Climate Transition Plan
Our Climate Transition Plan
Our Climate Transition Plan (CTP) sets out how we will achieve net zero across our operations and value chain supporting customers to achieve their decarbonisation goals, engaging suppliers to shape our sustainable product portfolio, and empowering our people to deliver brilliantly.
As a critical partner in the global industrial sector, sustainability is embedded in our business model. We are using our scale, influence, and strategic partnerships to accelerate the shift to a low-carbon future and deliver trusted, sustainable procurement choices for our customers.
OUR CLIMATE AMBITION
DECARBONISATION LEVERS
Decarbonising our sites
Switching to renewable energy
Creating a net zero fleet
2030 TARGETS
*SBTI VERIFIED
Reduction in Scope 1 and 2*
Renewable electricity
Company car fleet
STRATEGIC VALUE
Driving operational excellence by improving efficiency and resilience and reducing costs and carbon
Reducing emissions and energy costs and increasing business resilience
Reducing environmental impact and delivering a more sustainable service for customers
PROGRESS TO DATE1
Reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions
Renewable electricity use
Group company cars that are electric or hybrid
1As at 31 March 2026 since 2019/20 baseline, unless otherwise specified.
DECARBONISATION LEVERS
Sustainable product and service solutions
Supplier sustainability
Product transportation
2030 TARGETS
*SBTI VERIFIED
Reduction in Scope 3 emissions per £m value added
Engage our strategic suppliers to set science‑based targets (SBTs)
Reduction in product transport intensity
STRATEGIC VALUE
Meeting customer demand for products and solutions that enable decarbonisation and responding to growth in low-carbon customer segments
Leading suppliers to advance sustainability in their operations, products and logistics to enhance customer value
Optimising our supply chain to remove cost and carbon and provide a more efficient and sustainable distribution service to customers
PROGRESS TO DATE1
reduction in RS PRO products-in-use carbon
Of strategic suppliers by spend set SBTs
Reduction in product transport intensity2
1As at 31 March 2026 since 2019/20 baseline, unless otherwise specified.
2Tonnes of CO2e due to Scope 3 transport emissions per tonne of product sold.
Decarbonisation levers: direct operations
Decarbonising our sites
Our ambition:
Driving greater automation, sustainability, and energy efficiency at our distribution sites – supporting operational excellence and enhancing customer service while lowering our footprint.
Key actions to date include:
- Widespread LED lighting installation
- Sub-metering, real-time energy monitoring, and new building and energy management systems to support continued electrification
- Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) upgrades, insulation, and destratification fans
- Conversion and removal of gas systems to low-carbon alternatives
- Rollout of rapid roller doors and electric forklifts
- Audits and/or analysis completed of all sites to determine priority actions for energy efficiency
- Decarbonisation leads identified for all sites to drive collective action and knowledge sharing through Net Zero Working Group
Switching to renewable energy
Our ambition:
Prioritising solar installation at our sites, then sourcing renewable energy where solar isn’t feasible.
Key actions to date include:
- Focusing first on maximising on‑site solar installation, supplementing this with renewable electricity procurement
where required - Solar power installed on five sites across Australia, Germany, South Africa, Spain, and Switzerland
- Progressing solar installation at Risoul sites
across Mexico - Group Energy Management Policy in place to procure green electricity for all sites where possible
Creating a net zero fleet
Our ambition:
Transitioning our fleet to electric and hybrid vehicles and encouraging
adoption by our people. The RS fleet is comprised predominantly of company cars with a small number of vans and HGVs for product deliveries in select markets.
Key actions to date include:
- 60% of Group company car fleet and 99% of UK fleet is electric or hybrid as of 2025/26
- RS Safety Solutions transitioned to HVO fuel for their HGV logistics fleet in the UK resulting in 420 tCO2e reduction in 2025/26
- Risoul in Mexico switched 106 vehicles to hybrid
- RS Locals in the UK transitioned 13 light commercial vehicles to electric
- EV charging ports installed on 32 sites for employee use
Act together, achieve together
A greener future for Risoul
Smarter routes, smaller footprint
One team, zero carbon
Packaging with purpose: Sustainable distribution at scale
Powering performance in onshore wind
Earth Day 2026
Decarbonisation levers: Value chain
Sustainable product and service solutions
Our ambition:
Expanding our range of sustainable product and service solutions to help customers reduce costs, save resources and achieve their environmental goals.
Key actions to date include:
- As of 31 March 2026, the BWP range includes c. 33,000 products from 167 suppliers
- Digitally enabled search capabilities on product websites to enhance the sustainable procurement experience
- Partnering with UK renewables sector to develop bespoke catalogues to support safe, efficient and sustainable maintenance
- Providing customers with more options for specific product types, such as personal protective equipment (PPE) and workwear
- Trialling a Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) tool to generate LCAs and product carbon footprints for RS PRO products
Supplier sustainability
Our ambition:
Collaborating with our suppliers to drive carbon reductions across the value chain, including sourcing, designing, manufacturing and shipping products more sustainably.
Key actions to date:
- ESG is one of the pillars of our strategic supplier approach, supported by our Supplier ESG action plan with five key priorities: Ethical Trading Declaration, Better World product participation, EcoVadis or Sedex assessments, carbon reduction and SBTi validation, and key ESG ISO certifications
- Engaged with over 160 suppliers to date to target development of more sustainable products for inclusion in the Better World
product range - Ongoing supplier engagement through regular meetings, supplier events, quarterly business reviews (QBRs), and supplier ESG communications
- ESG Supplier Handbook updated regularly, supported by video designed to engage suppliers on material ESG topics
- Introduced the free EcoVadis Vitals assessment in 2025/26, enabling suppliers without an existing rating to begin their ESG journey with a clear set of priority actions
Product transportation
Our ambition:
Transitioning our fleet to electric and hybrid vehicles and encouraging
Cutting the distance our products travel by sourcing, storing and shipping closer to customers and suppliers and switching to less carbon intensive modes of transport.
Key actions to date include:
- In 2025/26, we reduced the intensity of product transportation emissions by 11% from 2024/25 and by 34% from 2019/20
- Modal shifts (from air to road and sea)
- Regional supply chain restructuring to source, store and ship more products locally and regionally
- Supply chain optimisation through expanded inventory capacity, streamlined transport routes and strategic delivery networks
- Consolidating orders within Europe at distribution sites before transporting to customers via a local road-based carrier
- Opening partner fulfilment centres in Asia Pacific to bring us closer to customers and reduce long-distance shipping and stock replenishment
Dependencies and enablers
As an industrial distributor we have limited control over the design, manufacture and use of the products we sell and rely on 3pl logistics providers to distribute our products. Our value chain net zero commitments are therefore highly reliant on:
