Data Flows Upstream and Better Business Flows Downstream: Solving the Scope 3 Data Problem with Procurewise

Decarbonisation Turns Problems into Solutions

Accurate emissions calculations are the order of the day for brands in regulated markets. With new sustainability regulations, businesses are incentivised to take responsibility for the emissions arising in their operations and supply chain.

Most of these regulations make businesses responsible for their scope 3 emissions. This is where suppliers live, as do their own suppliers, and so on, until everyone counts their emissions and reports them back up the supply chain. While businesses report up the supply chain, the benefits of accurate carbon accounting and emissions reporting will flow downwards.

For suppliers, those benefits mean standing out from the rest and solidifying long-term commercial relationships. For brands and manufacturers, it means compliance and better investment opportunities. For everyone else, it means taking global climate action. Everybody wins.

Supplier-First Solutions

This might not be news to suppliers already subject to sustainability regulations. Like their customers, they’ll be tracking their emissions and preparing their supplier engagement strategy.

The crucial detail for downstream suppliers is that it doesn’t matter whether you’re in the scope of an emissions reporting regulation or not. If your customers are, they’ll come to you for answers about your emissions. For full supply chain decarbonisation to work, suppliers need to get involved.

These new demands can leave suppliers unsure of where to start. They’re used to producing goods, not providing data. Without data collection solutions that prioritise suppliers, suppliers will likely be at the mercy of their customers and how they choose to approach supplier engagement.

Collaboration is one option. Driven by the mutual benefits of emissions management, companies and their suppliers work together to set reduction targets, share strategies, and identify opportunities for improvement up and down the supply chain.

Collaboration ultimately relies on brands having the resources to work closely with individual suppliers, which isn’t always the case. Where supplier engagement is in its infancy, brands might take a more transactional approach where suppliers are legally obliged to reduce emissions through procurement contracts. Here, hitting emissions reporting targets will be enforced by audits, with little room for supplier-brand collaboration or relationship building.

In this case, it’s up to the supplier to hit their targets or risk losing out to those who can. Whether brands choose a carrot or a stick approach, suppliers must disclose their data. Emissions calculation platforms often favour those upstream in the supply chain, but some platforms have the agility to offer supplier-first solutions throughout the supply chain.

Procurewise can Solve Data Disharmony in the Supply Chain

The problem is that while every link in the supply chain needs it, not every supplier has the infrastructure to gather the emissions data that brands require. If suppliers can’t provide emissions data, they might be excluded in favour of more sustainably mature businesses. The risk of exclusion is an incentive to take control of emissions, improve how your business operates, and stand out among other suppliers bidding for contracts.

Procurewise is unique among emissions management platforms as it’s designed with suppliers in mind. It’s a way to help suppliers start building an emissions reduction infrastructure that will carry them through their journey to net zero.

Emitwise offers free emissions calculations to get you started. You’ll get independent access to a free version of the platform, where you can start uploading your data and immediately gain insight into your emissions. As it’s prepopulated with publicly available data, there’s no risk of customers asking for data that you’ve already shared.

With Procurewise, suppliers can meet their customers in the middle and start offering their decarbonisation solutions. This makes a cooperative approach to emissions reduction more viable and avoids potentially toxic supply chain relationships.

Suppliers can’t satisfy customers’ needs by making assumptions about their emissions. You’ll need the accurate emissions data that platforms like Emitwise can provide. Procurewise makes supply chain decarbonisation possible. By putting emissions data into the hands of suppliers, they’re also able to reap the benefits of decarbonisation and pass them down the supply chain.

With Procurewise, the Scope 3 data problem isn’t much of a problem. It’s an opportunity to foster better relationships up and down the supply chain. Data goes up, and better business trickles down. When everyone’s involved, everyone benefits.

Get involved with Emitwise.