Stock Highlight: 3M Co

Founded in 1902, the 3M Company has become a household name with a wide array of consumer goods ranging from bandages and ‘Post-it’ notes to all sorts of tapes and adhesives. Beyond consumer goods, 3M is also a global leader in designing and making personal protective and medical equipment. The company operates with a simple mission to “use science to improve lives and help solve the world’s toughest challenges.”

Crescent Wealth is proud to partner with a business that consistently seeks not only financial returns but also environmental and social outcomes through its strong, ethical governance framework.

3M has been a long-standing leader in sustainability, evidenced by its Pollution Prevention Pays program founded in 1975. To date, the program has prevented over two million tons of pollution. Over the past two decades, 3M has doubled its revenue while reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 70%, and moved 35% of its manufacturing sites to zero waste. Over the same period, the company has led the development of innovative solutions that help its customers be more sustainable – from glass bubbles that enable lower vehicle weight and improved fuel economy to films that make homes, businesses, and electronics more energy efficient. In 2019, 3M helped its customers avoid 17 million metric tons of emissions, which is the equivalent of taking more than three million cars off the road.

The company is also dedicated to giving back to the global community through its local presence, providing needed resources and investing in local communities. For instance, 3M Australia played an important role during the devastating Australian bushfires by working closely with both the state and federal government to supply Class P2-rated respirators to assist those fighting the bushfires, as well as to supply masks to individuals dealing with the effects of the fires. The company also donated a wide range of other 3M supplies to local agencies supporting the cause.

More recently, the COVID-19 pandemic underscores the critical role that science and the business community have in solving global challenges. 3M is again doing its part by working closely with health organizations and governments around the world to ensure that valuable resources, such as its N95 respirator masks, are in the hands of those that need it the most. This includes not only ramping up its own production capacity but also partnering with other companies to increase global manufacturing capacity. Given its expertise in biomaterial, bioprocessing and manufacturing, 3M has also partnered with Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers.