Apple picker Press Release: "We are not a group that prioritizes profit at the expense of the environment or at the expense of social relations," declares Ing. Markéta Marečková, MBA, who holds the newly created position of ESG manager of SKB-GROUP. It also includes the company PRAKAB PRAŽSKÁ KABELOVNA, a Czech cable manufacturer with more than a century of history. Prakab has been dealing with issues of ecology and circular economy for a long time. Even before the current energy crisis, the company started thinking about how to optimize the costs of materials and energy. In the same way, among other things, they try to recycle production waste as much as possible. The task of the newly created function of ESG manager is primarily to help group members to be even more responsible in the field of the environment, in social issues and in the management of companies.
We save energy
Prakab is a traditional Czech brand that focuses mainly on the production of cables for the energy, construction and transport industries. It is the leader in the field of fire safety cables used wherever it is necessary for the cables to be able to withstand fire and ensure functional operation. The domestic manufacturer, like many other companies, is trying to save energy during the current energy crisis. One step is to replace some production equipment with less energy-intensive ones or to change the settings of the production process so that less energy is consumed. "Another way to save energy from the grid is to build your own rooftop photovoltaic power plant," ESG manager Markéta Marečková presents the group's plans. All subsidiaries are preparing for construction, this year or next year. The Prakabu power plant will have a size of almost 1 MWh.
The cable company is also looking for ways to save material. At the same time, it is essential that the necessary properties of the products are preserved and that the valid standards are observed. The company invests in research and development and tries to develop new types of cables. "Those that contain less metal or other materials or have better properties given the current material demand, so they are more ecological," explains Marečková.
We recycle everything we can
Prakab also places great emphasis on the principles of the circular economy. The company strives for the recycling of the largest possible share of waste, the use of recycled input materials, but also the recyclability of the company's own products or the circulation of packaging materials. In addition, it deals intensively with the issue of water recycling. "We have solved the recycling of cooling water within the production product and we are thinking about the use of rainwater within the Prakab complex," says the ESG expert. For its approach, the cable company received the "responsible company" award from the EKO-KOM company.
A few years ago, the cable company began to cooperate with the Czech start-up Cyrkl, which functions as a digital waste marketplace, the goal of which is to ensure that waste material does not end up in a landfill. Thanks to him, Prakab introduced some innovations in its processes. "This cooperation confirmed our intention to purchase a pre-crusher, which was reflected in better copper separation. The greatest benefit for us now is the possibility of connecting supply and demand through their waste exchange, where we have gained contact with several interesting customers," Marečková assesses. And he adds that Prakab wants to use other new services of Cyrkl this year, and that is scrap auctions.
News from the EU
The Czech manufacturer will face new obligations in the area of sustainability in the coming years. Environmental protection and the transition to a circular economy are a pan-European trend. The European Union has adopted a number of new rules to protect the climate. These include, for example, standards for the disclosure of information related to sustainability. Corporations will be required to report on environmental impacts (for example, on the company's carbon footprint). "However, setting up data collection and monitoring the development of key indicators is also important for us, and we do not deal with it just because of legislative requirements. We ourselves want to know where we stand and how we manage to improve in important areas," declares the SKB-Group manager.
Innovation in the cable industry
As for the future of the cables themselves, there is no way to transmit powerful electrical energy in any other way than with a cable, so according to Marečková, we will be using cables to transmit this energy for a long time to come. But the question is whether, as today, it will only be metallic cables, in which the conductive part is made of metal. “The development of conductive carbon-filled plastics using nanotechnology and similar advances will certainly replace the use of metals in cables. Even conductive, metallic elements expect development towards better conductivity and even superconductivity. Here we are talking about metal purity and cable cooling or a combination of cable elements," says Marečková.
Hybrid cables, which carry not only energy, but also signals or other media, will then gain in importance. "Cables will also not only be passive, but will be equipped with intelligence that will help manage the entire electrical network, its performance, losses, leaks and the connection of various sources of electrical energy," predicts the development of ESG manager Markéta Marečková.
PRAKAB PRAŽSKÁ KABELOVNA is an important Czech cable manufacturer that celebrated its 100th anniversary last year. In 1921, progressive electrical engineer and industrialist Emil Kolben acquired it and registered it under this name. Among the most interesting projects in which the company has recently participated is the reconstruction of the National Museum in Prague, in which over 200 km of fire safety cables were used. Prakab products can also be found, for example, in the Chodov Shopping Center or in transport buildings such as the Prague metro, Blanka Tunnel or Václav Havel Airport. Wires and cables from this Czech brand are also commonly found in households.
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