WHAT IS ISO 9001 ; ISO14001 AND OHSAS

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ISO 9001

 The ISO 9001 certificate is suitable for all sizes of organisation and is well established around the world as an invaluable quality management system. It is suitable for organisations in all industry sectors and will help your organisation to improve management processes to compete locally and/or globally.

The process encompasses the entire organisation and requires senior management buy-in, it is not just a function of the Quality Department. To achieve ISO 9001 certification your organisation needs to demonstrate that it can meet the regulatory requirements and apply the system effectively to be of real benefit to your customers.As an ISO 9001 certified organisation you will have implemented quality management system requirements for all areas of the business including:

•    Facilities
•    People
•    Training
•    Services
•    Equipment
Continual Assessment
Achieving ISO 9001 standards is the first step of a process of continual improvement that will provide your organisation with the necessary management tools to improve working practices throughout the entire organisation.

UKAS accreditation
You will need to appoint a person to help you to carry out the internal assessments, assist in writing up the Quality Manual and procedures, and help you with getting certified.

ISO 9001 auditorWhen you are satisfied that your entire organisation is working within the guidelines of the quality management system, it is time to call in an ISO 9001 auditor. The audit can be done by a number of Certification bodies, however it is important to note that not all ISO 9001 auditing organisations are UKAS accredited. If you do not use a UKAS accredited auditor your certification could end up being worthless.
The ISO 9000 family of quality management systems standards is designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the needs of customers and other stakeholders while meeting statutory and regulatory requirements related to a product. ISO 9000 deals with the fundamentals of quality management systems, including the eight management principles upon which the family of standards is based.ISO 9001 deals with the requirements that organizations wishing to meet the standard must fulfill.
Third-party certification bodies provide independent confirmation that organizations meet the requirements of ISO 9001. Over one million organizations worldwide are independently certified, making ISO 9001 one of the most widely used management tools in the world today. Despite widespread use, the ISO certification process has been criticized as being wasteful and not being useful for all organizations.







ISO 14001

ISO 14001 sets out the criteria for an Environmental Management System (EMS). It does not state requirements for environmental performance, but maps out a framework that a company or organization can follow to set up an effective EMS. It can be used by any organization that wants to improve resource efficiency, reduce waste, and drive down costs. Using ISO 14001 can provide assurance to company management and employees as well as external stakeholders that environmental impact is being measured and improved.ISO 14001 can also be integrated with other management functions and assists companies in meeting their environmental and economic goals.
ISO 14001, as with other ISO 14000 standards, is voluntary (IISD 2010), with its main aim to assist companies in continually improving their environmental performance, while complying with any applicable legislation. Organizations are responsible for setting their own targets and performance measures, with the standard serving to assist them in meeting objectives and goals and in the subsequent monitoring and measurement of these (IISD 2010).
The standard can be applied to a variety of levels in the business, from organizational level, right down to the product and service level (RMIT university). Rather than focusing on exact measures and goals of environmental performance, the standard highlights what an organization needs to do to meet these goals (IISD 2010).

ISO 14001 is known as a generic management system standard, meaning that it is relevant to any organization seeking to improve and manage resources more effectively. This includes:

• single-site to large multi-national companies
• high-risk companies to low-risk service organizations
• manufacturing, process, and the service industries, including local governments
• all industry sectors including public and private sectors
• original equipment manufacturers and their suppliers.

All standards are periodically reviewed by ISO to ensure they still meet market requirements. The current version of ISO 14001 – ISO 14001:2004 is under review as of April 2012.

Basic principles and methodology

These are based on the well-known Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.

Plan--establish objectives and processes required

Prior to implementing ISO 14001, an initial review or gap analysis of the organization’s processes and products is recommended, to assist in identifying all elements of the current operation and, if possible, future operations, that may interact with the environment, termed "environmental aspects" (Martin 1998). Environmental aspects can include both direct, such as those used during manufacturing, and indirect, such as raw materials (Martin 1998). This review assists the organization in establishing their environmental objectives, goals, and targets, which should ideally be measurable; helps with the development of control and management procedures and processes; and serves to highlight any relevant legal requirements, which can then be built into the policy (Standards Australia/Standards New Zealand 2004).

