On the afternoon of 28 May, the project review meeting for the group standard "Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Evaluation Specification for Manufacturing Enterprises" was successfully held at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). The meeting was chaired by Dr Steven Zhou, Deputy Director of Center for Responsible Business and Innovation (CRBI) at UNNC, and was attended by Ms Xue Gao, Secretary General of the Ningbo Intelligent Manufacturing Association, Professor Jing Dai, Director of CRBI, Mr Xin Jiang, Deputy General Manager of Ningbo Zhedong Environment and Energy Exchange (ZDEAEE), expert group members, representatives of companies and representatives of the standard drafting team.
Currently, global environmental and sustainable development issues are receiving increasing attention, which poses new requirements and challenges for the manufacturing industry. The development of the group standard "ESG Evaluation Specification for Manufacturing Enterprises" aims to provide a simple, clear and easy-to-adopt evaluation standard for enterprises. This is especially to help small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises, and multi-level suppliers of large manufacturing enterprises better adapt to the policy pressures and customer demands on ESG disclosures and practices at home and abroad. This standard not only will help companies manage environmental risks systematically and fulfil social responsibilities but also contribute to standardising and improving corporate governance structures. With China accelerating its green transformation, the introduction of such standards will effectively support the sustainable development strategies of domestic companies in the global market, and promote the overall advancement and sustainable growth of China's manufacturing industry.
The standard drafting work was managed by the Ningbo Intelligent Manufacturing Association and was jointly implemented by UNNC and ZDEAEE.
Ms Xue Gao, delivered a speech at the ceremony, emphasising the importance of ESG evaluation in promoting sustainable development of enterprises and raising awareness of social responsibility. She expressed full support and expectations for the formulation of this standard. Professor Jing Dai, Director of CRBI, emphasised the importance and significance of the standard drafting work and expressed confidence in its success.
Ms Luping Lin, the consulting project manager of ZDEAEE, representing the drafting team, gave a detailed introduction to the background, progress, expected results and future prospects of the group standard "ESG Evaluation Specification for Manufacturing Enterprises".
Subsequently, the expert group reviewed the project materials item by item and conducted in-depth discussions on the necessity, standardisation, innovation and operability of the standard. They provided valuable guidance and suggestions on the scope of application, terminology interpretations and data adoption to unanimously affirm the significance and role of standard drafting.
The expert group unanimously agreed that this standard responds to the national sustainable development strategy of peak carbon emissions and carbon neutrality. It not only helps evaluate institutional investors and assess the actual performance of small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises but also guides companies to improve their ESG management level, meet market and innovation needs, to fill much-needed gaps. The expert group agreed unanimously that the standard should be approved.
Ms Jiangang Wu, head of the expert group and the Director of the Standard Innovation Center of the Ningbo Institute of Standardisation Research, stated that the project team has preliminarily built a scientific standard outline and evaluation indicator system. The next step is to standardise it internationally, strengthen localisation, and refine evaluation indicators and methods to ensure that the standard can meet the actual needs of manufacturing enterprises, and achieve good application and demonstrative effects.
The successful completion of this meeting marks a real step in the development of the group standard "ESG Evaluation Specification for Manufacturing Enterprises". Next, the standard drafting team will further improve the content of the standard according to suggestions of the expert group, ensuring that it can adapt to the actual situation of manufacturing enterprises, empower companies to better fulfil social responsibilities and enhance their brand image, and maintain a leading position in an increasingly competitive market.