Documentation, requirements and control
KOMPAN wants to be as transparent as possible in our communication about our products and our approach to more environmentally friendly playground and fitness solutions. Our information and our marketing must be correct, precise, relevant and balanced as well as clearly formulated. This applies to all our environmental statements. It must be documented, and it not only places demand on ourselves but also on our subcontractors. Requirements that must also be controlled. We also quantify CO2 emissions and recyclable % on all our products. This information is validated by an independent third party. The calculations are part of our product sheets.
Subcontractors – Code of Conduct
KOMPAN uses a number of subcontractors spread all over the world, where a distinction is made between product-related subcontractors and installers who install our solutions on behalf of KOMPAN abroad and around the world. Through contracts and business terms, our subcontractors agree to meet certain minimum requirements defined by EU regulations, national regulations and, not least, KOMPAN's Code of Conduct
In relation to the installation of playgrounds and fitness equipment, it is a challenge to ensure that the subcontractors on the individual playground or fitness site meet the requirements that we place on them. The subcontractors undertake to dispose of packaging and other waste on the site as environmentally correct as possible and in accordance with both EU regulations and national regulations. Packaging and waste are sorted and delivered to local recycling sites, and the delivery must be documented in connection with the settlement of their work for KOMPAN.
KOMPAN regularly visits our product-related subcontractors, and we also use independent third parties to conduct supervision and auditing. Local KOMPAN people are assigned to installations to check that the installations are carried out according to KOMPAN instructions, including whether they comply with the regulations and, not least, our Code of Conduct.
EU regulations
One of the EU regulations where KOMPAN has already set requirements for its subcontractors is in relation to the EUDR – the regulation on the ban on deforestation. KOMPAN has chosen to implement the EUDR as of 01.01.2025, even though the EU has postponed the regulation, so that the regulations must first be met as of 01.01.2026.
All wood suppliers have been contacted and checked to ensure that they do not contribute to deforestation. This applies to both the Robinia wood used for wooden playgrounds and indoor furniture, but also to the wood used in connection with the transport and shipment of KOMPAN’s products. The requirements in the EUDR are greater and more comprehensive than the requirements for FSC-labeled wood.
KOMPAN also follows the EU’s chemicals legislation, REACH, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) from the USA and standard EN 71-3 on safety requirements for toys. When we select materials for our playgrounds, they are first tested and held up to legislation and standards. An example is the recycled plastic material polypropylene, which undergoes thorough batch testing at an external accredited laboratory by Bureau Veritas.
In addition to the laboratory tests, KOMPAN re-tests materials received from suppliers that have already been tested to ensure that the materials do not contain harmful chemicals. This is a so-called in-depth inspection, where an XRF spectrometer is used to analyze a number of the chemicals in the materials.
Third-party verification
Third-party verification is when we use an external organization to review and confirm information and intend to ensure accuracy. Bureau Veritas is a company founded in 1828 that specializes in testing, inspection and certification. It operates in a variety of industries. Bureau Veritas is present in 140 countries through a network of over 1,500 offices, laboratories and more than 82,000 employees. www.bureauveritas.dk
When Bureau Veritas verifies and certifies companies’ data, it uses international standards such as ISO standards, the GHG protocol, EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
A key part of third-party verification is the calculation of the greenhouse gas emissions of each product – all the way from cradle to gate. The most common is that companies only calculate their own greenhouse gas emissions from water, electricity and the operation of vehicles and machinery. KOMPAN has chosen to also include the emissions that occur through our raw materials, which are by far the majority of our CO2 emissions.
The calculations include all of the product's CO2 impact CO2 emissions from the moment it is produced to the moment it is ready for sale. This is a detailed and complex way of making calculations, but it gives the most accurate picture of the product's real CO2 emissions.
Life cycle calculations
In the long term, KOMPAN intends to make calculations of the entire product life cycle, where the product's impact during use and disposal is also taken into account. However, this is the smallest part, the vast majority of CO2 emissions are in the production phase of KOMPANS products. It is a longer process to get to the point where you get the full picture of the product's life cycle - how it can be, since the products are handed over to the customers and thus out of KOMPAN's hands. Calculations will be able to show different scenarios based on different instructions to the customers, but this requires KOMPAN to take one step at a time to be sure that the calculations they make are in control.
Third-party verification should not only ensure that the calculations are correct. They should also help build trust in KOMPAN and our products, and not least ensure that we are not accused of, for example, greenwashing or using incorrect data. When others read our sustainability report as customers, investors, banks and other stakeholders, there should be no doubt that our calculations are correct.
