Embracing Corporate Social Responsibility

At Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories, we are committed to the highest ethical standards in conducting our business and operating in a socially responsible manner. The core of our business is in helping our clients ensure the safety of their products and services, which in turn benefits consumers’ access to more innovative pharmaceutical products and a clean environment. A strong reputation for quality is critical to the success of our business, and integrity in how we conduct business and maintain our relationships with all our stakeholders is central to our corporate principles. Our mission and values underscore our commitment to professional and ethical behavior, while staying at the forefront of growth and innovation. This spring, Pharmaceuticals Manager Chrissy Leslie was named Sustainability Officer to oversee the implementation and maintenance of sustainable business practices by:

Promoting Employee Safety and Wellness

We strive to enhance the quality of life of our employees through our extensive employee benefits and workplace safety programs. As a part of our wellness program, we provide annual health screenings that include comprehensive blood chemistry, urinalysis and exam with a physician. Many national organizations have recognized the unique character of Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories and honored us with awards for workplace excellence and family-friendly business practices.

We recognize that a world class health and safety program allows employees to be healthy, productive and actively engaged in workplace safety. With a goal to maintain a high level of safety awareness at all levels within the organization, Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories has a solid safety record of zero OSHA or EPA notices of violation in over 50 years.

Regardless of this exemplary compliance record, we aim to continually improve and engage our employees in workplace safety. We dedicate resources to implement key ergonomic changes at high risk operations, which has cut our reportable ergonomic claims in half since 2010 despite a 25% increase in exposure hours.

Our team of more than 30 certified safety committee members participates in continued training, including hazard recognition, assessment and control in laboratories and regularly conducts internal audits to identify ways to improve practices within our laboratories and increase awareness of safety expectations among our laboratory staff. We also have a safety incentive program aimed at engaging employees in workplace safety by offering rewards to employees who take action to report common workplace hazards.

Encouraging Community Involvement

We believe it’s important to be good corporate citizens and help to make our communities a better place to live and work. Employees have the opportunity to volunteer through two company-sponsored initiatives, including science volunteers and community heroes. Employees also participate in annual fundraising events such as the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, Salvation Army Toys for Tots and YWCA Race Against Racism as well as volunteer for and/or donate to the Humane League and many other local non-profit organizations.

We also provide corporate donations to national organizations like the United Way, Habitat for Humanity, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Red Cross and many other national and local organizations.

In addition, we host blood drives through our local hospital every six weeks and encourage employees to donate blood to help others in the community.

Practicing Environmental Stewardship

We implement environmentally conscious choices throughout our organization in an effort to reduce our impact on the environment we all share. We established a Green Team, which is a group of environmentally conscious employees who work together to reduce consumption, encourage recycling, promote conservation and educate the workforce for the goals of improving the efficiency, reducing costs and minimizing the environmental impact of our operations. Some of our sustainable initiatives include:

Reduction of our carbon footprint by over 25,000 pounds of CO₂ annually. We implemented a patented automatic brine delivery system that uses bulk salt to eliminate the need for dried bagged salt. The use of the AUTOBrine® system allows us to avoid sending 4,797 plastic bags to the landfill each year as well as pallets and stretchwrap.
Procurement of 100% renewable electricity for our 259,000 square-foot facility in Lancaster, PA.
Efforts to update lab equipment with new ENERGY STAR® rated equipment when possible.
Water monitoring programs that have reduced water consumption for our facility.
Energy conservation efforts such as the use of CFL, T8 replacements and LED lighting; installation of motion sensors in offices, restrooms and hallways to turn off lights during times of inactivity; signage on fume hoods to prompt employees to lower sashes when not in use and reminders to turn off computers/monitors when not in use. These measures have reduced the overall heat load in the buildings by approximately 40 tons/year.
Implementation of a user-friendly, campus wide recycling program. In addition to recycling aluminum, plastic and glass, Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories also recycles cardboard, batteries, magazines and stainless steel/HPLC columns. The company also partners with a local organization to recycle electronics.
Establishment of a Garden Club, which turned unused space into productive space. The primary goal is to grow fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers - using sustainable, organic methods - to share with company employees. The Club also shares the space with the Hildebrandt Learning Center and Lancaster Generations Adult Day Care facilities so that the children, adults, teachers and caregivers have an outdoor space where they can learn about ecology, enjoy time outside and share in the harvest of crops.
Recognition by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) as a Certified Wildlife Habitat for providing food, water, shelter and places to raise young wildlife.
Qualification as a business partner with iConservePA to show a commitment to promoting conservation in Pennsylvania.