Solving the toughest problems in Life Science
We think responsibly and act in terms of generations instead of quarters, believing in the long-term impact on our clients and products. We take an active role in shaping the future.
This spirit underpins our sustainable success. We take an active role in shaping the future through our products and technologies, enabling brilliant people to solve global challenges.
Be sure to keep an eye out for the flagship icon to learn about our proprietary efforts and programs helping to drive sustainable business success.
In realizing our corporate responsibility, we focus our strengths on those areas where we can have the greatest impact and continuously seek to hone our competitive edge while working to sustainably secure our future.
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Sustainable
operations -
As a global organization with more than 300,000 products and 50,000 employees across more than 60 countries, we understand the importance of managing the environmental impression of our own operations. Through an integrated 360-degree global environmental management system for all of our facilities, we have invaluable data on KPIs such as emissions, energy consumption, water usage and waste generation to help guide our decisions and target our investments to reach the next level of sustainability.
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Greener Products
& Solutions -
We actively integrate a focus on sustainability throughout all phases of the product life cycle—from design and manufacturing to packaging, distribution and recycling—so that our products offer customers the highest performance in innovation, quality, safety and effectiveness.
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Employee & Community
Engagement -
We focus on ways to use employee and community engagement to spark scientific curiosity and pave the road to a future filled with innovative breakthroughs and greater access to health for all people. That’s partly what makes us a leading life science company. We also focus our engagement efforts in paying it forward, whether it be volunteering through programs such as SPARK—our global, skills-based program that allows our employees to give back to the communities in which they live and work—or turning scientific inquisitiveness into action via Curiosity Labs™—our proprietary program to bring the expertise of our employees and access to hands-on, interactive science lessons to classrooms around the world.
Curiosity
CubeTM
tours North America
to #SPARKCuriosity
Mobile lab brings
hands-on science to all
Goals & Progress
Life Science Corporate Responsibility Goals
WASTE
0% Complete
- Goal by 2025: Achieve 5% reduction in Merck Waste Score from 2016 baseline of 423
- Progress to date: The Merck Waste Score increased 1.4% to 429
- The Waste Score is a metric which measures a site's waste diversion practices, and encourages increased recycling and discourages landfilling
EMISSIONS
0% Complete
- Goal by 2020: Attain 20% absolute reduction from 2006 baseline
- Progress to date: 11% reduction at Life Science—55% complete
WATER
0% Complete
Sutainable Water
Management—30% complete
- Goal by 2020: Implement a sustainable water management system at sites with water consumption greater than 30,000 cubic meters per year
- Progress to date: In progress—30% complete
Water Consumption—100% Complete
- Goal by 2020: Reduce water consumption by 10% from 2014 baseline at sites in water-stressed areas that are consuming more than 30,000 cubic meters per year
- Progress to date: Complete—only applied to Kankakee Life Science site
SMASH
0% Complete
- Goal by 2022: Complete our SMASH Packaging Plan
- Progress to date: Implemented 2018
GREENER ALTERNATIVE
PRODUCTS
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: Grow portfolio by 10% annually for next five years
- Progress to date: Implemented 2018
GREENING THE
LABORATORY
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: Increase adoption and implementation to an additional 15 major accounts
- Progress to date: Implemented 2018
ECH2O CARTRIDGE
RECYCLING
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: 5,000 cartridges collected per year and 350 participants
- Progress to date: In progess—23% complete
BIOPHARMA
RECYCLING
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: 5,000 tons recycled per year
- Progress to date: In progess—26% complete
EMPLOYEE VOLUTEERISM
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: 168,000 volunteer hours and 6,000 employees in 36+ countries
- Progress to date: Implemented 2018
SCIENCE
EDUCATION
0% Complete
- Goal by 2023: 500,000 students engaged and 36+ countries reached
- Progress to date: Implemented 2018
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“We place great importance on fostering an environment that engenders both creative collaboration and problem solving. It’s a win-win for both our employees and customers as we work together to advance science and medicine.”
Udit Batra
Chief Executive Officer
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“We have realized the greatest impact comes not from just within our own walls, but in enabling our millions of customers in more than 160 countries to accelerate the impact sustainability can have globally.”
