At CPO Outlook 2025, Gunnar Büchter, Executive Director, Global Head of Sustainability at Yanfeng, shared how a global automotive supplier is embedding sustainability and risk into procurement’s everyday decisions — not through slogans, but by linking data, systems, and people. Enabled by Prewave, the journey shows what happens when visibility and collaboration turn ambition into action.
From ambition to measurable progress
Over the past five years, Yanfeng has evolved from viewing sustainability as an add-on to making it a shared operational goal. The company’s focus: connecting engineering, procurement, operations, and suppliers around one truth — reducing impact and increasing accountability.
As Gunnar described on stage, the science has not changed, but expectations and regulations have. “We need to be prepared.” Sustainability, he reminded the audience, remains about our children — and what we build today for them.
Procurement at the center of the journey
What makes Yanfeng’s transformation notable is its structure. Sustainability does not sit in a separate function. Procurement owns delivery, supported by a lean central sustainability team.
Procurement need to be in the center of the discussion
Gunnar Büchter
That mindset has turned buyers into active participants in Yanfeng’s environmental and social agenda — from managing emissions to ensuring supplier compliance. Every new sourcing decision carries sustainability requirements, from green energy commitments to transparency in supplier data.
Building collaboration across functions
Progress has been driven through collaboration. Procurement works hand-in-hand with engineering, program management, and operations to reduce carbon intensity, increase recycled material use, and integrate circular design principles. Instead of separate reporting tracks, sustainability metrics now guide how the business designs, buys, and evaluates performance.
This cross-functional approach has made sustainability tangible: less a matter of compliance, more a shared way of working.
Enabled by Prewave: visibility and accountability
To strengthen supplier insight and risk management, Yanfeng partnered with Prewave. The solution helps monitor suppliers globally and highlight where social or environmental risks arise — enabling immediate dialogue and response. This creates both transparency and a culture of shared accountability throughout the supply chain.
For Gunnar and his team, the goal is simple: one framework that connects risk, sustainability, and compliance — so buyers act on the same information and suppliers improve in partnership.
Lessons for peers
- Anchor sustainability where decisions are made. Procurement must own both targets and actions.
- Start from data you trust. One view builds confidence and consistency across teams.
- Keep it practical. Simplicity drives adoption — change succeeds when it makes daily work easier.
- Collaborate early. Engineering, operations, and procurement must share ownership of product impact.
- Work with partners. Solutions like Prewave help scale visibility and accountability without adding manual work.
About Yanfeng
Yanfeng is a leading global automotive supplier, focusing on interior, exterior, seating, cockpit electronics and passive safety.
Yanfeng has more than 240 sites and approximately 57,000 employees worldwide. The technical team of 4,100 experts are based at 14 R&D centers and other regional offices, with complete capabilities including engineering and software development, design, as well as testing and validation.
Focusing on smart cabin and lightweight technology, Yanfeng supports automakers as they explore future mobility spaces and provide leading cabin solutions.
About Prewave
At Prewave, we’re committed to enhancing supply chain transparency, resilience, and sustainability. As pioneers of an end-to-end and future-ready sustainability, risk, and compliance platform, we strengthen supply chains, safeguarding clients’ reputation and profitability. Our advanced AI and comprehensive platform future-proof supply chains, delivering remarkable results and ensuring compliance globally.
Networking with EBG
Continue these practitioner-to-practitioner conversations at CPO Outlook 2026, held in Stockholm on October 14–15, and through the EBG | Xperience 2026 workshops — smaller, hands-on sessions where peers turn shared insights into practical actions.