We work closely with our suppliers to collect accurate and up-to-date information about their environmental, social and governance practices and performance.

Our e-Contractor List Management System is integrated with our vendor requisition process in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland. This automated platform facilitates supplier selection, management and performance analysis and allows for timely updates of supplier information.

For new suppliers to be included on the list of approved contractors, they must first complete self-assessment questionnaires to confirm that they have appropriate policies and systems in place to comply with our SCoC. We monitor the compliance status of suppliers on our approved contractors list on an ongoing basis. In addition to requesting regular self-assessments, we may also undertake supplier site visits, request that our suppliers obtain independent certification in accordance with internationally recognised standards, and submit environmental and health and safety management plans for our internal review. Staff engaged in company procurement and relevant internal stakeholders were trained on their respective roles in supplier ESG management.

We continuously refine our performance management system for technical services providers. Any act of non-compliance or malpractice in the areas of health and safety, environment, procurement, quality and site management is recorded, and the technical provider will be subject to disciplinary action.

Supplier screening is conducted regularly to identify significant Tier-1 suppliers considering their ESG risks and exposure related to country, industry sector and impact of the commodity, in addition to suppliers’ criticality, volume, spending, substitutability, and business relevance.

In 2022, we conducted a comprehensive risk assessment of over 300 significant Tier-1 suppliers, identified as either critical suppliers, high-volume suppliers, high-spending suppliers or non-substitutable suppliers, to confirm their compliance with our SCoC and that there were no violations of human rights issues. These suppliers are based in Hong Kong, the Chinese Mainland and the U.S.A., and together they contributed to more than half of our procurement spend in 2022.

According to our findings, none of these suppliers were considered “high risk” under our Enterprise Risk Management System (“ERM System”). There were also no incidents of human rights violations identified across our operations in 2022.

To support a more effective monitoring of the implementation of our Supplier Code of Conduct and to improve the data transparency, accuracy and reliability of our Scope 3 emissions, we have introduced a Business Partner Sustainability Programme with the aim to enhancing the overall resilience of our value chain, while helping supply chain partners mitigate ESG-related risks, operate at greater resource efficiency, enhance reputation, and capture new business opportunities.

In 2023, we have partnered with EcoVadis, as the first real estate company in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland to launch a supply chain sustainability engagement programme via EcoVadis’ proprietary ESG assessment platform. We aim to rollout to our top 300 suppliers identified as either critical suppliers, high-volume suppliers, high-spending suppliers, non-substitutable suppliers, or suppliers with highest business relevance, and regularise these assessments with a view to creating continuous collaboration and improvement and formal recognition of the best-performing suppliers. We have also considered the specific risks related to country, industry sector and impact of the commodity that we procure in the selection of the top 300 suppliers.

During the pilot phase, top 100 suppliers have been invited to share, via answering the EcoVadis questionnaire, their company’s management practices around environment, labour & human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement. The questionnaire is structured based on international sustainability standards such as the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards, the ISO 26000 standard, the CERES Roadmap, and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and in alignment with our Supplier Code of Conduct.

In September, Swire Properties organised a comprehensive supplier onboarding webinar to share the company’s ambition and the Business Partner Sustainability Programme with our pilot suppliers. The objective of this webinar was to provide our suppliers with a clear understanding of the assessment process and the importance of supply chain sustainability and ESG risk management in their operations. To ensure a smooth assessment process, the EcoVadis team will provide personalised support to address any administration and technical queries that may arise during the assessment process.

The supplier’s response will be distilled and analysed, summarised into a scorecard. Suppliers will receive detailed insights of their strengths as well as areas for improvement and be able to benchmark and compare their ESG performance against peers participated in the assessment. Swire Properties aims to regularise the assessment based on supplier performance, to allow them to report and track progress over time, monitor suppliers’ corrective actions efficiently with technical support on implementation, and continuously improve information accuracy, reliability and transparency.