Our journey to renewable energy and zero waste
Sustainability
Sustainability isn’t just a feature we add to our products – it’s a foundation of who we are as a company. As an industry leader, we continue to innovate and reimagine water solutions that drive our customers’ success and protect the environment we all share. We’re committed to the future of New Zealand and A Greater Degree of Good™.
Rheem® set some big sustainability goals for 2025, and we achieved them all!
Sustainable Products
Launch a line of water heating products that boast a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas footprint.1
Zero Waste
Achieve zero waste to landfill and reduce greenhouse gas in our New Zealand manufacturing operations.2
Training Plumbers
Deliver expanded training on Rheem® sustainable products, growing capability across plumbers, gasfitters, specifiers and merchants.
Our Bold 2035 Goals
Reduce emissions intensity by 30% throughout the entire lifecycle of Rheem® products.3 Achieve an average of 90% reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging or at least 50% recycled content in product packaging.4
Maintain Zero Waste to Landfill status5 and reduce global waste intensity (ton/unit) by 10%.6
Complete 1 million trainings for plumbers, contractors and key influencers globally on sustainable products, refrigerant management and/or sustainable best practices.
Products
Our aims are to reduce emissions intensity by 30% throughout the entire lifecycle of Rheem® products3 and achieve an average of 90% reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging OR at least 50% recycled content in product packaging.4
Heat pump hot water technology was key to achieving Rheem’s 2025 Sustainability Product goal to launch a line of water heating products that boast a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas footprint. The Rheem AmbiHeat and AmbiPower families of heat pump water heaters draw heat energy from the air and produce zero emissions on site. This means they deliver significant water heating energy cost savings and are helping to reduce environmental impact.
We’re Innovating
Rheem® Vitreous Enamel-Lined Water Heaters are more sustainable than ever.
All Vitreous Enamel water heaters’ insulation meets or exceeds NZ MEPS (Minimum Energy Performance Standards), reducing the energy demand of the product.
We fit the heaters with a sacrificial magnesium anode to provide additional corrosion protection to the cylinder in adverse water conditions, giving the product a longer life cycle.
We use Solstice ZD Blowing Agent for foam insulation, which has very low GWP & zero Ozone-Depleting properties.
The recyclable cardboard packaging goes only on the top rim of the water heater, meaning there is no unnecessary waste.
The cylinder’s jacket, tank and valves can all be stripped and recycled.
Rheem® Factory Solar Installation
Earlier this year, we installed solar panels on the Rheem® factory in Avondale...
This gave us a chance to see our new Rheem® Solar Solutions in action firsthand, while also lowering the overall energy consumption of the factory. In the month of May, the solar panels produced, on average, 214 kwh per day. To put this in context, the average NZ home uses around 20 kwh per day.
This means that Rheem® Avondale is now making meaningful use of a renewable energy source, lowering both its carbon footprint and overall impact on the environment. The energy produced by the solar panels also resulted in roughly $1395 of savings in May 2023 alone – and this was a cloudy, wet month!
Process
Our goals are to Maintain Zero Waste to Landfill status5 and reduce global waste intensity (ton/unit) by 10%.6
Rheem is committed to reducing our environmental impact by improving energy efficiency across our facilities, adopting renewable energy where available, and refining our production processes to minimise material use and prevent refrigerant losses. Through smarter process control, renewable energy initiatives, and strong recycling partnerships, we work to reduce waste at the source – introducing solutions such as reusable pallets and reduced supplier packaging – to help move toward a more sustainable future.
Zero Waste Audit, Avondale
With a goal of zero waste to landfill by 2025, we needed to assess how much of our current waste was being recycled sustainably.
Earlier this year, the Rheem® Global Sustainability team joined us and a bunch of generous volunteers to spend three days collecting and counting trash.
The occasion: the 2023 Rheem® Avondale Waste Audit.
It may not be the cleanest of jobs, but the waste audit was an essential part of our overall sustainability strategy. Our goal is zero waste to landfill by 2025, which means we needed to assess how much of our current waste was being recycled in a sustainable way. And as zero waste is a global goal, we were lucky enough to have the Rheem® Global Sustainable team fly all the way from America to help us with the audit.
On Wednesday 8th February, the waste audit started at 6am and would continue for 24 hours. The plan was to collect all the waste the Rheem® Avondale factory and office staff produced in a 24-hour period, and then work out what recycling processes are working well, and where there is room for improvement.
The way we measure the sustainability of our waste management is by calculating the “Diversion Rate”. Simply put, the diversion rate measures the portion of waste not sent to the landfill. The greater the diversion rate, the more sustainable the waste management processes, so tracking the diversion rate over time is a great way to measure the effectiveness of reuse, recycling, and organic composting programs.
On Thursday morning, the 24-hour sample period was complete and we all gathered at 10am to start processing the waste. We were fortunate enough to be joined by a group of wonderful volunteers who helped us sought and document the waste.
With the waste processed, we were finally able to see the results of the audit and discuss our areas for improvement at a ‘lunch & learn’ on the Friday. In short, we collected 105.5kg of waste – three cubic metres – over the 24-hour period.
Most of that waste was able to be diverted with our current recycling streams. This included bottles & cans, cardboard, paper, food, paper towels, metal, plastic wrap and E-waste. The EPS, enamel bags, mixed soft plastics, PPE masks, PPE, plastic plugs & gaskets and foam cutouts can also all be diverted under existing recycling streams.
This was a great start for Rheem® Avondale, but still a long way off our goal to have zero waste to landfill. We are dedicated to achieving this goal, so we’re currently working hard to find recycling solutions for all our waste.
People
We plan to complete 1 million trainings for plumbers, contractors and key influencers globally on sustainable products, refrigerant management and/or sustainable best practices.
Our people play a central role in driving sustainability at Rheem. Teams across the business meet regularly to develop and share practical sustainability initiatives that can be implemented locally, ensuring ideas turn into real action. Thanks to the passion and drive of our people, we more than doubled our 2025 global goal for training plumbers, contractors and key industry influencers, helping accelerate the adoption of more sustainable products and practices across the industry.
Rheem is a member of the Sustainable Energy Association of New Zealand, SEANZ.
We proudly support EECA & Ara Ake
Progress
we’re proud of
Our 2025 Sustainability Progress Report details how we’re tracking against our 2035 goals. See the report — and how we’re doing.
Sustainability Report 2025
Rheem Solar Solutions
Switching to solar can dramatically reduce your impact on the environment – and it’s never been easier. Our goal is to make converting to solar simple for Kiwis, no matter where they live in NZ. Install a Rheem Solar Solution and join the smart energy revolution.
Learn More