How Nelissen Steenfabrieken contributes more than its fair share in terms of sustainability.
"We want to convince our customers to choose the most sustainable products"
"Because we are convinced of the need and our added value, not just because we have to." This is how Nelissen Steenfabrieken views sustainability. Together with co-CEO Burt Nelissen, we dive into the process that the family business is in the midst of. "We are facing the biggest transformation this industry has ever seen," he says.
Facade bricks and sustainability. At first glance, it seems like a big contradiction. After all, their production releases a lot of CO₂. Both firing - the ceramic process - and drying the bricks require a lot of energy.
Burt Nelissen, co-CEO of Nelissen Steenfabrieken looks at it from a broader perspective. "It is true that a lot of CO₂ is released in the production of facing bricks. But it is in itself a sustainable product, made from natural raw materials and with a lifespan of more than a hundred years. As a company, we look for the right balance between 3 aspects: economy, ecology and the social."
Nelissen Steenfabrieken has therefore been building a sustainable business with Encon for many years. "Encon has helped us choose a direction from a long-term vision. We even do more than legally necessary because it benefits the organisation and the world." said said Burt Nelissen.
To be (sustainable) or not to be
Nelissen has been committed to sustainability for many years. From the strong belief that every company should do its bit, not just to meet obligations. "We all see and feel it," Burt Nelissen is clear. "Around the turn of 2023-2024, there was a lot of flooding, during the summer it is often extremely dry, ... The industry is experiencing a big impact, but is also partly to blame. This is precisely why we all need to take action. That's great! I am also convinced that only sustainable companies will have a reason to exist in the future."
CEO at the helm of sustainability
All current and future sustainability efforts are framed within a broader strategy. "This strategy exercise has now been fully completed," echoes Burt Nelissen. "Now two things are important: implement the framework provided by this strategy throughout the organisation and launch concrete projects to implement it. In doing so, it is very important to give it sufficient weight. At our company, for example, the CEO is responsible for sustainability, together with the Climate Cell, which consists of employees from different departments. Putting the CEO at the helm with this shows that we mean business." It shows that Nelissen has completely changed its orientation and organisation in just a few years. From now on, the balance between ecology, economy and the social aspect will be at the heart of business decisions, and every department will be challenged to think out-of-the-box, innovatively and with a long-term view. As a result, the company will remain a forerunner.
Update productieproces
Just because Nelissen Steenfabrieken operates in an industrial sector with large installations, it has long been subject to legislation to reduce CO₂ emissions. Thus, it has been part of the emissions trading system since 2005. Those who emit a lot of CO₂ are given emission rights. Until 2012 these were free, in the meantime they are partly payable and from 2030 all allowances have to be paid for. The lower the emissions, the lower the cost.
"To reduce our emissions, we carried out a thorough update of our production process between 2017 and 2019," explains Burt Nelissen. "We renovated our ovens and our drying chambers. This involved an investment of 50 million euros, but it resulted in greater energy efficiency. In total, we were able to save around 20% since 2005."
Helping customers choose with eco-formats and eco-label
So, in its search for the right balance, the facing brick manufacturer looked beyond just CO₂. Besides optimising the production process, Nelissen helps its customers make sustainable choices. For several years now, the facing brick producer has also been making eco-sized facing bricks.
"These are thinner and narrower bricks," says Nelissen. "You need fewer raw materials and less energy to bake and dry them. In fact, this product range fits within a charter we entered into with the whole industry to produce thinner bricks. Moreover, for several years we have been shipping the bricks in recycled packaging with minimal printing. These, in turn, can be recycled again."
Even at product level, the facing brick producer is developing a passport for each of its products. This indicates how the brick scores in terms of sustainability. "We developed the eco-label ourselves," says Burt Nelissen. "We did that with our Sales & Marketing department. These employees have an important task ahead of them in the coming years. They will have to show our customers which solutions they can choose from and the impact of the choices they make. In this way, we hope they will choose products with lower emissions. " Eco formats, for example, currently account for 10% of sales. By 2028, it should be 50%.Tot slot zette Nelissen Steenfabrieken sterk in op het welzijn van de medewerkers. Burt Nelissen: “Door middel van coaching en opleidingen willen we elk van onze collega’s een gepersonaliseerd traject aanbieden waarbij ze erover waken dat ze zich op de werkvloer goed in hun vel voelen.”
The next leap is a big one
On the environmental aspect, Nelissen Steenfabrieken has meanwhile reached a temporary plateau. Today we already have a 20% drop. By 2050 the company - like all European companies - must be CO₂-neutral, by 2030 we therefore want to reduce our emissions by 42%.
"We would like to go even further," echoes Burt Nelissen, "but in terms of energy efficiency, we are looking towards alternative energy sources that we can use in 2030 and beyond. We are preparing this transition thoroughly."
These are not readily available at the moment. Nelissen has already tried to maximise the potential for renewable energy, taking into account the environment. The biggest gain is probably in the transition to green hydrogen, but that is still in the future. Green hydrogen is being produced by mouth, but transporting it is not easy. Nelissen is already preparing for the transition. "Fluxys is currently building out a network," says Burt Nelissen. "The good news is that that network will be close to our site and we can easily be connected, estimated in 2028."
From production process to passport. Facade brick manufacturer Nelissen Steenfabrieken has been building a sustainable business with Encon for many years. In this video, discover more about their search for a sustainable balance between the economic, ecological and social.
In tandem with Encon
Both for the strategy and the concrete elaboration, cooperation with Encon has been ongoing for years. "A lot of different processes are running, involving different departments," Burt Nelissen summarises. "Encon helps us strategically and technically as well as in terms of reporting. "This ranges from our sustainability strategy and our climate road map, to relighting projects and energy transition, to reporting in the context of our emission rights and our energy policy agreement."
Such as sustainability label BREEAM, which is becoming increasingly important in large construction projects and public buildings. To achieve it, building materials must also achieve this label. Nelissen: "Encon helped us with the technical guidelines, analysed where and how we could adjust the production methods and made sure all the necessary documents are in order."
A great example of the good tandem that Nelissen and Encon form. "Encon facilitates and guides the process each time, we take care of the technical implementation and the concrete actions," says Burt Nelissen.
Encon employee has clear profile
As far as Burt is concerned, Encon may go even further in its services. "I would certainly be open to it if Encon delved even more into the technical and the scientific," he sums up. "But in itself, of course, their know-how lies primarily in sustainability and legislation. In that area, they really set the direction for us and I feel they want to do better than what the legislation imposes. That is fine with me because it is also Nelissen's ambition. While we are at it, we would like to be carbon neutral as soon as possible."
Burt Nelissen concludes by listing the main strengths of Encon employees: "It's always about the same profile: driven, highly educated people who provide excellent guidance. Sometimes that includes pushing and they certainly dare to do so. Don't forget the analytical skills in the reporting aspect either. That is extremely important in our sector and I am extremely satisfied with that."
ABOUT NELISSEN
In 2021, Nelissen Steenfabrieken celebrated a special anniversary. Meanwhile, it has been making facing bricks and facade insulation systems for more than 100 years. From Lanaken in Limburg, it distributes these throughout Belgium, as well as neighbouring countries and even Scandinavia, the Middle East and Japan. It accounts for an annual capacity of 185 million bricks and a turnover of more than 57 million euro.
BURT NELISSEN
Co-CEO Nelissen
