Future-proof ERP application for the GWW

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is a new European regulation that aims to improve corporate sustainability reporting. The reports, which must be integrated into the annual report, will be subject to an independent audit to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the information provided.

Within the CSRD, three topics are central: Environment, Social and Governance, together referred to as ESG. "Environment concerns the corporate impact on the environment," says Arno Berwers, responsible for marketing & sales within Helvoirt-based BouwInfosys. "Think about greenhouse gas emissions, water and air pollution and the use of natural resources. Social deals with social issues, including working conditions, human rights and fighting discrimination in the workplace. Finally, Governance focuses on the information that companies must provide about their governance practices, such as the composition and functioning of their governing bodies, risk management systems and internally implemented controls on sustainability issues."

The aim of the CSRD is to better enable investors, consumers and other stakeholders to assess and compare the sustainability performance of companies so that better choices can be made around making investments or awarding work. All companies that meet two of the three set criteria (more than 50 million euros in sales, more than 25 million assets on the balance sheet and more than 250 employees (including self-employed)) are required to report for the first time in 2026 for the 2025 fiscal year. To compile the required reporting, this means they must start generating information by January 1, 2025. 

The advent of the CSRD has implications for every sector, including GWW. Clients in the industry are going to ask, and later require, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers to provide information so they can produce reliable CSRD reports. "So if you are a subcontractor working for a larger contractor, there is a good chance that they are going to make requirements for making sustainability information available," Arno said, giving an example to clarify. "Suppose you are a subcontractor working on behalf of a larger contractor to prepare a plot for housing. The larger contractor is CSRD liable and will therefore start asking for information on the CO2 emissions of the equipment used. If you have also supplied materials, this information will also be requested. As a subcontractor, you will have to supply this with the invoice or separately if necessary. Can't you deliver the information reliably to the client? Then he will look for another subcontractor who can. And that is precisely the underlying objective of the CSRD. It is therefore important that you start mapping out now which information is needed for your own CSRD reporting or for the reporting for the client if you are not or not yet liable for CSRD."

Much of the information needed for CSRD reporting can potentially be extracted from an ERP system. However, a general ERP application will not support this adequately because it is not developed industry-specific. InfraWorks, a product of BouwInfosys, does and is. Moreover, the application is already fully prepared for the introduction of the new rules of the game. "InfraWorks has been developed specifically for civil engineering and supports infrastructure companies in their daily practice," Arno clarifies. "What is unique is that functionality has been developed within InfraWorks to prepare CSRD reports from the ERP system. This makes clever use of the information that is already recorded in InfraWorks. And that saves a lot of work. We also have our own CSRD team that supports customers working with InfraWorks in preparing for the arrival of the CSRD. Get acquainted, our people are happy to come by to discuss the possibilities."