What Is the ISO 14001 standard, How Does It Work and What Is the Purpose?

  

ISO 14001 is a universally documented standard for the designing and execution of environmental management system. Issued and available by ISO (International Organization for Standardization), its main goal is to augment their eco-friendly performance so that the procedures and methods used by them are compliant with environmental regulations. This can involve reduction of waste materials and better use of resources. Being compliant with ISO 14001 can help a company to earn the trust of its stakeholders, improve the market value of the company and also gain substantial competitive advantage.
The current version of the ISO 14001 is called ISO 14001:2015 since the updated version of this environmental management system was originally released in 2015. When released, this standard was accepted by most of the member countries. Now it is regarded as a globally recognized standard that has been accepted by most countries across the world.

What is an environmental management system?
An EMS or Environmental Management System is made up of processes, strategies, practices, plans and records that can enable a company to adhere to working methods that are beneficial for the environment. These practices minimize factors that may harm the environment in any way. The recommendations and concepts inherent in the Environmental Management System should be tailored to meet the specific needs of your company. ISO 14001 helps to create a framework and a set of guidelines for developing the EMS so that your environmental compliance strategy becomes successful.
With the ISO 14001, it is possible to boost the proficiency of the “Environmental Management System” that you adapt for your company. The main benefit of getting ISO 14001 Certification is that it can help you to control and manage environmental issues and challenges in a holistic way. The great advantage of ISO 14001 is that it is very flexible and therefore it can be smoothly integrated into an existing system of ISO management.
ISO 14001 is perfectly apposite for all dimensions and forms of companies and establishments, whether they are non-profit, private or governmental. Implementation of ISO 14001 requires that a company considers the different kinds of environmental issues that are relevant to its essential operations, like waste management, air pollution, soil contamination, efficiency of resource usage, sewage and water issues as well as climate change adaptation and mitigation. The updated 2015 version of ISO 14001 brings forth key improvements like better environmental management in the strategic planning processes observed by an organization, greater usage of environmental regulations, better input from the leadership as well as stronger commitment and following of proactive initiatives which can enhance environmental performance.

 

 

Benefits of getting ISO 14001 Certification
Obtaining ISO 14001 Certification is crucial when it comes to making sure that your company remains compliant to positive environmental performance. Here are some of the major advantages of getting ISO 14001 Certification.

1. ISO 14001 can help you to demonstrate complete compliance with all current and future regulatory and statutory requirements
2. ISO 14001 can boost company reputation as well as make it possible to use strategic communication for appealing to the stakeholders.
3. It can enhance leadership involvement as well as proper engagement of employees
4. The ISO 14001 can help in achieving different kinds of strategic business aims through the incorporation of environmental issues within business management practices
5. This ISO standard can promote better environmental performance for the suppliers by easily integrating them within the business systems of the organization
6. It provides a substantial financial and competitive advantage by ensuring improved efficiencies and minimized costs.

Importance of consulting an ISO 14001 Certification expert
When you want to make sure that your business is acquiescent with the rules and regulations associated with an environmental management system, it is advisable that you get in touch with an 14001 certification consulting company as their professionals can help you to accommodate its plans and strategies into the main business operations of your business. To make sure that all the working methods that you have in your organization are environment friendly, you may need to make some critical changes that may have far reaching consequences. For this reason, you need to hire the expertise of an ISO 14001 consultant company that can offer you training and guidance to implement such ecofriendly working methods while keeping in line with your budget and the central goals of your organization.
Once you implement ISO 14001, you will find a marked improvement in the way your company handles all of its operations. Not only can your company work with products and raw materials that are safe for anyone who handles them, the end products can also be safe for your customers. You can also have better ways of disposing your waste and sewage materials that do not harm the environment in any way. Whether it is air pollution, soil contamination or waste management, you can be sure of the fact that a leading ISO 14001 company can offer you competent solutions which can be beneficial for your company for both immediate effect as well as the long run.

Finding the best ISO 14001 certification company
Once you have made up your mind that you are going to consult an ISO 14001 certification provider that can offer you reliable expertise, it is important for you to find an expert who is well aware of the current regulations that are associated with the 2015 updated version of ISO 14001. These professionals can analyze the specific business requirements that you have and then come up with strategies that can be very good for you both strategically as well as financially. By improving the working methods that you follow in your company, they can help you to become compliant with the rules of ISO 14001. You can also create a positive impression in the minds of your target customers. It is a well known fact that ISO certified companies experience a major boost in their business. Therefore you should focus on obtaining ISO 14001certification for your business enterprise as soon as possible.

