How do you turn one of Sweden's largest service providers with more than 16.000 employees and 11.000 customers into an environmental leader? Mats Sjögreen, responsible for the environmental management system at ISS Sweden, knows the answer by heart. From his offices at the outskirts of Lund, he manages the environmental practice throughout the country - and the results are impressive.

In 1995 ISS Sweden decided to fast track its environmental strategy as part of a drive to raise standards in the service industry. ISS identified cleaning chemicals and car emissions as their key sources of pollution, and set up an ambitious plan to reduce all environmental impacts. The plan introduced a solid management system and a wide range of measures, such as environmental training of ISS staff, appointment of regional environmental managers and auditors, and "green" procurement guidelines. In 1998 ISS was certified according to ISO 14001 environmental standards as one of the first service companies in Sweden.

Years of determined work have produced a lengthy list of achievements.

"In a five-year period we managed to reduce our use of chemicals by 50% percent. And today almost 70% of our chemicals carry the eco-label. That is a success in both financial and environmental terms", says Mats Sjögreen.

Similarly, the process of shifting to Category A (Euro 4) cars and some alternative fuel cars has yielded a 6,3 ton reduction of yearly emissions as well as cost-efficiencies.

"We can be proud of our achievements so far, but the process doesn't stop for that reason. We have to keep innovating and improving our environmental practices to sustain our reputation as an industry leader. This is important to our customers and employees", explains Thomas Kolbe, Country Manager ISS Sweden.