Brief overview of the contents of these procurement guidelines
1. Our procurement guidelines ensure optimal procurement activities in terms of professional cooperation with our business partners, as well as in terms of cost optimization and contract securities. A further basis for mutual cooperation is the acceptance of our Code of Conduct by our suppliers.
2. Requirements from the specialist departments are reviewed by the procurement department and, in consultation with the specialist departments, are assigned to the relevant suppliers. Although the procurement department is responsible for deciding on suppliers, this is always done in consultation with the specialist departments based on technical specifications.
3. Orders are considered binding on our suppliers once they have received the official order document, which is generally only transmitted by the procurement department.
4. In order to optimize costs, several offers are always obtained to determine the best price. Exceptions are orders that must be awarded to technically specified suppliers. Preliminary commitments from our technical specialist departments are always made in consultation with the procurement department.
5. The prices and terms and conditions of our suppliers are continuously reviewed by our procurement department, including with regard to market fairness.
6. Order approvals are generally granted in accordance with sales value limits (see page 5).
7. The contracts, as well as the order processes and all related process data, are stored electronically in our ERP system.
Procurement process
1. Our procurement guidelines govern the processes for procuring goods and services from external suppliers. These guidelines are also implemented by the affiliated subsidiaries – primarily in the requirements notification phase, as the ordering process is handled centrally by the procurement department of HORN Glass Industries.
2. The managing directors of the subsidiaries are responsible for ensuring that the requirements notification process is properly followed.
3. The responsibility for defining the procurement function and procurement responsibilities within the company lies with the Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He/she is also responsible for ensuring that the procurement manager has the necessary skills.
4. In order to handle all procurement activities within the HORN Group at optimal cost, in a contractually secure and uniform manner, consistent compliance with the procurement guidelines must be ensured. In this sense, the procurement department is responsible for selecting the best suppliers, ensuring equal opportunities for qualified suppliers, and working constructively with suppliers. The Code of Conduct for Suppliers must be observed and complied with by suppliers.
Requirements notification and order approval
1. The respective specialist department is responsible for assessing and triggering requirements. A review of requirements by the procurement department is not necessary, but may be requested by the procurement department if necessary.
2. The corresponding requirement is communicated to the procurement department by means of a requirements notification. The requirements notification form is documented and can be viewed on the landing page of the parent company. This form must be used exclusively for submitting requirements.
3. The drafting of requirement notifications must always be carried out for all direct and indirect costs (goods, services, investments, overhead materials, consumables, and other costs).
4. For investment goods, the separate guidelines governing the approval process for investment projects must be observed.
Supplier selection and supplier evaluation
1. The initial evaluation of new suppliers and service providers for external requirements on construction sites is carried out by the respective specialist technical departments. The supplier must be audited on site for this purpose. This is followed by a credit assessment by the HORN Group's accounting department. In consultation with the procurement department, the selection of suppliers can be made or proposed by the procurement department if necessary. This applies mainly to the area of system suppliers.
2. In-house service providers are acquired and evaluated by the procurement department in consultation with the respective department managers.
3. If several suppliers meet the competencies specified by the person requesting the order, the procurement department is responsible for selecting the supplier. The selection criteria must be disclosed transparently and documented by the procurement department, if necessary.
4. If the customer requests cooperation with a specific supplier, this must be contractually agreed with the customer. In this case, the customer shall be responsible for the orderly deliveries of the supplier.
5. The relevant system suppliers of the HORN Group are evaluated once a year by the procurement department. The evaluation results are documented internally and sent to the supplier in the form of a points table with a corresponding letter. The installation service providers are evaluated by the project managers, also using a points catalog that is sent to the suppliers by the procurement department. The documents for evaluating suppliers are integrated into the landing page of the parent company.
Processing of orders by the procurement department
1. In principle, orders can only be placed by the procurement department.
2. In special cases, usually involving necessary and urgent construction site work, the project manager may verbally instruct the supplier to carry out the urgent order, accompanied by an immediate written notification of requirements to the procurement department.
Procurement procedure
1. In order to ensure cost-effective procurement, several or at least two offers must always be obtained. Exceptions to this are orders of low value or for items that were previously only ordered from selected suppliers, or for items or services specified by the customer.
2. If the technical departments are unable to compare suppliers, or if the customer has specified a particular supplier or service provider, the technical department must note this in the requirements notification to the procurement department.
3. There are no requirements regarding the number of offers to be obtained in relation to the procurement volume. However, as a rule, several offers are obtained for sums exceeding 5,000 €. Except in cases where supplier specifications are provided by customers.
4. Legally binding agreements with system suppliers (order commitments, prices, payment terms, etc.) may only be made by the procurement department. Arrangements with suppliers for assembly services are made by the relevant technical specialist department.
5. The technical specialist department will obtain the offers solely for the purpose of clarifying deadlines and calculations. Once agreed, the process is transferred to the procurement department by means of a requirements notification document. A legal obligation only arises once the order document has been sent by the procurement department to the supplier/service provider.
6. The technical department shall inform the supplier that orders are placed exclusively by the procurement department. The technical department must not suggest to the supplier that they will be awarded the contract. Furthermore, the specialist department shall not make any statements to the supplier regarding its positioning, unless the supplier is aware that it has been designated by the customer.
7. Order processing is carried out exclusively by digital means. The follow-up documents (order confirmation, invoice, and any other documents) shall also be transmitted digitally.
8. Before entering into a supplier relationship, a confidentiality agreement must be concluded with the supplier to prevent trade secrets from being used unlawfully by the supplier. The confidentiality agreement shall be drawn up and processed exclusively by the procurement department.
Procurement terms and conditions and contracts
1. The HORN Group’s terms and conditions of procurement are available on the HORN homepage and cover, among other things, the relevant recourse options against the supplier in the event of faulty or poor-quality deliveries and services.
2. The procurement department is responsible for ensuring that the procurement conditions agreed individually with the supplier are in line with market conditions.
3. To ensure the proper processing of all orders, appropriate framework agreements are concluded with both system suppliers and assembly service providers.
Signature and approval policy for procurement procedures
1. Orders and contracts shall be transmitted exclusively in digital form.
2. The signatures required for orders and order changes are determined by the order value, which is defined in the signature policy stored in the system.
3. The following approval rules apply, graded according to turnover:
• Approval by the project manager 1 - 100,000 €
• Approval by the department manager 100,000– 500,000 €
• Approval by the CEO from 500,000 €
• Approval for orders relating to company infrastructure exclusively by the CEO
4. Framework agreements and confidentiality agreements shall always be signed by the CEO of the HORN Group, both for HORN Glass Industries and for its subsidiaries.
Archiving
1. Framework agreements, confidentiality agreements, and all procurement-related orders and documents are archived on the procurement drive.
2. Individual orders and individual contracts related to orders can be viewed by all employees in the procurement drive under the respective project numbers (read-only access).
3. Framework agreements and special agreements not related to individual orders are also archived in the procurement department's contract folder, but without access authorization for employees, except for the CEO, department managers, and procurement staff.
4. However, framework agreements and special individual agreements shall be sent to the relevant department managers upon request at any time.
5. All contracts, orders, and other documents shall be archived digitally without exception.
