Did you know that cold storage units, particularly ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers installed in our laboratories use an incredible amount of energy? In fact, just one ULT freezer can consume as much energy as an average family home.
To address this, Evotec signed up to The International Laboratory Freezer Challenge - a partnership project between My Green Lab and the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL). The competition is run annually from January to July and is designed to promote best practices in cold storage management within laboratories. Not only does the initiative contribute to environmental sustainability by saving energy within the laboratory but businesses also benefit by reducing their energy bills.
At Evotec alone, 32 teams across 10 global sites embarked on this challenge in 2024. Overall, the company has saved an incredible 1325.65 kWh/day (483,862 kWh/year) which is equivalent to the energy consumption of 53 family homes, 334 metric tons of carbon dioxide or 80 gasoline powered cars driven for one year. To reward the achievement, Evotec received an Honourable Mention for its role in this worthwhile project.
So how did we achieve this?
Due to the size and worldwide presence of Evotec, successful management of the project was key to its success. Global participation in the initiative was co-ordinated by sustainability champion, Maya Farah, and was supported by the ESG department. Each team was assigned a local sustainability champion who - along with freezer challenge site co-ordinators and department representatives - shared tips, insights and achievement to keep the challenge spirit alive.
Most of the improvements were gained by establishing cold storage best practices such as:
• defrosting freezer units
• cleaning filters, coils and intakes
• brushing frost from cabinet and door seals
• updating inventories and discarding samples no longer needed
• retiring older inefficient cold storage units and investing in energy efficient upgrades
• sharing cold storage space
• barcoding inventories
• adjusting ULT freezer setpoints where feasible
Cumulatively, in 2024, the International Laboratory Freezer Challenge saved a record breaking 31.8 million kWh of energy saving which translates to the equivalent of 22,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide and 5296 gasoline powered passenger vehicles driven for one year.
Volker Braun, EVP Head of Global Investor Relations & ESG, commented on Evotec’s achievement, ‘It is exceptionally motivating to see how all the teams have worked so hard for this challenge. Our local sustainability champions have proactively applied internationally recommended best practices, which sets an example to all teams within the company and enables a work culture of continuous improvement. Their actions have significantly reduced Evotec’s energy consumption and carbon footprint helping to contribute to a more sustainable world.’
It should be remembered that the International Laboratory Freezer Challenge forms only a small part of the overall sustainability goals for Evotec. The company has committed to reach net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2045, reduce scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 50.4% by 2032 and by 95% by 2045 (from a 2021 base year), and increase active annual sourcing of renewable electricity to 100% by 2026. Furthermore, we aim to reduce scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services and capital goods by 72% by 2032 and commit that 80% of Evotec’s suppliers will have science-based targets by 2027.
Evotec’s latest sustainability report details its ESG commitments.