Miljögiraff | SimaPro partner in Sweden

SIMAPRO PARTNER STORY | Business partnerships are an integral part of PRé’s ongoing success. These relationships, which strengthen both parties, are based on synergy and transparency. By working in tandem with companies who share in our commitment to putting the metrics behind sustainability, PRé’s continued accomplishments are guaranteed. PRé spoke with a long-term partner, Miljögiraff.

“Peace, love, and giraffes.”

Founded in 2003, Miljögiraff is a Swedish-based company that focuses on the marriage of environmental assessment and cooperation. “You have to consider others, those depending on the same resources as you,” Miljögiraff founder Marcus Wendin said. “You have to be responsible.” Miljögiraff works mainly in “life cycle assessment and environmental impact assessment, mostly applied to industrial products.” In addition, the company focuses on “trying to use methods for conflict management to encourage cooperation development.”

A former engineer at Volvo, Wendin chose to branch out on his own once he began to feel restrained by the strictures of his field. After studying conflict management, Wendin wanted to work to create “systemic, holistic ways to optimize solutions for society in general.” He said, “I saw that I could combine LCA results with the conflict methods to facilitate and improve environmental mitigation and adaptation.” Miljögiraff’s client roster includes Volvo, Alfa Laval, and Tetra Pak, and the company works with clients in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Norway. “We have been one of the actors present in most LCA forums and conferences,” said Wendin. “We have spread the feeling and the notion of sharing LCA information.”

Partnership with PRé

“I wanted to work with the best,” Wendin said of the genesis of Miljögiraff’s partnership with PRé. During Wendin’s studies, he heard numerous references to PRé and our founder, Mark Goedkoop, and since 2004, Miljögiraff has been the SimaPro agent in Sweden. “SimaPro is very good, it’s the best tool. People like it,” Wendin said. To him, the partnership made sense because, “We are both very engaged in similar projects, like textiles.” And he envisions big things for the future. “So many companies are now cooperating. We as consultants, together with PRé, can now address them as a group.” Wendin in particular would like to target the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, whose partners include Walmart, H&M, and Nike, among others. “They cooperate to purchase their supplies in a better way. I would like to do a joint, big screening, deep LCA in the textile section, like on cotton.” Wendin believes, “if we work together, we can be strong and clever.”

Industry Snapshot

“When we started, people were asking for LCAs. Now they’re asking what you can use the results for. They need information they can use,” Wendin said. In particular, Wendin believes that this is the case because companies need to prove that they are deserving of certain environmental labels and claims and that they meet new guidelines and standards. Clients are in particular asking for “upstream purchasing, product development, and environmental product declarations.” More and more, clients are beginning to focus on “the development of services instead of physical products. People are talking about it and actually doing it.”

Both vanguards in the LCA field, together PRé and Miljögiraff can help their clients create value in the ever-changing sustainability landscape.

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