In 2014, Southwire grew ever stronger, broader, and more connected to all that surrounds us. Extraordinary examples of this growth can be found in our just-released 2014 Sustainability Report, “Strong. Sustainable. Southwire.” For the first time, Southwire has aligned its report with the Global Reporting Initiative’s G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines.

“Southwire is just as committed to the communities we serve as we are to our customers who do business in those communities,” said Southwire Chief Executive Officer Stu Thorn. “By focusing on our tenets of Building Worth, Growing Green, Living Well, Giving Back and Doing Right, we do more than deliver power. We deliver empowerment.”

Southwire Community Connections

At Southwire, not all power is delivered to individuals through wire and cable.  Southwire employees often volunteer in the communities where the live and work. The company also strives proactively to attract and develop the workforce of the future – for itself as well as the power distribution industry. Here are four extraordinary examples:

• The company’s 12 for Life® program is a nationally recognized series of partnerships with local school systems that provides real-world education and training to encourage students considering dropping out of high school. They complete regular classes while working inside real manufacturing plants, allowing them to earn their diplomas. As of 2014, 12 for Life® has given 892 graduates an opportunity to thrive, including 152 in 2014 alone.
• The Southwire Engineering Academy trains high school students who excel in science, math, engineering and technology classes through real problem-solving projects. As of 2014, the Southwire Engineering Academy has trained 100 students, many of whom have gone on to attend the nation’s finest engineering universities.
• The Southwire Sustainable Business Honors Program is a new four-year college program that engages university students in a curriculum with a focus on sustainable business. Students complete business classes with a sustainability focus, while completing real business projects with Southwire’s employees. Through this course of study, students can earn both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration in four years,
• Through Southwire’s Project GIFT (Giving Inspiration for Tomorrow), 492 of the company’s employee volunteers donated more than 8,000 hours to help their communities in 2014.

Looking Forward

Southwire aims to advance and improve educational opportunities and outcomes by working with various state and local educational institutions to achieve the following:

• Increase graduation rates through 12 for Life by graduating 2020 students from the program by year-end 2020;
• Expand the Southwire Engineering Academy to other regional locations in North America by year-end 2020;
• Graduate the first cohort from Southwire Sustainable Business Honors Program by year-end 2018.

For more sustainability information and to view the entire 2014 “Strong. Sustainable. Southwire.” report, visit southwire.com/sustainability.