How to combine ESG & industry? (podcast)

Welcome to this new ExoTalk. The idea: to take a step back with an expert guest to decode a topic that matters. Today, we’re addressing a question essential to the future of our industry: how can we combine economic performance with environmental and social responsibility?

In this conversation, Nicolas Hunsinger, Head of ESG at Exotec, and Abbie Morris, expert in sustainability and corporate strategy, explore the concrete challenges of ecological transition in the logistics sector.

Together, they discuss the integration of ESG into corporate strategy, from reducing the carbon footprint of products to the social impact of automation.

A podcast that reveals how sustainability can become a driver for innovation.

The speakers

Abbie Morris: Sustainability and global policy expert with 15 years of experience. Founder of Compare Ethics, an AI platform that ensures corporate compliance with sustainability regulations and prevents greenwashing.

Nicolas Hunsinger: Head of ESG at Exotec. Engineer and MBA graduate, he transitioned to ESG six years ago after 20 years in tech and media, convinced that integrating ESG issues is essential for sustainable growth.

Sustainability: a strategic imperative

At Exotec, investing in sustainability is rooted in the values of its founders, Romain Moulin and Renaud Heitz. The 2 engineers built the company with acute awareness of global challenges. As a manufacturer of automated systems for logistics, Exotec observes both the advantages and extremes of the economy it supports. The goal is to enable consumers to enjoy comfortable lifestyles and provide fulfilling jobs, but not at the expense of the future.

This philosophy resonates with a young team averaging 30 to 32 years old, a generation acutely aware of climate issues and eager to act.

A rigorous, analytical approach

Faced with pressure from regulators, customers, employees, and suppliers, Exotec relies on systematic stakeholder dialogue. The company regularly meets with all parties to identify expectations and opportunities.

Exotec applies the same discipline to sustainability as to any of its business objective. Being an engineering company, the approach is analytical: measure, assess, commit, deploy, and repeat. Sustainability is embedded into the business plan with baselines, targets, and C-level incentives.

Eco-design in action

The Skypod system, Exotec’s flagship automated logistics product, exemplifies operational excellence in sustainability.

The team assess every component of the solution. For a Skypod handling 3,000 lines per hour and storing 100,000 bins, the baseline was 3,200 tonnes of CO2. Through eco-design training and supplier collaboration, innovations emerged: switching to recycled plastic reduced bin footprints by 40%, while lighter racks cut emissions by 20%. In two years, total system emissions dropped to 2,200 tonnes.

To ensure this progress aligns with climate goals, Exotec set science-based targets validated by the Science Based Target Initiative. The company committed to reducing emissions by 50% per million euros of gross profit by 2030, targeting 1,200 tonnes per system. This ambitious goal drives designers to explore new container strategies, green steel, and power optimization features like sleep modes.

Measuring real impact

A crucial question: does warehouse automation increase environmental footprint? Exotec is conducting comprehensive research. The Skypod system triples throughput using one-third the surface area of manual operations. These factors critically influence net impact.

Per square meter, automation concentrates more material and energy. But warehouse managers evaluate performance, not area. Comparing equivalent productivity scenarios reveals promising results: automation doesn’t increase carbon footprint and can reduce it by 20% in certain conditions. Less building means less heating, robots replace energy-intensive forklifts, and fewer workers reduce commuting emissions.

Variables include warehouse height, commute distances, and heating systems. Overall, automation appears not to worsen emissions while significantly reducing land use, potentially limiting greenfield construction and biodiversity impacts.

Transforming the value chain

Exotec applies rigorous standards to suppliers, requiring EcoVadis ratings and carbon footprint data for key components. With products designed piece by piece—thousands of components—the company knows weights and materials precisely, using the Ecoinvent database for emission factors.

For customers, Exotec shifts conversations from vendor responsibility to product sustainability. The company educates clients on carbon, energy, land use, lifespan, and circularity. While customers focus on energy, it represents only 15% of product footprint. The majority comes from material extraction, manufacturing, and distribution.

Every commercial offer now includes carbon quotations alongside pricing. As the first in the industry to provide this transparency, Exotec aims to make sustainability a real purchasing consideration.

Social impact and working conditions

Customers identify workforce challenges—well-being, turnover, labor shortage—as their top concern. On hardship and safety, Skypod systems deliver proven benefits: reducing physically demanding tasks and limiting accidents.

For productivity, mental load, and social acceptance, impacts depend on context and HR policies. Exotec works directly with workers to understand their perceptions and aims to be the most valued solution by employees themselves. With growing experience, the company better supports customers through the human and organizational challenges of warehouse automation.

Transparency against greenwashing

After two years of serious work, Exotec now speaks openly about its ESG efforts. The company avoided early claims to prevent greenwashing but considers transparency essential for advancing the industry. This aligns with core values: building a lasting, sustainable company requires internal progress and industry transformation.

With greenwashing penalties and rising litigation, only verified data survives. Exotec demonstrates that innovation and responsibility are complementary forces building tomorrow’s industry.