Date: 17/10/2024

Version: 1

This policy applies to all types of procurements and to all divisions and employees.

Policy Statement

It is the policy of Think to practice a continuous improvement approach to understanding and taking appropriate responsibility for any adverse environmental, social, and economic impacts of its purchasing. In doing so, Think shall consider impacts of purchasing decisions and prioritise actions according to: alignment with our company values, magnitude of impact, and compliance with any applicable regulations.

Purpose

This Policy is adopted in order to align Think’s purchasing with its Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) values and goals. In doing so, Think seeks to harness the influence of its purchasing to support markets for, and increase accessibility to, more sustainable goods and services.

Core strategies

For any of the following core strategies, it is understood that they shall be undertaken in conjunction with traditional purchasing considerations, such as budget, product/service performance requirements, and availability. Prior to making new purchases, employees are also expected to consider: the need for the purchase; opportunities to extend the life of the existing item or material; and meeting the operational need through a different means (e.g. renting vs. purchasing).

1. Utilise processes, technologies, products, or services that reduce consumption of natural resources or chemicals.
2. Utilise processes, technologies, products, or services that reduce waste.
3. Invest in energy and fuel-efficient products, services, and technologies that result in simple paybacks and within a realistic timeframe, based on the Total Cost of Ownership.
4. Invest in processes, technologies, products, or services that reduce the sourcing and use of Carbon-Based Fuels.
5. Seek processes, technologies, products, or services that support a Circular Economy
6. Seek processes, technologies, products, or services that support biodiversity and healthy, resilient natural habitats.
7. Seek out, specify, and purchase products with lower Embodied Carbon than the status quo.
8. Seek out, specify, and purchase products that minimise exposure of Substances of Very High Concern to people and the environment.
9. Consciously design procurement processes and related programming to support a diverse contractor base, including small, minority, and/or women-owned businesses.
10. Seek out processes, technologies, goods, or services that support transparency in our supply chaining/or product disposal endpoints regarding compliance with environmental regulations and Core Labor and Human Rights in the Workplace.
11. When using social or environmental product labels, seek out social/ecolabels that demonstrate that the product or service was independently certified to a reputable third-party environmental and/or social product or service leadership standard, preferably a multi-attribute standard that evaluates products or services along their entire life cycle.
12. Whenever possible, utilise Life Cycle Costing methods to determine the full cost of a product, service, or design.

This document will be reviewed and updated on a regular basis to reflect the continuous improvement described.

This document will support our Net Zero Reduction Plan.