Acquiring ISO 14001 Certification
ISO 14001 specifies a set of generic requirements for running an environmental management system. Following both the Rio Summit on the Environment and the Uruguay round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The standard was published in 1996 by the International Organization for Standards (ISO), the largest developer and publisher of International Standards in the world. The ISO is a non-government agency made up of a coalition of 160 countries – one member per country. In the United Kingdom, the British Standards Institute (BSI) functions as the National Body for Standards. The system is coordinated by a secretariat in Switzerland.
In addition to ISO 14001, the 14000 series of standards covers Environmental Aspects in Product Standards, Life-cycle Assessment, Environmental Labelling, Environmental Performance Evaluation and Environmental Audit.
Obtaining certification shows that your company is committed to improving the environment and being compliant with relevant regulations. Your company’s reputation will be enhanced and this will attract new customers. Effective risk management will reduce revenue lost through clean-up costs and environmental fines and result in lower public insurance costs.
ISO 14001 certification places your company into position to apply for and receive prestigious awards such as the Business Commitment to the Environment (BCE) Environmental Leadership Awards, which are easy and fee to enter but challenging to win. Capturing this high-profile industrial award will enhance public perception of your firm and elevate the pride of your employees. Another prestigious accolade are the Environment and Energy Awards rewarding excellence, best practice and innovation in the energy industry.
First, obtain a copy of the Standard and become familiar with its contents. Include an environmental section in your Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Openly announce your commitment to environmental sustainability and make your staff and customers aware of your policies. Perhaps hold a formal event to publicise them. Serve refreshments might help reinforce a positive association.
Identify industry-specific environmental risks associated with your company’s activities. Determine your objectives and targets for improving the environment and work out a management plan for putting the plan into action.
Add suitable environment management training to your staff training package. The BSI offer a wide range of classroom instruction and e-learning courses.
BSI Client Managers work with you at every stage of the certification process to ensure all goes according to plan. They will first complete a pre-assessment involving a gap analysis or Stage 1 Audit in order to identify non-conformity in existing company practice. There will be a document review and a site visit. The assessor will then determine if your company qualifies for registration for ISO 14001 certification.
Once the BSI assessor issues your certificate, it is valid for a three-year period. It clearly defines the terms of reference of your management system. Your Client Manager will visit regularly to monitor compliance and offer whatever other support is required.
The BSI also has the experience and expertise to help you seamlessly implement ISO 14001 practices with other important ISO standards like ISO 9001, OHAS 18001 and ISO 27001 (Quality, Health & Safety and Information Security, respectively).
