Modern Slavery Transparency Statement
Introduction
DECTRIS Ltd. presents its Modern Slavery Transparency Statement for the year 2024, reflecting the company’s ongoing commitment to ethical business practices and human rights. This document applies to DECTRIS Ltd. and all its subsidiaries, covering the period from 01.01.2023 to 31.12.2023. The statement has been produced in accordance with the Australian Modern Slavery Act (2018) and the UK Modern Slavery Act (2015). It illustrates DECTRIS’ dedication to identifying, managing, and reducing the risks of modern slavery in every aspect of its operations and supply chain.
About DECTRIS
Founded in 2006, our company has emerged as a leader in developing state-of-the-art X-ray and electron detection cameras. However, our journey is not just about technological advancements, but also about making a positive social impact. Our purpose is to serve present and future generations; to master key challenges related to health, the environment, energy, and industry; as well as to make further discoveries to help us understand our cultural heritage. With our headquarters in Switzerland, we proudly operate on a global scale. We employ a diverse team of over 140 full-time equivalent professionals across our offices, including our subsidiaries in the USA and Japan. Our global presence amplifies our commitment to upholding human rights and ethical practices in every region where we operate. At DECTRIS, people come first. Our biggest assets are our employees’ diverse backgrounds, unique traits, and desire to contribute. Together, we develop innovative technologies that enable new science, and then bring them to the market.
Modern Slavery Risks in Our Business
At DECTRIS, we recognise the global challenges of modern slavery and human trafficking. As a responsible corporate entity, we are dedicated to upholding ethical business practices, with a specific focus on eliminating modern slavery.
Our commitment extends beyond compliance. We commit to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and actively support the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, particularly those targeting the eradication of forced labour, modern slavery, and human trafficking (target 8.7).
We conduct regular assessments to identify and address potential risks of modern slavery within our supply chain and business operations. In doing so, we ensure adherence to the highest ethical standards. Central to our company and ethos is a culture of transparency, integrity, and care for our employees. Finally, the risk of modern slavery in the production of DECTRIS detectors is negligible.
We recognise the importance of education in combatting modern slavery. Hence, we provide ongoing training for our staff, enhancing their understanding of modern slavery and ways to prevent it.
Supply Chain Management
In managing our supply chain, we apply rigorous standards to vet suppliers, ensuring that they share our commitment to human rights and ethical practices. We engage in regular dialogues with our suppliers, fostering a collaborative approach to eradicating modern slavery. Our procurement processes are designed to prioritise suppliers who demonstrate a clear commitment to ethical labour practices.
At DECTRIS, we work with a large number of suppliers to address our operational needs. We chose them carefully and have worked with the vast majority of them for over ten years.
We particularly need suppliers for our electronic boards. These boards are personalised to address our industry’s specific needs, and we purchase them in low volumes. We can provide assurances that all electronics manufacturing services for the products MYTHEN2, PILATUS3, EIGER2, ELA, QUADRO, SINGLA, and ARINA are done in Switzerland, with respect to Swiss laws and ecological and social standards.
New Organisational Model, Culture, and Values
We are currently transforming our organisational model and moving towards a structure with selforganised teams. Today, our organisation consists of four main departments, a disappearing middle management, and a tier of top management. All doors of the offices, up to the CEO, are open to employees.
We want to give each employee the opportunity to participate in decision-making processes, as we believe in a more sustainable business model, which nurtures individual growth. A newly created team, dedicated to Compliance and Sustainability, ensures that our company is compliant with topics such as prevention of modern slavery.
Education
As a spin-off of Switzerland’s biggest national research facility, the Paul Scherrer Institut, we recognise the core importance of education and continuous learning. More than 65% of our employees have a technical college or university degree or higher (50% hold a Ph.D. degree), and the vast majority worked in academia before joining DECTRIS. However, we also believe in the key role of continuous education, and we are convinced that one can advance our company and accelerate progress, independently of one’s background. Therefore, we help employees who are willing to learn in order to move forward.
In addition, our company funds scientific workshops worldwide and encourages young minds to choose a research-based career in X-rays or Electron Microscopy. These efforts help the next generation of scientists to grow.
Fair Salaries
DECTRIS employees are paid following regional Swiss, US, or Japanese standards. We are compliant with the equal treatment of males and females regarding salaries.
Health, Safety, and Environment
In the last few years, we have increased our safety requirements in production and actively ensured that our employees work in a safe environment. We have put in place a Health and Safety Organisation, with representatives from different departments, which is compliant with Swiss standards and laws. Our company cares about the physical and mental health of all employees. A standard escalation mechanism allows employees to reach up to the CEO in order to solve conflicts. In parallel, a team is establishing guidelines and can offer assistance as a last resort. We also organise an anonymous written survey once per year, in which employees can raise problems, irregularities, and other issues. The survey is managed by an external company and discussed within our Management team. Improvements are undertaken as soon as problems are reported. Survey results can be provided if requested. In order to improve our employees’ well-being and work/life balance, we introduced the following internal policies:
• a flexible policy on working from home/working from the office
• a flexible vacation options policy for all employees
• “company holidays” between the 24th of December and the 2nd of January
The flexible home/office policy allows employees to choose when they would like to work from home or the office. The flexible vacation options policy allows employees to adjust their workload and have more holidays during the year. We have also created a Coaching Team consisting of DECTRIS employees who have been trained by an external coach.
Contributing to Our Communities
In 2023, aligned with our commitment to corporate social responsibility, we contributed 1.5% of our annual profits to local and international non-governmental organisations. These contributions reflect our dedication to making a positive impact on society.
Conclusion
At DECTRIS Ltd., we remain steadfast in our commitment to combatting modern slavery. Our Compliance and Sustainability team is working on additional measures to reduce modern slavery risks and increase awareness. We pledge to perform continuous evaluation and enhancement of our strategies and practices, fostering a safe, fair, and ethical working environment across all of our operations and supply chains.
REACH Article 33 Duty to Communicate Information on Substances in Articles
According to Article 33 of REACH, the manufacturer has the obligation to provide sufficient information to the consumer/recipient of the article if Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) of candidate list are contained in its products in a concentration above 0.1% weight by weight (w/w). Below you can find documentation for each DECTRIS product series covering the information on SVHC-s.