Jeffrey Whitford
HEAD OF CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY
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“To us, streamlined operations means producing top-quality products in the most efficient way possible, with minimal use of energy, water and waste. We are working towards a future in which the ‘waste’ of one process can be the raw material input for another process.”
Christopher Famolare
EIT, CEM, CEA, Global Manager of Sustainable Operations
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“This innovative program aligns with our corporate goal of not sending waste to landfill, but more importantly acts as a much needed solution in our efforts to create virtually zero waste in the first place.”
Morgan Harriman
North American Zero Waste Program Manager, Sanofi Genzyme
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“Through our industry-first recycling programs, we’re tackling the challenging waste stream of single-use plastics and offering an end-of-life solution for our plastic products. As a result, we empower customers to contribute to a circular economy and reduce their own environmental footprint.”
Jacqueline Ignacio
global manager, customer sustainability solutions
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“It’s incredible to see first-hand how the interactive science experiments inside our Curiosity Cube© mobile science lab can positively impact students’ lives-uncovering ‘aha!’ moments and helping them see what possibilities lie ahead.”
Natalie Randolph
Curiosity Cube coordinator
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“To make the greatest impact in our communities around the world, we tap the passion of our employees and partner with organizations who share our drive to support the scientists of today and tomorrow.”
Melissa Small
head of employee and community engagement
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“It’s important to show students that anyone can be a scientist, regardless of gender, ethnicity or race. By having our diverse group of employees volunteer for our science education programs, we’re able to break barriers and make this important connection for young minds across the globe.”
Kaely Zeiser
business partner, Corporate Responsibility
Explore Programs
Around The Globe
Click on the interactive map below to learn more about our Corporate Responsibility initiatives around the world, including how we are supporting scientific research and science education in communities in which we operate.
- Sustainable operations
- GREENER PRODUCTS &
SOLUTIONS - Employee & Community
engagement
Swipe left or right to view additional programs and details
tap to dismiss
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Girlstart
Austin, Texas, U.S.
We partner with Girlstart, a community-based informal STEM education organization dedicated to empowering and equipping girls in STEM through year-round educational programming. Our employees volunteer during STEM camps and the annual STEM conference.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Curiosity Labs™
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Using the Next Generation Science Standards, we launched our Curiosity Labs™ program—an initiative that takes our professionals into classrooms to engage students with hands-on inquiry and apply scientific concepts to “real-world” settings—at Bermuda Elementary School in the Ferguson-Florissant School District.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
STEMpac
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
We are a founding member of STEMpact, a collaborative effort of corporations, universities, community organizations and schools that aims to transform the STEM education ecosystem to prepare tomorrow’s professionals and to ensure the vitality of the region’s economy.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
St. Louis Children’s Hospital
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
We support the St. Louis Children’s Hospital through an endowment fund at the Children’s Discovery Institute (CDI), a world-class center for pediatric research and innovation created to encourage researchers to ask bold questions and to take bolder risks to uncover answers.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Frontiers in Science
Rockville, Maryland, U.S.
In partnership with Johns Hopkins and Shady Grove Hospital, we support the Frontiers in Science program, where middle school students are taught by science experts. Additionally, students tour our lab facility and can get down to the nitty-gritty by interacting with high-tech lab equipment they wouldn’t find in a typical classroom.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Casa do Caminho Orphanage
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
We partner with Casa do Caminho Orphanage, which provides homeless children ages 4 to 18 a safe place to live, educational opportunities and job training via mentorships, major necessities such as technology and monetary donations, and even the basic need of clothing.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
CASA M.A.N.U.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The CASA M.A.N.U. project focuses on the needs of children diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Our employee-volunteers work with CASA M.A.N.U.’s coordinator in planning activities that provide these children with an uplifting environment full of love and understanding.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Local Schools
Arklow, Leinster, Ireland
Our employees partner with a local primary and secondary school by supporting the schools’ science departments. Additionally, employees regularly travel to the schools to guest lecture and host science demonstrations.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Royal Society of Chemistry
Cambridge and Bromborough, U.K
Through a Royal Society of Chemistry–accredited outreach program, our scientists travel to local schools across the pond to teach science lessons and hold science demonstrations.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
University of Zurich
Buchs and Zurich, Switzerland
We collaborate with the University of Zurich and the University of Bern by supporting the Chemical and Molecular program, as well as hosting students at the Buchs facility, where mentors are provided and annual research competitions take place.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
SPARK
Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany
On March 6, 2016, we launched SPARK—a global skills-based volunteer program that provides community service opportunities for our network of nearly 19,000 life science employees, with a focus on science and education.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Local Universities
Munich, Bavaria, Germany
We collaborate with local universities through monetary and product donations. Additionally, our employees guest lecture on the broad range of topics in science.
