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2023 Sustainability Report

The Composition of a Sustainable Community

Parts Authority’s 2023 Sustainability Report, published as we celebrate our company’s 50th anniversary, explores our concerted efforts to achieve business objectives while enhancing lives and preserving the planet we share. The report delves into our expanded sustainability initiatives, metrics and reporting, and our newly formalized policies and procedures. In essence, the 2023 Sustainability Report reveals the composition of a responsible organization and how it drives innovation, teamwork and sustainability excellence.

"At the core of our company’s success has been an intense focus on exceeding customers’ expectations, expanding team members’ opportunities, and driving positive change in the industry. We believe that our sustainability efforts contribute to all three of these factors”.
Randy Buller
President and CEO of Parts Authority

Parts Authority’s Values

Our Values – which will never change – articulate our foundational beliefs and are part of who we are. These Values are:

Integrity

We are honest, do the right thing, and always act in the best interest of our stakeholders.

Teamwork

We grow and develop as a group and accomplish more than we ever could on our own.

Pride

As a team we are proud of our accomplishments but remain humble in our success.

Embrace Differences

Our team is the sum of our individual perspectives and experiences.

Team members are responsible for living up to the Values every day and being an example to others in the company.

Maintaining Our Sustainability Momentum

The sustainability ethic at Parts Authority is imbedded in our company’s DNA, demonstrated at our oldest locations and newest acquisitions, and embraced by our team members across the nation.

Our 2023 Sustainability Report highlights a range of initiatives and metrics from across the company. We use the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board’s (SASB) standards to understand material ESG topics for our industry and refer to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to help set goals and targets, which are summarized in each report section:

In addition to the formal reporting, our 2023 Sustainability Report features narrative interludes that provide a human face, a snapshot, a story that illustrates impact in ways that data can’t always convey.

“It is gratifying to witness our team members’ continued awareness of the importance of being a responsible company and of our roles as stewards of our planet. Across Parts Authority, we’re seeing more recycling activity, improved energy conservation, enhanced transparency, more efficient operations, clearer policies, greater sensitivity, better governance, and a slew of efforts, large and small, that add up to the composition of a responsible organization.”
Ben Spitz
VP of Strategy & Sustainability

Our Planet

We embrace practices such as recycling, reusing and repurposing resources, and strive to reduce our reliance on virgin raw materials, when possible. Additionally, we believe that our output – auto parts placed in the hands of those who repair and optimize the performance of millions of cars – has the potential to influence global environmental processes such as climate change.

Energy efficiency is a key focus. We have continued to make energy-efficient upgrades such as replacing fluorescent lights with LED bulbs across 32 distribution centers – which saved an estimated 2.5 million kWh of energy in 2022.

Transportation is essential for delivering vital products quickly. To reduce environmental impact, we have deployed routing algorithms to minimize miles driven, outfitted each vehicle with a tablet that enables route optimization, and formalized our engine idling procedure to reduce emissions.

Shipment packaging choices also can lower environmental impact. We have adopted a new type of air pillow that uses less virgin material, resulting in a 25% reduction of raw material usage. In addition, we use paper that is 100% recycled (Forest Stewardship Council® certified) for packaging. Looking forward, our targets include:

Select auto parts intrinsically deliver environmental benefits due to their function. Parts Authority is proud that more than one in four parts we sell helps vehicles increase fuel efficiency or reduce their emissions.

Waste management is a key priority for us. The waste we produce is mainly from packaging materials and from collection services we provide customers for their difficult-to-dispose-of wastes. For 2022, we collected data from 270 of our warehouses and stores, which reported a total of approximately 4,451 tons of recycled or repurposed waste for the year. Looking forward, our targets include:

Our Supply Chain

At Parts Authority, our supply chain plays an essential role in the success of our business and the satisfaction of our clients. We are aware of the environmental impact of our procurement processes, and are executing a sustainability strategy that touches on the products we distribute, our suppliers’ processes, and ways to make our supply chain even more resilient and sustainable.

Our Sustainable Procurement Policy sets environmental and social goals for our supply chain. 60% of our top vendors have signed our Supplier CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Code of Conduct.

Remanufactured Parts are those that have some components that get worn down by daily use, even as other components (the “core”) remain undamaged. Remanufacturers salvage cores and rebuild the necessary elements – giving the component new life. We estimate that nearly 1 out of every 10 parts (9%) Parts Authority sells is remanufactured.

Product safety is important to our business. We are proud that out of 800,000 SKUs (Stock Keeping Units) offered, we only had 21 voluntary, supplier-initiated recalls. This means that only 0.0026 percent of all parts were recalled in 2022.

Our People

Parts Authority can only achieve its full potential – and supply its customers with high-quality parts – when our team is engaged and bring on all cylinders! Accordingly, we focus on enhancing team member satisfaction, career development and professional growth, which have been core values of the company since its inception.

Our team members receive competitive company benefits (e.g., paid time off, company holidays, medical and life insurance, etc.) and we strive to support their health and safety through our policies and programs. Team members are guided by their supervisors and managers and also are offered career development opportunities through our learning management system, which currently offers 140 courses and 16 custom curriculums.

