total, more than 2.8 million gallons of water – enough to fill the Monroe Community swimming pool at least four times over – is now reclaimed and recycled annually thanks to the plant’s new processing equipment.

Trace3 is a leading provider of technology hardware, software, and services to over 2,500 enterprise and mid-market customers in the U.S., with core expertise in hybrid cloud, security & networking, and data intelligence applications. The company has a commitment to diversity, inclusion, and social responsibility, with a variety of programs aimed at diversifying perspectives in the technology arena. In collaboration with Hiring Our Heroes, a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation program, Trace3 created an internship program, empowering so-called “Tracers” with mentorship and hands-on STEM experience. The Tracers program targets students from underprivileged backgrounds, partnering with universities to source a candidate class of ~30 students. Trace3 further collaborated with Hiring Our Heroes to establish a veterans fellowship program connecting veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses with employment, training and mentorship at Trace3. Trace3 also created a Women in Tech event series, aimed at supporting women in the industry and providing a dedicated channel for exchange of ideas, networking, and showcasing of leadership. The company believes that recognizing the impact of women in the technology sector – both their employees as well as customers and vendors – through a committed platform can serve to uplift the entire industry.

In 2021, United Clean Up Oak Ridge (UCOR), an Amentum-led partnership with Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., received its third overall Innovation Award at the Voluntary Protection Participants’ Association’s Safety+ Symposium. The 2021 Innovation Award recognized the company’s outstanding training, qualification, and professional development programs in radiological control, industrial hygiene, and construction and heavy equipment. UCOR is the U.S. Department of Energy-Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management’s lead environmental cleanup partner and is responsible for cleaning up the former Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant and other sites on the DOE Oak Ridge Reservation.

In 2021, Chromaflo was awarded a Gold Rating by the Corporate Social Responsibility assessment from EcoVadis for its EMEA operations, placing the company among the top five percent of companies evaluated. The review focused on Chromaflo’s policies and procedures pertaining to the environment, labor practices and human rights, fair business practices, and sustainable procurement issues, as well as waste management, energy consumption, and use of renewable energy sources.

In spring 2020, CS Energy’s Women in Renewable Energy (CS Energy WiRE) program was launched to engage female employees at CS Energy and to provide them with the tools needed to grow and advance personally and professionally. So far, the group has participated in internal networking events and an external Town Hall, where women on CS Energy’s leadership team joined with the National Girls Collaborative Project to connect with and encourage young women to pursue careers in sustainability, engineering, and renewable energy. Like many STEM fields, the renewable energy space employs a lower number of women.

With employee safety as a top priority, Oregon Tool experienced a 32% reduction in its Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) over the course of our partnership from 2016 to 2021 and produced better-than-average TRIR outcomes annually as compared to the industry.