Do--implement the processes

During this stage, the organization identifies the resources required and works out those members of the organization responsible for the EMS’ implementation and control (Martin 1998). This includes establishing procedures and processes, although only one documented procedure is specified related to operational control. Other procedures are required to foster better management control over elements such as documentation control, emergency preparedness and response, and the education of employees, to ensure that they can competently implement the necessary processes and record results (Standards Australia/Standards New Zealand 2004). Communication and participation across all levels of the organization, especially top management, is a vital part of the implementation phase, with the effectiveness of the EMS being dependent on active involvement from all employees.

Check--measure and monitor the processes and report results

During the 'check' stage, performance is monitored and periodically measured to ensure that the organization’s environmental targets and objectives are being met (Martin 1998). In addition, internal audits are conducted at planned intervals to ascertain whether the EMS meets the user's expectations and whether the processes and procedures are being adequately maintained and monitored (Standards Australia/Standards New Zealand 2004).

Act--take action to improve performance of EMS based on results

After the checking stage, a management review is conducted to ensure that the objectives of the EMS are being met, the extent to which they are being met, and that communications are being appropriately managed; and to evaluate changing circumstances, such as legal requirements, in order to make recommendations for further improvement of the system (Standards Australia/Standards New Zealand 2004). These recommendations are incorporated through continual improvement: plans are renewed or new plans are made, and the EMS moves forward.

Continual Improvement Process

ISO 14001 encourages a company to continually improve its environmental performance. Apart from the obvious- the reduction in actual and possible negative environmental impacts- this is achieved in three ways:

• Expansion: More and more business areas get covered by the implemented EMS.
• Enrichment: More and more activities, products, processes, emissions, resources, etc. get managed by the implemented EMS.
• Upgrading: An improvement of the structural and organizational framework of the EMS, as well as an accumulation of know-how in dealing with business-environmental issues.

Overall, the CIP concept expects the organization to gradually move away from merely operational environmental measures towards a strategic approach on how to deal with environmental challenges.

Benefits

ISO 14001 was developed primarily to assist companies with a framework for better management control that can result in reducing their environmental impacts. In addition to improvements in performance, organizations can reap a number of economic benefits including higher conformance with legislative and regulatory requirements (Sheldon 1997) by adopting the ISO standard. By minimizing the risk of regulatory and environmental liability fines and improving an organization’s efficiency (Delmas 2009), benefits can include a reduction in waste, consumption of resources, and operating costs. Secondly, as an internationally recognized standard, businesses operating in multiple locations across the globe can leverage their conformance to ISO 14001, eliminating the need for multiple registrations or certifications (Hutchens 2010). Thirdly, there has been a push in the last decade by consumers for companies to adopt better internal controls, making the incorporation of ISO 14001 a smart approach for the long-term viability of businesses. This can provide them with a competitive advantage against companies that do not adopt the standard (Potoki & Prakash, 2005). This in turn can have a positive impact on a company’s asset value (Van der Deldt, 1997). It can lead to improved public perceptions of the business, placing them in a better position to operate in the international marketplace (Potoki & Prakash 1997; Sheldon 1997). The use of ISO 14001 can demonstrate an innovative and forward-thinking approach to customers and prospective employees. It can increase a business’s access to new customers and business partners. In some markets it can potentially reduce public liability insurance costs. It can serve to reduce trade barriers between registered businesses (Van der Deldt, 1997). There is growing interest in including certification to ISO 14001 in tenders for public-private partnerships for infrastructure renewal. Evidence of value in terms of environmental quality and benefit to the taxpayer has been shown in highway projects in Canada.

