Protecting what we love: How ORTOVOX combines mountain sports and climate action

Since 1980, ORTOVOX has stood for safety in the mountains. The company's name is derived from "Ortung" (German for "location" or "tracking") and the Latin word "vox" (meaning "voice") – a nod to its origins as a pioneer in avalanche safety. Today, ORTOVOX develops emergency equipment, backpacks, and technical, wool-based clothing while promoting mountain safety through its Safety Academy. However, for ORTOVOX, protection extends beyond the mountains – it also takes responsibility for climate action. 

Sustainability as a core strategy 

ORTOVOX has been committed to sustainability and climate action for many years – in particular by combining natural materials with technological innovation. Since 2015, ORTOVOX has been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation, holding "Leader" status for ensuring fair working conditions. ORTOVOX is also part of the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles, which aims to improve social and ecological standards in production. 

ORTOVOX’s sustainability strategy, ProtACT, focuses on two key objectives: climate action and social responsibility. These are complemented by the topics of animal welfare, responsible supply chain management, environmental protection and product cycles, which round off the strategy. 

To accurately measure, analyse, and reduce emissions throughout its value chain, ORTOVOX collaborates with ClimatePartner. From the outset, transparency and independent verification have been central concerns – ensuring maximum credibility and trust among customers and partners. 

The foundation of all climate action measures: the carbon footprint 

Together with ClimatePartner, ORTOVOX has calculated the carbon footprint of both its company and products. The Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) follows the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and covers the entire product lifecycle under the system boundary "Cradle to Customer + End of Life." 

For the Winter 2024-2025 and Summer 2025 collections, ORTOVOX has, for the first time, included the usage phase in its calculations. Emissions from the usage phase were also retrospectively calculated for the Winter 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 collections and the Summer 2023 and 2024 collections – a significant step toward more accurately assessing environmental impacts and systematically reducing them. 

Through collaborations with ClimatePartner and other outdoor industry partners, ORTOVOX has refined its emissions data, created valuable synergies, and made continuous progress. The detailed carbon footprint helped ORTOVOX identify its emission hotspots and establish clear reduction targets and concrete measures. 

Planning and implementing emissions reductions 

ORTOVOX has set ambitious climate goals aligned with the scientifically backed 1.5°C pathway and the standards of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The company commits to reducing emissions not only in its own operations (scope 1 and 2) but also throughout the entire value chain (scope 3), from material sourcing and transportation to disposal. 

• 42% reduction in all scope emissions by 2030 (baseline year: 2022)
• 95% reduction in total emissions by 2050 

ORTOVOX has already implemented important reduction measures: 

• Transition to 100% renewable energy: All energy consumption at the company’s site in Germany is now covered by renewable electricity.
   
• Product-related measures: ORTOVOX continuously optimises its entire product lifecycle, from material sourcing and production to transportation and disposal. A key initiative is the gradual shift from new materials to recycled materials, significantly reducing both carbon emissions and resource consumption. 
   
• ORTOVOX Second-Life Shop: This program extends the lifespan of used products by giving them a second life. Additionally, ORTOVOX offers a repair service, which helps extend product use – even a three-month extension in lifespan significantly reduces the carbon footprint and waste.

Focusing on renewable energy in its supply chain

ORTOVOX is actively promoting renewable energy within its supply chain. Through the Climate Reduction Projects (CRP) of the European Outdoor Group (EOG), the company is working to reduce emissions in energy-intensive production processes and within the deeper supply chain. Through multi-brand cooperation in the outdoor industry, tangible progress has already been made in decarbonising production processes.

To this end, ORTOVOX supports a wind energy project in northern China from the ClimatePartner portfolio. In China, energy demand is rapidly increasing due to population growth and economic development. At the same time, a large proportion of the electricity is generated by coal-fired power plants. By choosing a climate project in a manufacturing country, ORTOVOX is helping to reduce local emissions and promote sustainable technologies.