A Refresh for the ISO 14001 Certification

ISO Certifications have a refresh regularly, and the ISO 14001 certification is no different. This year, there are plans to harmonise the ISO 14001 certification with others, as it has often been marginalised from the other certifications.
By: QMS International PLC
 
Aug. 28, 2012 - PRLog -- ISO Certifications regularly get an update and the ISO 14001 certification is no different. Last updated in 2004 The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) has decided that it is time the ISO 14001 has a bit of a face lift. ISO 14001 is the international standard for Environmental Management Systems, helping companies to put into place processes which reduce the impact they are having on the wider environment.

The popularity of this particular ISO certification is growing with nearly a quarter of a million business across the world working to the standard, and on average 25,000 new business achieve the standard every year. The revision of the ISO 14001 certification will allow it to stay relevant, making sure that these high numbers are kept consistent.

Following general consensus from the IEMA (Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment) and the ISO a revision can be expected for the standard in 2015. The environmental world is constantly changing, green technologies are being updated and so is a variety of governments’ legislation regarding what minimum standards businesses must meet when it comes to the environment. A revision of the ISO certification will therefore bring the standard back up to date and allow companies to invest in a more robust and comprehensive environmental management system.

If you already have the ISO 14001 certification, there’s no reason to panic as your ISO certification body will be able to help you through the period of change. You will be given a set ‘transition period’ which will give you and your organisation plenty of time to adapt to the changes so there is no risk of you not meeting the required standards of the new certification. At the same time, there is no point waiting for the new standard to come out before becoming certified, it will be easy to upgrade to the new system once your EMS is in place, and the sooner you have implemented the ISO standard and have your system up and running the better it is to adapt and change to a slightly upgraded standard.

The revision in the standard has come about because the ISO Technical Committee overseeing the process has decided to integrate ISO’s recently launched high level structure for management systems. The ISO 14001 certification has always been marginalised somewhat from the other ISO certifications such as ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 and this way of harmonising the framework for all of the ISO management system standards will make it easier for companies to integrate other ISO certifications into their organisation. We are likely to see therefore a change in the outlook of the ISO 14001 certification as one shortfall of the current standard is that is doesn’t really help organisations to look outwards at stakeholders, customers and suppliers.

Whatever the case, we hope to see a more structured, relevant and comprehensive ISO 14001 certification once the changes are announced in 2015.

To find out more about the ISO 14001 certification, see the QMS website here: http://www.qmsuk.com/iso-14001.php
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Source:QMS International PLC
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Tags:Iso 14001, Iso 14001 Certification, Environmental Management System
Industry:ISO Certification
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