Cincinnati, Ohio, June 9, 2023 – Companies are facing an unprecedented requirement for data collection and processing to support sustainability management and ESG disclosure obligations. With burgeoning legislation, ever-increasing on the ground environmental risks, increased focus on supply chain management, and intense scrutiny and transparency demands from stakeholders, sustainability practitioners are swimming in a sea of data, and sometimes drowning in it. The cross-functional nature of Sustainability and ESG, driving the need for an integrated strategy and platform, makes this challenge even more daunting. A key solution to this challenge is integrated automated technology, driving efficiency and insight.
Benchmark Digital Partners, providers of the Benchmark Gensuite® unified EHS, Sustainability, ESG, Quality, Operational Risk, Stewardship, and Supply Chain Risk platform, has taken a further step in data process automation by implementing the CDP Application Programming Interface (API) into the platform. This will allow users to optimize workflow efficiency and improve data accuracy while making CDP disclosures.
This is the latest innovation in a broader program of data process automation implemented in the Benchmark Gensuite platform, delivering improved performance in automation, integration and insight.
Automated workflows can greatly reduce time, cost and eliminate errors. This can be driven using tools such as AI-enabled automated data capture through document scanning and Machine Learning to process large datasets, such as utility invoices and supply chain data. This offer great benefit where large volume datasets need to be processed, such as Scope 3 emission assessments;
Internal review and third-party assurance can be facilitated prior to submission through a standardized and controlled workflow. This ensures that all disclosures have been reviewed by designated stakeholders, and that data controls meet the standards required by the investment community.
Automation takes a step further with integration, allowing different functions to communicate and exchange, ensuring smooth and accurate flow of data. Integration can be executed across a range of data sources and technologies, such as smart meters, operational plants, and other enterprise systems. This allows data to be directly uploaded into a data warehouse and used to support multiple monitoring and reporting requirements.
An example of this is Benchmark’s Data Exchange Portal Integrator TM (DXP), which provide a centralized hub for the import, transformation and output of data from across the enterprise to multiple stakeholder channels, maintaining a single centralized hub to ensure consistent and reliable data quality.
Generation of insight from large datasets can be achieved using Artificial Intelligence tools. AI-enabled advisors are able to scan operations data and accelerate the data review process, providing alerts for issues that require attention, including mobile-based push alerts. With AI-enabled site monitoring, operations can be verified in real time and alerts generated for safety, compliance and work procedures.
Last year over 18,000 companies disclosed emissions data through the CDP. This represents a very significant data management process, requiring commitment and resources from disclosing companies. To facilitate this process, CDP made the API available, allowing participating Accredited Solutions Providers to enable direct submission from their platform. With this API enabled within the Benchmark Gensuite platform, along with the other automated data processes, users will be able to generate and disclose investment-grade emissions data more easily than ever before.
The API will deliver significant time saving, allowing the Benchmark Gensuite platform to automatically allocate and submit records required by the CDP framework, minimizing the need for data handling and editing to generate the required CDP format. This delivers end-to-end automation of data processing from on-site data capture to emissions calculations, to response submission directly to CDP portal, with appropriate sign-off/audit tollgates. Opportunities for human error or other inconsistencies are greatly reduced or eliminated.
R Mukund, CEO of Benchmark Digital Partners, commented:
“We are proud to be a Gold level Member of the CDP, and an Accredited Service Provider as we support them in their critical mission. The capabilities built into the Benchmark Gensuite platform provides our user base with unprecedented power to gather data, evaluate performance, manage risk, and drive improved business outcomes. CDP data disclosures are a key part of that process, and this API will further enhance the process of creating and disclosing investment-grade emissions data.”
About Benchmark Gensuite®
Benchmark Gensuite® enables companies to implement robust, cross-functional digital systems for EHS, Sustainability, and ESG Reporting through a unified digital platform—locally, globally and across diverse operating profiles.
With intuitive, best-practice-based process functionality, flexible configurations, and powerful extensions, the Benchmark Gensuite® platform has helped companies worldwide manage their EHS, Sustainability; Quality; Operational Risk and Compliance; Product Stewardship, and Supply Chain Risks for over two decades; and now organically integrated with cutting-edge ESG disclosure reporting and management solutions. Join over 3 million users that trust Benchmark Gensuite® with their software system needs and benefit from rapid deployment and adoption, immediate return on investment (ROI), service excellence, and collaborative innovation.
For more information, contact:
Peter Walsh
[email protected]
