ISO 14001 Compliance

ISO 14001 is an internationally-adopted standard that outlines specifications for effective environmental management systems (EMS). As of 2017, there are more than 300,000 certifications to ISO 14001 in 171 countries around the world? In an era where concerns about the environment and global warming have increased drastically, the ISO 14001 certification is a way for companies to demonstrate a commitment to environmental responsibility.

Details of ISO 14001

In order to gain formal recognition as ISO 14001 certified, OEMs must implement and maintain an EMS within their operations. In order to obtain an ISO 14001 certification, an EMS  must contain 17 elements:

1. An environmental policy supported by senior management
2. The identification of environmental aspects and impacts, and the identification of significant environmental impacts that the organisation may cause
3. Identification of environmental compliance requirements
4. The development of objectives and targets, and environmental management programs
5. Defined resources, roles, responsibilities and authorities for environmental management
6. The development of competence, training and awareness procedures
7. A communication process of the EMS to all stakeholders and interested parties
8. The development of EMS documentation as required by the standard
9. The development of document control procedures
10. The development of operational control procedures
11. The development of emergency preparedness and response procedures
12. The development of procedures to monitor and measure operations that can have significant impact to the environment
13. An evaluation of compliance procedure
14. Procedures developed for the management of non-conformance, corrective and preventative actions
15. The development of a records management procedure
16. A program for completing internal EMS audits and corrective actions
17. The development of procedures for management review by senior management.

Adhering to the ISO 14001 Standard

Beyond earning the ISO 14001 certification, to be truly useful, the EMS must be set up with the goal of improving the environment for the benefit of mankind. Adhering to ISO 14001 means meeting all 17 parts of the standard, but to truly make an impact, everyone including all employees, must also adhere to the standard in all they do. This standard must wash through your entire operation from head to toe, making your operation one of environmental excellence.

How ISO 14001 Compliance Benefits OEM Enterprises

Adhering to the current ISO 14001 standard can provide important benefits for OEM enterprises. Benefits for OEM enterprises to maintaining ISO 14001 environmental certification include lowering business costs through reducing resource consumption and waste production, improving environmental performance, reducing environmental impact, and controlling environmental risk.

In addition, OEMs also benefit from ISO compliance in two more ways - they can meet customer demands of greater environmental credibility, and can do business with those auto manufacturers who require their suppliers to be certified.