We are aware of our corporate social responsibility
Our commercial activities are designed to shape spaces worth living in for generations to come. In addition to our sustainable and innovative products and services, we are socially committed to positive change.
Sustainability is not only part and parcel of our commercial activities, it also shapes the social commitment of the Viessmann family. In addition to the foundations, the company and the entrepreneurial personalities privately make regular donations for charitable purposes. This has been a tradition at Viessmann since the company’s foundation.
We make a point of offering children and youth from rural and structurally weak regions a wide range of educational opportunities and meaningful recreational activities. It’s also important for us to ensure adequate medical care for the population and the integration of disabled people. Supporting local associations and initiatives with corresponding goals is therefore an integral part of Viessmann’s social commitment.
We assume responsibility – all over the world.
We shape living spaces in many parts of the world, meaning our social commitment also extends way beyond Germany. The corona pandemic in particular has illustrated once again that there are many challenges we can only overcome globally – even if we act locally.
Corona aid in Germany
In the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Viessmann manufactured ventilators, mobile supply stations, face masks, and disinfectants in a converted part of the production facility. At the company headquarters in Allendorf (Eder) in northern Hesse, one of the production lines for wall-mounted gas boilers was converted within a few days to produce the products so desperately needed during the crisis. The fact that we were able to develop a simplified ventilator in such a short time is all due to the construction of our wall-mounted gas boilers. On the one hand, many components of the wall-mounted gas boilers – such as the electronic gas-air connection – could be simply used for the ventilator. On the other hand, Viessmann has a very flexible production facility that could be adapted to the new requirements quickly. Our teams and our partners came up with all the ideas on their own. There is a lot of engineering skill, attention to detail, and a high level of reliability behind these solutions – as always with Viessmann.100000 euros for schools in the district of the headquarters
In line with our company's purpose "We create living spaces for generations to come", Viessmann donated 100000 euros to schools in the Waldeck-Frankenberg district during the COVID-19 pandemic. In spring 2020, Annette Viessmann handed over the donation on behalf of the company to District Administrator Dr. Kubat. This enabled 150 laptops and 50 tablets to be made available to the pupils for home schooling during the Corona period. This meant that 150 laptops and 50 tablets could be made available to the students during the Corona period for lessons at home. In that way, Viessmann supports families who have no or insufficient access to computers and tablets. The laptops and tablets enabled the students to participate adequately in video conferences as well as a general exchange with fellow students and teachers. In addition, the fundraising campaign was designed for sustainability. After all, even after this extraordinary period, the devices are still being used to digitalize teaching. The donation was given to the Gesamtschule Battenberg in Battenberg, the Edertal Gymnasium in Frankenberg, the Ortenbergschule in Frankenberg, the Burgwaldschule in Frankenberg and the Hans Viessmann Schule as a vocational school in Frankenberg.
Giving something back in Great Britain
Thanks to our employees, customers, installation partners, and suppliers, Viessmann has a nationwide network of people in Great Britain who want to use their skills to give something back to society. Our charitable initiatives and local community projects in Great Britain are therefore carried out under the motto “Giving something back”. Charitable and non-profit initiatives at the company level, which are supported both by our British team in Telford and by our company headquarters in Allendorf (Eder), are also part of this.We do our best to identify and support projects and fundraising activities where we can make a difference. One such example is our “Heat for Good” initiative: we installed a free heating system in a Let’s Play children’s center in North Oxfordshire. Let’s Play offers after-school and holiday activities for more than 100 disabled children.
Planting trees with the China Green Foundation
The China Green Foundation promotes forestry development in the country and raises awareness of environmental issues. The Million Forest project, which includes various initiatives, is one of their benchmarking projects. Viessmann Beijing has joined the road protection project to build roads through the Tengger Desert. At the inauguration of our plant in Pinghu near Shanghai in 2019, we donated 8559 trees for protected areas in the desert: that’s 8000 trees donated annually to offset the carbon emissions caused by our daily activities, 362 trees donated for each participant at the inauguration ceremony in Pinghu as a commitment to climate protection together with our Chinese partners, and 197 more trees additionally provided by employees. In 2020, we also participated in the FC Bayern Munich campaign “Rot gegen Racism” (Show Racism the Red Card) with the Viessmann China Team, which is a FC Bayern Munich sponsor.Concerts of Hope for children with cancer in Poland
Caring for people’s health has always been a central concern of ours. Viessmann Poland has been cooperating with the center for psychosocial oncology unicorn start-up for many years now in order to help people living with cancer. We decided to support the Na Ratunek Dzieciom z Chorobą Nowotworową Foundation (Saving Kids With Cancer Foundation) in 2019. The foundation in Wrocław has been actively helping children and their families in the fight against the disease for 29 years. We partnered the tenth edition of the Concert of Hope organized by the foundation. This concert is so special because it lets the employees of the sponsoring companies perform alongside the greatest Polish musicians. The proceeds from the event are used towards special medical and psychological treatments for the youngest patients. Viessmann Poland intends to continue participating in the Concert of Hope.
White Friday in Serbia
Black Friday is the name of the Friday after Thanksgiving in the USA. It’s traditionally a day when Americans go shopping and retail stores offer huge discounts. As a countermovement to this spending frenzy, Viessmann launched White Friday in Serbia in 2018. There are no promotions or discounts offered on White Friday. Instead, our sales staff donates all profits it has made that day to those who need our help the most. Our donation went to the National Association of Parents of Children with Cancer NURDOR in 2018 and then to the Association for Cerebral Palsy and Polio of Serbia in 2019. We invite all companies, not just the partners and friends of Viessmann, to participate in our White Friday again this year – as a humanitarian counteraction to Black Friday.