Environmental compliance

Overview and approach

Every Microsoft device fulfills our strict environmental criteria which include, but are not limited to, compliance with all applicable legal requirements. We also require that our global manufacturing partners and vendors follow stringent environmental practices with respect to their facilities, operations, and the products they manufacture for us.

The sustainability of our products begins with their design. We are finding innovative solutions through design and development to reduce environmental impacts and address challenges across the product and packaging value chain. Ecodesign guides our approach, influencing our decisions from selecting materials to innovative designs enabling repair and recycling.

We apply the following tools and approaches to reduce impacts across the product lifecycle:

• Lifecycle assessments (LCAs) to guide sustainable design and manufacturing decisions.
• Select materials and design elements that increase circularity, including recycled and recyclable materials.
• Design for reliability and durability to keep products in use for as long as possible.
• Create solutions to increase repairability and serviceability.
• Choose design elements with lower manufacturing and carbon impact.
• Increase energy efficiency.

Microsoft is an EPEAT® Participating Manufacturer. As the EPEAT requirements become more rigorous, our products and operations are also evolving to meet more stringent standards. Our plan is for our products to meet the new EPEAT requirements at the Gold level. Surface registered products can be found on the EPEAT Registry.

Our environmental principles

Microsoft Windows and Devices conducts its business in compliance with applicable laws and policies—striving to build sustainable products and protect the safety and health of our employees, customers, and the public. By integrating sound environmental principles into all aspects of our supply chain and manufacturing functions, Microsoft empowers every person and organization on the planet to achieve more while protecting our natural world.

Lifecycle thinking

To understand the environmental impacts across the product lifecycle, we use product lifecycle assessment (LCA).

Product LCA is a science-based methodology that calculates the environmental impacts of all activities associated with the product lifecycle – from the extraction of raw materials through the activities of producing, using, transporting, and end-of-life treatment. Our LCA calculations are in accordance with ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards, complemented by ETSI TS 103 199 and ITU-T L.1410.

Our LCA results represent our best understanding of a product’s lifecycle environmental impacts at the time of LCA publication. LCAs are revised, as needed, to accommodate product changes, updates to underlying lifecycle inventory data, and improvements in LCA methodology.

LCA data guide design decisions to reduce the environmental impacts of our products. LCA tools enable us to compare the environmental impact of materials, processes, and components to enable our designers and engineers to make informed decisions during the planning, concept, design, and development phases.

To increase transparency and credibility with customers and stakeholders, we publish environmental data, including LCA results, for our Xbox consoles and Surface devices in our Ecoprofiles. Ecoprofiles are available on our website and provide carbon emissions and nonrenewable energy use over the lifetime of a product and identify the product’s material usage, energy consumption, ecolabels, product recycling, and other environmental attributes.

Carbon emissions and waste reduction

A healthy society requires a healthy planet. Our strategy addresses two of the most pervasive challenges society faces: climate change and waste. These are material issues for Microsoft Window and Devices; we can have a significant positive impact by reducing end-to-end carbon emissions and waste across the lifecycle of our products.

Carbon emissions from product transport

In Q1 FY21, Microsoft Devices Supply Chain adopted the Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC) methodology for measuring logistic activities and was officially validated by Smart Freight Centre. Microsoft measures and tracks the emissions for all global transportation movement across the Devices Supply Chain (inbound, outbound, reverse) across all modes according to the GLEC methodology. Our logistics activities include all modes of transport for the logistics across both inbound and outbound, of the Microsoft Devices business group. Note that we are continuing to explore the adoption of this standard as part of Microsoft’s corporate emissions reporting.
 

Microsoft Devices Supply Chain set a target to reduce its inbound product transport emissions 16% year/year compared to the FY20 baseline of 98,567 absolute metric tons CO2e. However, despite emission reduction initiatives in FY21, our absolute product transport emissions grew 21% due to such factors as the growth of the business, launch of new products, and global supply chain and material constraints. FY21 emissions from all modes of product transport were 119,519 absolute metric tons CO2e.
 

In FY22, we continue to optimize our transportation network and continue to shift to lower CO2e emission modes of transport while maintaining our focus on net zero distribution opportunities. Microsoft is a member of EPA’s SmartWay initiative, and over 99% of Microsoft’s shipments moved with an approved SmartWay carrier during the last reporting period. Additionally, Microsoft has introduced a lower carbon shipping option to online consumers, allowing them to select ground shipping in support of reduced emissions.