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Social responsibility

Making a difference

Learn about our social responsibility and environmental policies.

Human rights Community involvement and development Environment

Human rights

Conflict Minerals policy

EXFO and our affiliates aim for the highest standards of ethical conduct and integrity in all of our activities. Some product components used in our industry depend on certain minerals, such as gold, tin, tantalum and tungsten. Certain countries in the central African region, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, mine these minerals extensively; what makes these minerals controversial is their role in feeding ongoing hostilities in certain regions and fostering instability, violence and human rights abuses, hence the designation "Conflict Minerals." The US Securities and Exchange commission enacted the Dodd-Frank Act, concerning the use of Conflict Minerals.

Following that enactment, EXFO established a Conflict Minerals policy. As gold, tantalum, tin and tungsten may be necessary to the functionality or production of our products, EXFO is committed to sourcing materials from environmentally and socially responsible suppliers. It is our policy not to purchase from known conflict sources and we expect our suppliers to abide by the same standard. EXFO has adopted the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) Standard Conflict Minerals reporting format, and we request that our suppliers use the same format when reporting their supply chain status to us.

Contact us to learn more about EXFO's compliance with the Dodd-Frank Act and our policy on Conflict Minerals.

Modern Slavery and Combatting Trafficking in Persons

EXFO is committed to challenge and confront the use of compulsory, trafficked, forced or child labor within our organizations and our supply chains. EXFO selects business partners who share its values and principles related to business governance, ethics, social responsibility, environmental protection and occupational health and safety.

To learn how these principles are embedded in our supply chain management and reflected in our policies, read our Policy on Modern Slavery and Combatting Trafficking in Persons and our Modern Slavery Statement.

Community involvement and development

United Way Centraide

EXFO and its employees have supported United Way Centraide for over 10 years. Several fundraising activities are organized throughout the year with the vast majority of employees also making direct donations. Funds collected are given to local United Way Centraide offices and to date, over one million dollars has been donated by EXFO and our employees to the movement's initiatives.

Christmas baskets

Employees in Québec collect toys and non-perishable goods for families at Christmas time. Patro Roc Amadour, and other local groups, distribute the donations.

Grand défi Pierre Lavoie

EXFO wants kids and families to get moving! That's why we support the Grand défi Pierre Lavoie, a Canadian non-profit with a mission to encourage young people to adopt healthy lifestyles. After EXFO's Founder and Executive Chairman of the Board, Germain Lamonde, attended a conference given by the organization's founder, Pierre Lavoie, he was driven to support the cause. In 2011, EXFO (and Mr. Lamonde himself!) participated in the organization's 1000 km bike challenge from the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean to Montréal. Thanks to EXFO's participation each year since, thousands of dollars have been donated to local elementary schools to support physical activity, healthy eating and academic perseverance.

Education

EXFO donates equipment to educational institutions in the surrounding areas and collaborates with them on the development of educational applications.

Héma-Québec

Each year, EXFO hosts a blood drive for Héma-Québec, an organization responsible for supplying the Québec population with safe, quality blood products.

Environment

Environmental policy

EXFO recognizes the critical importance of a healthy environment to our global society, our economy, our business and our people. We also realize the potential impact that today's environmental challenges will have if left unaddressed. Given our position and ongoing commitment to good corporate citizenship, we have a responsibility to manage and leverage our resources in a way that promotes a healthy and sustainable environment.

Contact us for more information about EXFO's environmental policy.

ISO 14001 compliance

EXFO is proud to be ISO 14001 certified. Its comprehensive environmental policy and environmental management system (EMS) provide the framework for EXFO to continue to be an environmentally friendly corporate citizen and recognized leader in our community.

Download the PDF of EXFO's ISO 14001 certificate
Download the PDF of our EMS Manual

REACH compliance

In order to reassure our customers on the security of EXFO products, we are committed to complying with the environmental requirements set by REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and restriction of Chemicals), as defined by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) on chemical products.

The role of these requirements is to protect the population and environment from the hazards of chemical products and to facilitate the circulation of substances in the European Union. To do this, the ECHA maintains a list of substances that are deemed as being of very high concern (called SVHC) because of their intrinsic properties (toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, etc.).

EXFO products are Telecommunication Test and Measurement Equipment made from optical, electronic, plastic and metal parts. EXFO do not use toxic chemical substances during its manufacturing processes.

We do not manufacture or supply "substances" or "preparations", and our articles do not involve the "intentional release of substances".

Based on communications with our suppliers, we conclude that, to the best of our knowledge, our products requiring REACH compliance do not contain any of the currently listed SVHC in concentrations of 0.1% or above.

Contact us for more information about EXFO's compliance with REACH.

WEEE and RoHS compliance

At EXFO, we are committed to providing our worldwide customers with telecommunication test and measurement products that meet the highest standards of performance, innovation, and environmental safety.

Consequently, all products manufactured by EXFO comply with the WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive (Directive 2012/19/EU and its amendments), a legislation enacted by the European Union regulating the disposal of electrical and electronic equipment.

As for the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) Directive 2012/19/EU and its amendments, which restricts the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment, EXFO products are subject to the RoHS Directive and comply with the regulation.

For more information on our recycling policies, contact us.

Before recycling EXFO products, please contact our Technical support group.

Note: although more and more countries adopt this new approach to protecting our environment, the interpretation of the directive may vary according to State legislation.