Labor Practices

Our labor practices aim to make Parts Authority a great place to work. Some highlights and targets include:

Health and Safety

We have set the following safety goals as part of our overall focus on continuous improvement and team members’ wellbeing:

Diversity and Inclusion

Parts Authority is committed to fostering an inclusive workplace. In 2020, we created our Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Committee and we introduced the role of Manager of Education, Diversity and Inclusion. The Committee helps us tap into the unique life perspectives of our team members and prioritize recognizing, respecting and valuing differences among team members.

We are committed to creating more opportunities for women in the auto parts industry. We plan to offer additional opportunities for women to grow into management roles through learning experiences and support groups. Our goals, aligned with SDG 5.5, are to introduce by 2025 a women’s networking and support group by 2025, and to offer additional learning opportunities to women in the company by 2026 to help them grow into management roles.

Parts Authority administers an anti-harassment training curriculum designed to engage and educate team members across the country. Through this training, team members gain an understanding of discrimination, sexual harassment, bystander intervention, diversity and inclusion.

Our Community

True sustainability demands consideration of a broad community of people – whose lives Parts Authority is committed to enhancing through our work. Among those who bring vibrancy to this community are team members, suppliers, customers and local nonprofits who make our towns and cities stronger.

Among our community relationships are those listed below:

University of the Aftermarket Foundation – For more than 35 years, UAF has provided funding for aftermarket education programs and research. Parts Authority has been a steadfast UAF supporter for many years, becoming a Lifetime Trustee of the Foundation in 2021 and expanding its support to the Diamond Lifetime Trustee level in 2023.

Women in Auto Care, a community of the Auto Care Association, provides opportunities, education and career leadership to women in the auto care industry through conferences, networking, scholarships, education, data, awards and a curated mentorship program.

Representative Company Sponsorships

Across the nation, Parts Authority helps to build vibrant communities by providing financial support and volunteer action. Here are just a few of the organizations we support:

Business Ethics

In general, the use of good judgment, based on high ethical principles, guides our team members when making difficult decisions. In addition to the policies set forth in the team member handbook, the following basic principles guide the conduct of all team members:

Data Security

Our technology team plans and executes a range of strategies to identify and address data security risks across the enterprise. Parts Authority maintains a written information security program, which encompasses policies, standards, procedures, and guidelines. Taken together, these elements establish operational security controls to govern security for processing, storage, and transmission of customer data.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

In the chart below are the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to which Parts Authority is striving to contribute.

Following each SDG are the related steps Parts Authority intends to take.

SDG 5 on gender equality by increasing our percentage of women employed, increasing female representation in our leadership positions, and improving working conditions for women by providing things such as paid maternity leave.

(5.1 End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Implement anti-discrimination and anti-harassment training for a majority of team members by 2025.
  • Promptly address any report of discrimination or harassment filed and follow up with appropriate and adequate next steps in a timely manner.

(5.5 Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Introduce a women’s networking and support group by 2025.
  • By 2026 offer additional learning opportunities to women in the company to help them grow into management roles.

SDG 8 on decent work and economic conditions by improving our overall working conditions and providing employees with fair wages and compensation.

(8.5 By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Continue to be an equal opportunity employer and assess candidates only based on experience and skills.
  • Prohibit all forms of discrimination and harassment during the recruitment phase and after.

(8.8 Protect labor rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Reduce team member injury rate by 5% by 2028
  • Reduce lost time cases rate by 4% by 2028.
  • Improve manager/supervisor safety knowledge to address unsafe conditions or behaviors through additional training.
  • Provide health and safety training to a majority of team members by 2025.

SDG 9 on industry, innovation, and infrastructure by providing more jobs in the manufacturing sector and increasing R&D in the industrial sector.

(9.5 Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Offer training to team members to develop their sector knowledge and their work-related skills.

SDG 11 on sustainable cities and communities by monitoring the products we sell, as we contribute to cleaner air and more sustainable urban life.

(11.6 By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Comply with applicable laws and regulations concerning the environment.
  • Track the amount of waste produced in order to set reduction targets for facilities by 2025.
  • Implement a formal, nationwide recycling program concerning paper and cardboard by 2025.

SDG 12 on sustainable consumption and production patterns by improving the quality of our products and making them last longer, thereby reducing the total global material footprint.

12.5 By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse)

Parts Authority intends to:

  • Track the amount of waste produced in order to set reduction targets for facilities by 2025.
  • Implement a formal, nationwide recycling program concerning paper and cardboard by 2025.
  • Ensure a majority of our packaging is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified by 2025.
  • Reach 20% of recycled-plastic packaging by 2025.
  • Contribute to repairs of an estimated 10 million vehicles each year to extend their lifetimes.

(12.6 Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle)

Parts Authority intends to:

Parts Authority has participated in CDP private markets pilot to help establish benchmarks for private companies looking to assess climate-specific risks and opportunities; and intends to calculate and report on our Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2024.