Saverglass: lessons from a multi-site ISO 50001 rollout

What is your role at Saverglass?

Martin Haguet: I am responsible for energy consumption and volumes across all of the group's production sites. These sites cover glass manufacturing as well as decoration, and they are spread over several continents. My job is to give them a common direction.

To achieve that, we first had to put genuine energy management in place. That is the project I launched as soon as I took up the role, two and a half years ago, with one clear idea: structure the approach by setting objectives, then building the teams that carry the action plan.

How did ISO 50001 come to the fore at Saverglass?

Martin Haguet: I discovered the standard in detail through this project, and it matched what I wanted to put in place across the group. ISO 50001 sets out the requirements for an energy management system, with a simple principle: manage energy methodically in order to improve energy performance continuously. It calls for resources and for everyone's involvement, and it offers a relevant framework for tackling energy consumption.

At the same time, the regulations changed. The French law of 30 April 2025 makes a certified energy management system mandatory by 11 October 2027 for companies consuming an average of at least 23.6 GWh of final energy per year. As an electro-intensive company, Saverglass falls within its scope. We therefore chose to move ahead of the deadline, with a voluntary approach across the whole group.

Rolling out a standard across a group calls for specific skills. Why bring in external support, and why Lemon Energy?

Martin Haguet: One of our sites was already certified, out of obligation. To extend the approach to the rest of the group, we needed solid, shared foundations for all sites and a stronger focus on training. External support made things considerably easier, whether in terms of the resources to mobilise or of understanding the standard. Above all, we were looking for an experienced partner with an industrial profile. Energy touches on subjects that can be sensitive, and an outside party brings both the right message and a degree of neutrality.

Lemon Energy combined those skills, along with a method for structuring a multitude of actions at group level. We had also already carried out our energy audit with them. Even though we ran a call for tenders, continuing together came about quite naturally.

On the funding side, Saverglass was able to draw on the PRO-SMEn programme for some of its French sites. What part did that funding play in your decision?

Martin Haguet: Access to this funding is restrictive, and our activities are eligible for it. It was not the deciding factor, but it made things considerably easier. For the sites concerned, the grant covered most of the costs of the certification they obtained locally, which helped the project gain acceptance on those sites. It does not, however, cover costs incurred outside France.

Once the decision was made, how did you organise the project across sites so far apart?

Martin Haguet: The project relied on two management tools. Lemon Energy's project managers first structured the schedule and the tasks on their project management platform. We then set up a steering committee shared between Saverglass and Lemon Energy. That steering committee allowed issues encountered on the sites to be raised and decisions to be made, particularly on data collection. This way of steering the project was essential to its success in France.

That shared framework allowed us to work almost entirely remotely. We have been comfortable with video calls since Covid, and every working session took place that way. Only the audits were held on site. This set-up allowed us to work around everyone's constraints and the time differences, at a lower cost.

On top of the distance, the site in the United Arab Emirates raised the question of language. How did you handle it?

Martin Haguet: For that site, the project was run in English. For the local teams to take ownership of the approach, the documents had to exist in English. We had the opportunity to welcome a bilingual colleague on site, who translated all of the documentation.

Thanks to that material, we were able to get the work under way with the Emirati site, whose certification is due to be completed by the end of the year. The local context remains a particular one, since the site lies close to the Strait of Hormuz, an area under considerable strain.

Beyond the organisation, what did the project demand from your teams?

Martin Haguet: First of all, we had to build a committed team and keep every member involved. The second challenge concerned data. We had to collect it and put it in order so we could build sound statistical models, which our indicators are based on. This way of defining indicators was very new to us, and it required us to acquire a new skill.

With teams spread across several sites, how did you keep to the schedule?

Martin Haguet: On the sites that were supported, Lemon Energy enabled us to keep up the pace. Lemon Energy acts a little like an outside policeman: having the schedule permanently in view helps you see the project through. That support matters all the more because energy management rests on background work, which often takes second place, especially for maintenance departments. Without an outside party, the schedule can quickly slip. That is what reinforces, in my view, the choice of full support: the methodological input keeps the project moving.

In Mexico and Australia, does the question of external support arise in the same way?

Martin Haguet: For these two sites, the question remains open, and the decision rests with the local teams. Mexico is leaning towards local support, Australia towards handling it in-house. It is then up to me to make sure our standards are respected, with a view to full integration into our management system.

Where do the certifications stand today?

Martin Haguet: Three sites obtained their certification this year. We also took the opportunity to update the two sites certified previously, reviewing their indicators with higher quality statistical models. The next two sites, in Belgium and the United Arab Emirates, are currently preparing and are due to be certified before the end of 2026. As mentioned, the sites in Mexico and Australia are about to begin preparing for certification in 2027.

What does certification change in the way energy is managed?

Martin Haguet: The difference shows first in awareness and communication, which are far more considered on certified sites. Teams there now share a common language around energy uses and consumption, and they pay closer attention to the subject. A monthly review then takes stock of the indicators and the action plans. The gap with the sites not yet certified is clear, whether in terms of action plans or of the information available.

Without going into figures, what early effects are you seeing on performance?

Martin Haguet: On a site certified for a long time, we are already seeing better performance. For the time being, we are working above all on embedding the energy management system within the company, across every theme the standard covers. The whole point is to make this last over time and to take ownership of these subjects day to day. The monthly reviews keep that momentum going, and it is a real success.

Today, the energy management system is in place, with an energy policy, objectives, indicators, a governance routine and an action plan. We also have an organisation built on skills and structured data. Fundamentally, it is the place of energy that has changed: it used to be a maintenance matter, dealt with in the back of the plant. It has become a subject in its own right, for the plants and for the group alike.

And after certification, what new prospects open up?

Martin Haguet: The work continues, and our objectives are ambitious. Our environmental commitments, and the decarbonisation of our processes in particular, lead us to look for ways to cut our energy consumption with the help of all our employees. We are also developing cross-functional management, complementary to that of each entity in the group, in order to strengthen our synergies. Next milestone: a seminar for the European energy officers, which will provide a progress review and define the major actions for what comes next.