Maddie Berry joined the Three D Metals team in August 2023 as our Associate Director of Quality and Sustainability. She previously worked at Deloitte for eight years, serving large public clients in oil and gas and leading projects for ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) readiness.
We recently talked to Maddie to get her perspective on her new role, the importance of sustainability in metals, and her plans for sustainable improvements at Three D.
What do you do in your current role with Three D?
I currently manage and lead our Quality and Sustainability departments, tracking and reporting both quality and sustainability metrics. I also work closely with our marketing team to capture our sustainability efforts and make that information readily available to our customers and vendors.
Why does sustainability in the metals industry matter?
Sustainability in the metals industry matters, especially from a steel perspective. According to World Steel, in 2020, total direct emissions from the steel sector were approximately 2.6 billion tons. While we do not produce any metal, it is important to understand how our vendors produce their products, their sustainability goals, and their emission reduction targets.
What are some challenges to implementing sustainable practices?
I think the main challenge to implement change in the metals industry is the cost associated with upgrades to equipment to reduce emissions. For example, upgrading blast furnaces to electric arc furnaces in the steel industry can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. I also think that the metals industry is so well established that it is challenging for some companies to change their mindsets so quickly.
What does the current state of sustainability at Three D Metals look like?
We have always been on the cutting edge of sustainability, but our start in the arena was from the perspective of doing the right thing for the community and environment rather than because a vendor or regulator mandated it. At this point in our sustainability journey, we are taking credit for everything we’ve been doing since day one. As the focus on sustainability grows, we are looking to better understand our emissions and how we can continue to do the right thing by reducing emissions.
What improvements are in the works?
Since I joined Three D, we’ve collected and analyzed our emissions data for 2022 and 2023, finding electricity to be our main emission source. At our Valley City facility, we plan to start monitoring electricity usage at the machine level, which will help us better pinpoint usage and opportunities to reduce that usage.
As a company, we focus on supporting our community and our people. One initiative that we have been talking about implementing, and that I’m excited about, is offering employees paid time off to volunteer in the community. I hope we can have this in place at the start of our next fiscal year.
We want to be leaders in sustainability in our community, providing guidance and insight to businesses in our area on how they can be more sustainable.
