Sustainable development

Committed to the energy transition

A commitment set down in detail in our Sustainable Development Report

Discover our daily commitment to sustainable development

We are fully engaged in the third industrial revolution

The world is undergoing major changes impacting production, our relationship to work and energy management. We are supporting these changes.

Since 2006, we have been implementing the EFQM model which fosters sustainable and balanced performance. Adopted by many European businesses, this model targets continuous improvement—with the pooling of good managerial and environmental practices a key challenge.


Our action in this area is exemplary and recognized by our peers.

Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy, resulting from the EFQM model, covers very concrete measures taken with regard to social, environmental and economic matters (in compliance with ISO 26000).

Key CSR initiatives 

We have a clear vision and tangible commitments:

  • We produce and use clean energy
  • We manufacture in France promoting proximity and sustainability
  • We recycle electronic waste, paper and cardboard
  • We offer apprenticeship and internship opportunities
  • We sponsor outreach programs, associations and charities.

Striving for excellence through continuous improvement

We are able to reinvent ourselves and drive our business forward by harnessing the collective energy of our people. 

We make headway because our management structure is horizontal rather than vertical, and because we believe that everyone has a role to play. 

The working groups we organize on a variety of subjects are highly productive and we act on the decisions we make.

Reaping the rewards of our commitments

We are very proud of the awards we have received for our commitment to the environment, to the women and men who make up SCLE, and to sustainable and entrepreneurial performance. 

By investing in a digital milling machine in Marseille in 2016, we have been able to eliminate the use of certain chemicals, particularly engraving chemicals, used to manufacture printed circuit boards, as well as the waste they produce. We have also limited GHG emissions associated with the delivery of these chemicals.

The Technodrill involves a purely mechanical process. Essentially used for its “machining” function, it allows us to manufacture small mechanical parts for our test benches and R&D prototypes in-house.
Digital milling machine
Since 2015, our Toulouse and Marseille facilities have been members of “Ecosystème Pro”, the French organization for the collection and processing of WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment). This contributes to guaranteeing the proper processing and recycling of all our manufactured products at their end-of-life.
Eco contribution and WEEE
Packing boxes are adapted to the size of their contents and cushioning materials are reused. A semi-motorized robot now replaces the cardboard used to pack the cabinets with plastic film, reducing CO2 emissions by 70% and cardboard use by -3.4 metric tonnes!
Packaging reduction
The eco-design approach to our electrical engineering cabinets adopted by our Toulouse facility over the past 5 years has enabled us to achieve significant reductions in raw materials, amounting to -18 metric tonnes of steel!
The weight of the cabinets has been optimized and sheet metal thickness reduced. The cabinets are also painted using a non-polluting, solvent free powder-coating process – which is important from an economic, environmental and health & safety point of view.
Reduced sheet metal
SCLE SFE designs equipment that is built to last, with a service life exceeding 20 years for digital control solutions, and up to 40 years for safety-related railway signaling products. However, manufacturing an object takes raw materials, resources and energy.

To reduce its environmental footprint, SCLE SFE focuses its strategy on 4 pillars:
– Upgrades: To increase the performance of our products, our software is upgraded and new functionalities or applications can be implemented on existing equipment.
– Retrofit: To increase the performance and lifespan of our products, modules can be replaced with new-generation components.
– Repair: In the event of a fault or breakdown, our After Sales Service analyzes the fault and repairs the equipment.
– Refurbishment: To extend the lifespan of our products, we can preventively replace worn parts or parts with a shorter lifespan than that of the equipment as a whole.

Thanks to our in-house eco-design processes and life-cycle analyses (LCA), we manage environmental aspects during product development and throughout all stages of our products’ life cycle. From their design to their use in situ, our customers are guaranteed the benefit of environment-friendly products.
Creating sustainable products
The Life-Cycle Analysis (LCA) process makes it possible to assess the environmental impact of a product in relation to a particular function over its entire life cycle. Governed by ISO 14 040 (ISO, 2006) and ISO 14 044 (ISO, 2006), LCA takes into account the extraction and processing of raw materials, manufacturing processes, transport and distribution, use and reuse of the finished product, and finally, the recycling and waste management at the end of a product’s life cycle.

LCA provides a decision support tool that helps optimize the environmental footprint of the product under analysis, making it possible to establish the product’s environmental balance sheet.

We have carried out several LCAs on the ARKENS range since 2011:
– 2011: LCA of the Line cabinet to identify areas for improvement
– 2014: Comparative LCA for the ARKENS PR, enabling us to reduce its electricity consumption
– 2022: LCA of the ARKENS SV with official publication of a Product Environmental Profile (PEP).
LCA
The acquisition of a 3D printer in Marseille in 2014 has enabled us to manufacture all plastic parts for production, R&D prototyping and the manufacture of test benches. As a result, we limit the purchase, transport, storage and waste associated with sourcing these parts elsewhere, and reduces the energy consumption of our equipment.
The 3D printer gives us greater flexibility and access to the parts as and when we need them, resulting in a shorter approval process before mass production. On average, we produce over 2,200 3D-printed parts each year.
3D printer
SCLE SFE is committed to an eco-design approach to its product lines. All our products are assembled in France in compliance with European legislation, in particular RoHS, REACH and WEEE regulations which restrict the use of certain substances which are hazardous for the environment and human health.
SCLE SFE has been RoHS compliant since 2007, and REACH compliant since 2017.
RoHS & REACH

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logo EFQM Global Award 7 star 2021Bureau logo Veritas Certification ISO50001logo Afaq 14001logo Afaq 9001logo MASE SUD OUESTlogo Origine France Garantie V2EcoVadis 2024 GOLD
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