Cubis Systems achieves EcoVadis Gold for sustainability
Cubis Systems is proud to announce that it has been awarded the EcoVadis Gold Medal for Sustainability. This achievement ranks us in the 97th percentile and among the Top 5% of assessed companies worldwide for environmental, social, and ethical performance.
So, for customers and colleagues, this is the latest in a series of commitments demonstrating that, when you work with us, you’re working with a verified and dedicated sustainability leader.
No small amount of work has gone into this milestone. Explore the key details - including the 'who', 'what', and 'why' - in the story below.
Exploring EcoVadis
(And the Gold Medal)
If you're not familiar with EcoVadis, the 'nutshell' overview is that they recognise companies for their sustainability performance.
A global sustainability rating platform, EcoVadis was initially founded in France in 2007. Today, the platform has grown into one of the most widely used ESG assessment systems worldwide. It rates over 150,000 companies across 175+ countries.
To do so, EcoVadis evaluates corporate sustainability practices based on international standards like GRI, UN Global Compact, and ISO 26000.
Four key areas of focus are assessed and scored - with stringent documentation and evidence requirements for each category:
-
Environment
(energy, emissions, waste, biodiversity)
-
Labour & Human Rights
(working conditions, diversity, health & safety)
-
Ethics
(anti-corruption, fair competition, data responsibility)
-
Sustainable Procurement
(supplier evaluation and monitoring)
Medals are subsequently awarded on the basis of percentile rankings across all assessed companies (not only those in our industry).
More specifically, the Gold medal is awarded to those companies in the top 5% globally of all assessed organisations. Companies in the Gold band are regarded as sustainability leaders with advanced policies, comprehensive actions and credible results.
So, what does this mean for our customers, partners, and stakeholders?
Building confidence
Our customers - i..e, those specifying critical underground utility infrastructure - increasingly need assurance that their supply partners are genuinely sustainable. Product performance rests not just on mechanical or structural performance, but also on wider environmental metrics.
Here, then, achieving EcoVadis Gold reinforces our existing position as a trusted supplier to sectors where ESG compliance is a prerequisite. (For example, in utilities, energy, rail, highways, data centres, and more.)
At Cubis Systems, our published EPDs already highlight that we can support an up to 80.7% carbon reduction by installing our products versus the traditional equivalent.
Our partners now get even further confidence that our sustainability commitments are:
Strengthening compliance
The EcoVadis assessment demands robust documentation, processes and evidence across sustainability themes. EcoVadis considers everything from your:
- Policies
- Management systems
- Verifiable data
- Supplier engagement
- Audit trails
- Monitoring
- And more!
By achieving Gold, Cubis Systems demonstrates that our internal systems meet global best practice levels of sustainability management.
That means that for the specifiers, design engineers, procurement teams and infrastructure owners we work with, we're not just aligned with your technical specifications.
We're also providing that additional layer of assurance that your infrastructure solutions are sourced responsibly, and in line with emerging ESG regulations and frameworks.
We know better than most how regulators and procurement teams increasingly require demonstrable sustainability credentials. So, against this backdrop:
The EcoVadis Gold medal gives Cubis Systems a clear credential that supports commercial and operational risk mitigation.
Combating greenwashing
Greenwashing (i.e., claims of sustainability that lack substantiation) has become a growing risk in infrastructure supply chains.
Our EcoVadis Gold medal addresses this challenge. It is awarded only when an independent rating agency has analysed our submitted documentation, audited our practices, and placed our performance in the top percentile globally.
So, by using this validated credential, Cubis Systems isn’t merely self-asserting.
When we talk about, for example:
Carbon reduction
Recycled materials
Designing for installation efficiency
The circularity of our product systems
We're supporting all those claims with hard-won external recognition. This transparency only further fosters trust.
Customers can feel assured that sustainability isn’t a token marketing claim splashed up on LinkedIn every once in a while here at Cubis Systems. For our teams on the ground, sustainability is integral to our daily operations and practices.
An achievement many years in the making
Cubis Systems started our EcoVadis journey back in 2020. Then, the process was initiated by French customers, notably SNCF – which led Cubis Systems - France to adopt the assessment.
It is worth noting that, despite originating in France, the EcoVadis ESG rating covers all of Cubis Systems globally – reflecting our company-wide commitment to sustainability across all our various sites and regions.
In 2020, we were incredibly proud to start at Gold. We then moved to Silver in subsequent years as global standards and expectations advanced. This shift is only proof of the dynamic scoring system from EcoVadis, which constantly raises the bar as sustainability practices improve worldwide.
Now, we’ve regained Gold.
Cubis Systems ranks in the 97th percentile and top 5% globally, thanks to continuous improvement in policies, actions, and reporting.
Recognising the team effort
This achievement is the result of a collective effort across the business.
Acknowledgements should go to:
- Aoife O'Connell (SHEQ Director), who oversaw the completion of the EcoVadis assessment, supported by Sorcha Doherty (Quality & Environmental Manager)
- Our HR and Procurement teams for providing essential documentation
- Our team in France, notably Per MÜLLER-WILLE (Director France), who initiated the EcoVadis journey in the first instance through Cubis France
Sustainability isn’t the remit of any one department. It’s multi-disciplinary and multi-functional, and this medal is a testament to the alignment of people, process, and evidence across the entire organisation.
It took many meticulous hands on deck to produce the breadth of documentation required, and we’re proud of what we've achieved together.
“Achieving EcoVadis Gold demonstrates our dedication to sustainability and provides assurance to our customers that Cubis meets the highest global standards.” Aoife O’Connell
The path to Platinum ahead
Achieving EcoVadis Gold again is a major milestone, and one we’re thrilled to celebrate. It underscores our position as a credible, independently verified sustainability leader.
However, looking further ahead, our ambitions go higher. The next step on the EcoVadis ladder is Platinum status, awarded only to the top 1% of companies globally.
For us, there is no "finish line" to sustainable operations. Earning this Gold status is only our latest achievement, and a clear signal to our customers, partners and stakeholders that we are serious about embedding sustainability into everything we do.
Our focus now, then, is to maintain Gold and work toward Platinum. Annual reassessments from EcoVadis ensure continuing progress and alignment with evolving ESG standards. Our pathway is to continue refining and strengthening our sustainability performance year-on-year so that we can compete at that level.
By doing so, we aim to be in the top 1% of all assessed companies and positioning Cubis Systems as the benchmark for sustainability in our sector.