Conformity Assessment

ISO 14001 can be used in whole or in part to help an organization (for-profit or not-for-profit) better manage its relationship with the environment. If all the elements of ISO 14001 are incorporated into the management process, the organization may opt to prove that it has achieved full alignment or conformity with the international standard, ISO 14001, by using one of four recognized options. These are:

1. make a self-determination and self-declaration, or
2. seek confirmation of its conformance by parties having an interest in the organization, such as customers, or
3. seek confirmation of its self-declaration by a party external to the organization, or
4. seek certification/registration of its EMS by an external organization.

ISO does not control conformity assessment; its mandate is to develop and maintain standards. ISO has a neutral policy on conformity assessment. One option is not better than the next. Each option serves different market needs. The adopting organization decides which option is best for them, in conjunction with their market needs.
Option 1 is sometimes incorrectly referred to as "self-certify" or "self-certification". This is not an acceptable reference under ISO terms and definitions, for it can lead to confusion in the market.The user is responsible for making their own determination. Option 2 is often referred to as a customer or 2nd-party audit, which is an acceptable market term. Option 3 is an independent third-party process by an organization that is based on an engagement activity and delivered by specially trained practitioners. This option was based on an accounting procedure branded as the EnviroReady Report, which was created to help small- and medium-sized organizations. Its development was originally based on the Canadian Handbook for Accountants; it is now based on an international accounting standard. The fourth option, certification, is another independent third-party process, which has been widely implemented by all types of organizations. Certification is also known in some countries as registration. Service providers of certification or registration are accredited by national accreditation services such as UKAS in the UK.

ISO 14001 and EMAS

In 2010, the latest EMAS Regulation (EMAS III) entered into force; the scheme is now globally applicable, and includes key performance indicators and a range of further improvements. Currently, more than 4,500 organisations and approximately 7,800 sites are EMAS registered.

Complementarities and Differences

ISO 14001‘s environmental management system requirements are very similar to those of EMAS. Additional requirements for EMAS include:

• stricter requirements on the measurement and evaluation of environmental performance against objectives and targets.
• government supervision of the environmental verifiers
• strong employee involvement; EMAS organisations acknowledge that active employee involvement is a driving force and a prerequisite for continuous and successful environmental improvements.
• environmental core indicators creating multi-annual comparability within and between organisations
• mandatory provision of information to the general public
• registration by a public authority.

ISO 14001 Use in Supply Chains

There are many reasons that ISO 14001 should be potentially attractive to supply chain managers, including the use of the voluntary standard to guide the development of integrated systems, its requirement for supply chain members in industries such as automotive and aerospace, the potential of pollution prevention leading to reduced costs of production and higher profits, its alignment with the growing importance of corporate social responsibility, and the possibility that an ISO-registered system may provide firms with a unique environmental resource, capabilities, and benefits that lead to competitive advantage.
Emerging areas of research are starting to address the use of this standard to show that ISO 14001 registration can be leveraged across the supply chain for competitive advantage. By looking at ISO 14001 registered firms, information from the study compared different amounts of integration and sustainability in the supply chain. Several research propositions and an empirical framework posit the impacts of ISO 14001 on supply chain design.
The propositions include:

1. ISO registration leading to more proactive environmental management including process and performance measurement related to sustainability across a supply chain;
2. That ISO-registered plants with formal environmental management systems will have higher levels of communication required between OEMs and Tier I suppliers;
3. ISO-registered plants with direct relationships to other registered plants in their supply chain will have higher levels of waste reduction and cost efficiency than nonregistered plants;
4. ISO-registered plants with direct relationships to other registered plants in the supply chain will have sustainable practices and projects with better ROI than nonregistered firms;
5. ISO-registered plants with direct relationships to other registered plants will have higher levels of customer relationship management and will be positively associated with greater expansion opportunities and image than nonregistered plants;
6. ISO-registered plants with direct relationships to other registered plants will have fewer issues with employee health and reduced numbers of safety incidents than nonregistered plants;
7. ISO-registered plants with a direct relationship to other registered plants will have a strong positive relationship between formal communication, training, monitoring/control systems, and firm performance; and
8. ISO-registered plants with a direct relationship to other registered plants will have higher levels of involvement and communication, which will be positively related to more internal and external integration with supply chain members
9.  ISO 14001 was first published in 1996 and specifies the actual requirements for an environmental management system. It applies to those environmental aspects which the organization has control and over which it can be expected to have an influence.
   ISO 14001 is often seen as the corner stone standard of the ISO 14000 series. However, it is not only the most well known, but is the only ISO 14000 standard against which it is currently possible to be certified by an external certification authority. Having stated this, it does not itself state specific environmental performance criteria.
   This standard is applicable to any organization that wishes to:
   