EMPLOYEE & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Local Schools
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Our employees also travel to local schools and community events to host STEM demonstrations and discuss the amazing benefits a career in science offers, for both them and the world. We also partner with local universities to guest lecture and provide facility tours.
GREENER PRODUCTS & SOLUTIONS
3D Printing
Berkeley, California, U.S.
When you think greener, you don’t think petroleum. Neither do we, which is why we are partnering with the University of California, Berkeley and software developer Autodesk to develop a greener alternative resin for the 3D printing industry, as opposed to current petroleum-based products.
GREENER PRODUCTS & SOLUTIONS
DOZN™
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
We launched another one of our industry-firsts: DOZN™, a proprietary breakthrough scoring system based on the 12 Principles of Green Chemistry.
GREENER PRODUCTS & SOLUTIONS
EZ-Fit⢠Manifold
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
We redesigned EZ-Fit™ Manifold, used for microbiological water testing in the food and beverage industry, so that filtration heads could be easily removed and sterilized, whereas the old model had to be sterilized in its entirety—reducing autoclave-associated carbon emissions by 91%. We also switched to packaging made from recyclable cardboard.
GREENER PRODUCTS & SOLUTIONS
Polystyrene Cooler Return
Billerica, Massachusetts, U.S.
Next comes waste reduction, a feat accomplished as we offer U.S. customers a polystyrene cooler return program that is diverting approximately 20,000 coolers from landfills and incineration each year—significantly decreasing the amount of waste sent to landfills and the carbon footprint over the life cycle of a cooler.
GREENER PRODUCTS & SOLUTIONS
Biopharma Recycling
Billerica, Massachusetts, U.S.
Our first-of-its-kind Biopharma Recycling program in partnership with Triumvirate Environmental turns product materials— single-use bags, tubing and connectors, cartridge and capsule filters, and empty chemical containers and drums—into industrial-grade plastic lumber products such as speed bumps and parking blocks. Through this program, we’ve been able to help customers reduce their solid waste by as much as 50 percent.
SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS
Sustainability Incentive Programs
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
In the U.S., we offer incentives to employees who install a solar photovoltaic or solar hot water system, conduct a home energy audit, or purchase or lease a hybrid or an electric vehicle.
SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS
Sustainable Buildings
Billerica, Massachusetts, U.S.
This facility earned an ENERGY STAR certification with a score of 94—signifying it performs better than at least 94 percent of similar buildings according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. We also have 3 LEED-certified Gold buildings in the U.S.
SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS
Sustainable Buildings
Jaffrey, New Hampshire, U.S.
At this state-of-the-art Biomass Central Heat Plant, we utilize a renewable feedstock to offset the consumption of more than 400,000 gallons of oil per year.
SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS
EDISON
Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany
Through EDISON, our proprietary climate impact mitigation program, we have a unified system across our facilities worldwide to benchmark energy conservation and greenhouse gas emissions against targets and guide how we invest to reach the next level of sustainability.
SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS
Green Buildings
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Our LEED Gold facility in Bangalore, India utilizes a facade and window boxes to minimize heat gain and, in turn, reduce the demand for air-conditioning. Fly ash bricks and under-deck insulation also improve building performance. These key features coupled with other design elements allow for an energy consumption that is 11 percent lower when compared to a standard building.
News & Resources
Whether we’re introducing products that enable groundbreaking scientific research or announcing partnerships that support science education, we always have something going on. Here’s some of our recent press releases and coverage.
Press Release
MilliporeSigma Brings Science Education to Students Across North America With Curiosity Cube® Mobile Science Lab
Learn more