How To Get ISO 14001 Certified And How Much Does It Cost?

If you are thinking of implementing an Environmental Management System or EMS in your company, it is very important to get the ISO 14001 certification as it can help you to achieve your goals. The ISO 14001 is considered to be the gold standard for making sure that an organization always sticks to working methods that are completely environment friendly. With ISO 14001, you can implement better practices for air pollution control, enhance waste management methods, use your resources in a better way, avoid soil contamination, get rid of sewage and waste water problems and mitigate climate change problems and adapt to them in a better way. However, it can be difficult for you to implement the working standards on your own that can help you to become compliant with the rules and regulations associated with ISO 14001. This is exactly where an ISO 14001 certification provider comes in.

One of the first things that you need to think about while getting ISO 14001 Certification is the total cost that you will need to handle for this process. It is very important that you are well informed about ISO 14001 certification cost from the very beginning so that you have no trouble in managing them.

Here are some of the factors that influence the cost of implementing ISO 14001.

Costs associated with buying the ISO 14001 standard
There are some organizations that try to implement the ISO 14001 standard without purchasing it or having any knowledge about it. This is something that you should strictly avoid at all costs. The overall cost of purchasing the ISO standard is rather small when you compare it to the resources and time you are going to need by trying to recover from the mistakes or damages that you may have made by not having complete ownership of the ISO standard or the facts associated with it. On the other hand, when you have completely purchased the ISO 14001 standard, it can be easier for you to implement the Environmental Management System and benefit richly from it. It can also simplify things for you when you want to perform gap analysis.

Having access to education and training associated with ISO 14001
In order to optimally benefit from ISO 14001 implementation, it is very important that you invest a good deal of time in the training for this standard so that your employees are all well educated about its various practices. You should have complete access to ISO 14001 literature so that you are completely well versed regarding its various aspects. This is not only essential for proper application of all practices associated with ISO 14001 but it can also help you to improve the efficiency of your enterprise in more ways than one. You can also set strict standards of operation among your employees that they need to follow.

Investing on technology and infrastructure for meeting the terms and practices of the standard
At the initial days, it can be somewhat difficult for you to understand what type of resources, infrastructure and technology you are going to need for a project like this. However, you need to have sufficient resources as well as a flexible approach to adjust with the changes that you are soon going to apply in the practices of your company. Firstly, you must first analyze the expertise and resources that you currently have and see whether they are ideal for the implementation of ISO 14001. Apart from the technical infrastructure and tools, you must also have a team of workers who are ready for the application of this standard. It is important to note that implementation of ISO 14001 works differently for different companies according to their sizes, scopes and capacities. You may also consider subscribing with an online service provider who can help your business to comply with the rules and regulations associated with ISO 14001.

Cost for getting your employees ready
When you choose to discuss your requirements with a leading ISO 14001 certification consulting company, it is very important that you have all the information you need prior to assigning them for your ISO project. The procedures associated with application of ISO 14001 are highly comprehensive and may require substantial time investment on your part. ISO 14001 generally demands increased leadership from your team members and therefore both your leaders and employees must dedicate their 100% to their task. It is important that you have the time you need to apply the various practices of the ISO 14001 standard to your current organizational structure. The costs you need for this will also depend on the steps you need to get your employees ready for this ISO standard. You must think about consultation, training, communication, knowledge and awareness of your working team while you calculate the cost and management time you need to make your enterprise complaint with ISO 14001.

Costs associated with surveillance audits and certification
ISO 14001 Certification is what you need to have when you want to appeal to your stakeholders. It can also help you to convince your target consumers that the EMS that you have in place is definitely efficient and result driven. You can get a proper estimation of the total cost you need to manage by getting in touch with ISO certification service providers that are registered and accredited to offer such solutions to their client firms. You need to pay the costs associated with certification audit as well as the remaining two surveillance audits and this information you can get by getting in touch with the ISO consultation companies.

Considering the information presented above, it is easy to surmise that there are a number of different factors that influence the overall costs you need to handle when you want to get ISO 14001 certification for your company. It is important that you definitely get in touch with a leading ISO consultant firm capable of analyzing the requirements you have and then coming up with fully tailored solutions to meet them perfectly.