   • implement, maintain and improve an environmental management system
   • assure itself of its conformance with its own stated environmental policy (those policy commitments of course must be made)
   • demonstrate conformance
   • ensure compliance with environmental laws and regulations
   • seek certification of its environmental management system by an external third party organization
   • make a self-determination of conformance
   
   
   OHSAS 18001
   OHSAS 18000 is an international occupational health and safety management system specification. It comprises two parts, 18001 and 18002 and embraces a number of other publications. For the record, the following other documents, amongst others, were used in the creation process:
   
   
   • BS8800:1996 Guide to occupational health and safety management systems
   • DNV Standard for Certification of Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems(OHSMS):1997
   • Technical Report NPR 5001: 1997 Guide to an occupational health and safety management system
   • Draft LRQA SMS 8800 Health & safety management systems assessment criteria
   • SGS & ISMOL ISA 2000:1997 Requirements for Safety and Health Management Systems
   • BVQI SafetyCert: Occupational Safety and Health Management Standard
   • Draft AS/NZ 4801 Occupational health and safety management systems Specification with guidance for use
   • Draft BSI PAS 088 Occupational health and safety management systems
   • UNE 81900 series of pre-standards on the Prevention of occupational risks
   • Draft NSAI SR 320 Recommendation for an Occupational Health and Safety (OH and S) Management System
   OHSAS 18001 is an Occupation Health and Safety Assessment Series for health and safety management systems. It is intended to help an organizations to control occupational health and safety risks. It was devloped in response to widespread demand for a recognized standard against which to be certified and assessed. OHSAS 18001 (officially 'BS OHSAS 18001:2007') is an internationally applied British Standard for occupational health and safety management systems. It exists to help all kinds of organizations put in place demonstrably sound occupational health and safety performance. It is a widely recognized and popular occupational health and safety management system .Organizations worldwide recognize the need to control and improve health and safety performance and do so with occupational health and safety management systems (OHSMS). However before 1999 there was an increase of national standards and proprietary certification schemes to choose from. This caused confusion and fragmentation in the market and undermined the credibility of individual schemes. ts supporters claim that an occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS) promotes a safe and healthy working environment by providing a framework that helps organizations to: identify and control health and safety risks; reduce the potential for accidents; aid legal compliance; and improve overall performance. The OHSAS 18000 standards provide organizations with the elements of an effective safety management system which can be integrated with other management systems and help organizations achieve better occupational health and safety performance and economic objectives.
   BS OHSAS 18001 specifies requirements for an OH&S management system to help an organization develop and implement a policy and objectives, which take into account legal requirements and information about OH&S risks. It applies to all types and sizes of organizations and accommodates diverse geographical, cultural and social conditions.
   BS OHSAS 18002 provides guidance for establishing, implementing or improving a management system which is based on OHSAS 18001 and demonstrating successful implementation of OHSAS 18001.
   OHSAS 18001 can be aligned with existing ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 management systems. Historically many organizations start with the quality management system ISO 9001, then add the environment management requirements from ISO 14001. Many organizations now look at implementing all three standards at once which can minimize costs and disruption. The standards can be integrated using a standard such as BSI’s PAS 99.