For family business RAPS, sustainability is more than just a buzzword – it is the basis of our entrepreneurial action. We would like to provide you with an insight into our vision of sustainability. We firmly believe that commitment to employees and society is an important factor of a company’s long-term success. Our responsibility towards people motivates us to conduct all of our company activities with sustainability in mind.
Our employees are the main ingredient in our recipe for success. This is why we continuously strive to create and maintain a positive and healthy work environment. In addition, we provide active support to social facilities and numerous aid projects to help the people on site in Kulmbach.
Become a RAPSian – at RAPS, people are at the centre
For more than 100 years, RAPS has represented a community that puts people at the centre. We want our employees to thrive in every respect. Since satisfied and motivated employees are the key to long-term success, we do our utmost to create a positive working environment where people can feel at ease, develop their potential and be successful. As a responsible employer, RAPS supports its employees in many different ways. In addition to an attractive salary, we offer collectively agreed contributions to the company pension scheme and promote additional qualifications and advanced training. We also think that spending lunch breaks together with the team is very important. Our canteen is the central gathering point and a place where we exchange ideas. Workplace health and safety are also very important to us. We also support individual prevention and health promotion measures. Our company integration management helps employees who are temporarily limited to return to the work process successfully. Training young talents is a matter particularly close to our heart. RAPS is among the leading training companies in the Upper Franconia region. In view of the skilled labour shortage, being an attractive employer for the younger generations is particularly important to us. Satisfied employees who feel at ease at the company and feel valued and appreciated are the best ambassadors for a company.
[Translate to Romanian:] Sustainable action – social involvement
[Translate to Romanian:]
For RAPS, sustainable action also involves taking social responsibility in the region, supporting non-profit organisations and promoting social projects. Wherever possible, we like to commission workshops that employ people with disabilities. But we also do our bit with many smaller actions.
A lovely example is the "wish list campaign" where our employees make children’s eyes shine with joy at Christmas. Children from different facilities can write their gift wishes on notes and hang them on the decorated tree in the foyer of our administration building or have them hung up. Thanks to many busy and generous RAPS Christmas elves, we can give gifts to many children each year. This campaign benefits mainly smaller facilities in and around Kulmbach that hardly receive any support as compared to the larger facilities.
WDW – “Wir – Du – Was? Das WIR bewegt” (Us – you – what? We get things done together)
When the employees of a company spend time together and get to know each other outside of work, this creates a new team spirit. And what’s better than working with people you enjoy spending time with? That’s exactly what the initiators of "Wir – Du – Was? Das WIR bewegt" (abbreviated to WDW) thought. Their shared goal is to organise a great variety of different activities for all employees throughout the year to strengthen the sense of community and team spirit. From barbecues to geocaching, from bowling and hiking and all the way to skiing trips: There’s something for everyone in the vast selection of offers, and the RAPS management also enjoys taking part. "What’s great about these activities is that we spend time together outside of any hierarchical structures. This creates a tighter bond, especially with people you might not have much contact with in your everyday work," says one of the initiations.
Where the trainees are the bosses: Rapsody of Spices
At the "RAPSODY OF SPICES" spice shop, the trainees are in charge – and have been for 15 years. The concept for the trainee shop was also developed entirely by trainees back then. The range includes seasoning blends, marinades, sauces, vinegars and oils. What’s special here is that the trainees are responsible for everything, from procuring and filling the products, calculating the prices, marketing and all the way to selling the products in the shop. Working here is now an integral part of the training at RAPS, no matter what profession the trainees are learning.
Planting trees for a green future
Protecting the environment and nature is a matter of great importance to us and our employees. In the context of a major tree planting campaign managed by the city forester, our trainees planted numerous trees in the nearby "Gundlitz" recreational area, including wild cherry trees, oaks, walnut trees, larches and Turkish hazel trees. The reforestation project was implemented on a vacant planting area of roughly 8,000 square metres. With this campaign, the trainees at RAPS wanted to take action against the forest decline which we are also noticing here as a result of climate change. "Only intact forests can store large amounts of CO2 and release oxygen into the environment at the same time. The planting project is therefore a great contribution to the environment," says one of the campaign’s initiators.
The Adalbert Raps Foundation
At RAPS, social involvement and sustainability are firmly enshrined in the company. Thanks to its founder, Adalbert Raps, part of the company profit of RAPS goes into the Adalbert Raps Foundation. For more than 45 years, the foundation has been involved in social projects in Upper Franconia in particular, for example in work with youth and seniors. The foundation also works on food research alongside scientists and institutes. For example, Adalbert-Raps technical college in Kulmbach owes its foundation to and takes its name from our company founder. As a pioneer in food research, Adalbert Raps initially developed new manufacturing processes for salt-free spices, thereby laying the foundation for RAPS GmbH & Co. KG. He was at the helm of the company until his death in 1975. It was important to the founder that his estate be used for a charitable task that was of benefit to the public. In the founder’s honour, the Adalbert Raps Foundation has also set up its own initiatives in the field of spices. With the annual scholarship competition for an opportunity to train as a spice sommelier, the Adalbert Raps Foundation has been pursuing the goal of preserving and expanding the knowledge of spices and making it available to people and has been doing so for ten years.