Boosting the sustainability of your company’s operational processes signals your enterprise’s commitment to protecting the environment. As Australian consumers become increasingly environmentally conscious, investing in your company’s green initiatives now may help set your enterprise up for taking care of the environment to an Australian market that’s becoming increasingly concerned with eco-friendliness and voting green with their dollars. Amending production and operational processes for more sustainable initiatives may also support enterprises in cutting costs. Using renewable energy is, in many instances, cheaper than sticking with traditional energy sources.
One of the best ways to demonstrate that your environmental management system (EMS) is up to scratch is to get ISO 14001 certification. We’ll outline the ins and outs of securing and maintaining ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems certification for your business below.
What Is ISO 14001 Certification, And Does My Business Need It?
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a collective made up of certifying bodies from all over the world. A business certification issued by the ISO is widely recognised and gives your company a degree of legitimacy that’s hard to gain otherwise.
The ISO 14001 certification ensures that a business follows a set of environmental management procedures. These include making certain that decision-makers are trained to make responsible decisions and that there are processes in place within the organisation to promote sustainability.
There are plenty of benefits to receiving ISO 14001 certification. For one thing, holding yourself to an internationally recognised set of standards forces your business to raise its environmental standards, which saves on costs and which you can use as part of your branding arsenal.
ISO 14001 certification also opens your business up to more international trade, as you’ll qualify for a broader range of tenders and contracts. The structures and processes you put in place to qualify for certification also allow your business to grow more efficiently going forward.
How to Receive ISO 14001 Certification
1. Perform A Gap Analysis
In order to qualify for ISO 14001 certification, you need to make sure that your business’ EMS meets certain standards. This begins with a gap analysis, which involves identifying where areas you’ll need to improve to meet the ISO’s requirements. This can be a challenge to do internally, so it’s best to enlist a third party to perform an audit of your entire business and figure out what you’re lacking.
2. Ensure Your Business Meets The Standards
The steps you’ll need to take will depend on what your gap analysis reveals about your company. For instance, if your business owns its own factories, you might need to take steps to get closer to carbon neutrality. You might also need to invest more into making sure your enterprise runs on renewable energy.
A big part of compliance with ISO 14001 standards is training your staff in best practices for sustainability. Create a program to introduce new and existing employees to the company procedures relevant to their department. You’ll also want to educate both high-level decision-makers and your boots on the ground on what to do in case of emergency.
3. Prepare All The Required Documentation
During the application process itself, you’ll need to prepare several documents to send over to the certifying body. This includes a fleshed-out environmental policy, which should include measures to save energy throughout the company, to reduce pollution all the way down the supply chain and to properly dispose of or recycle waste.
You’ll also need to prepare a list of EMS procedures that prove to the issuing organisation that your company has processes in place to operate sustainably on a consistent basis. You’re also required to submit a list of internal emergency-preparedness guidelines.
This is not a comprehensive list of required documents. For that, head to the website of the accredited certification body of your choice. Remember that the standards for receiving ISO 14001 certification are updated every five years or so: it’s important to keep yourself updated on the latest requirements if you’re renewing an expiring ISO 14001 certification.
4. Apply For Certification Through An Accreditation Body
To finally receive your ISO 14001 certification, you’ll need to work with an organisation with the authority to grant it to your company. In Australia, a certification body needs to be accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANSI).
When looking for an accreditation body, find someone who’ll make it as easy as possible for your business to fulfil all the requirements. Work with an organisation that provides an auditing service at the start of the process and helps you identify gaps: doing this internally is extremely difficult, especially for smaller companies.
The issuing body you choose should also provide personalised guidelines on how your business can go about filling your gaps. To ensure that the certification process goes off without a hitch, it might also be a good idea to find someone who’ll do a pre-certification audit on you.
In 2024, the process of obtaining ISO 14001 certification is more straightforward than ever. The fact that there are multiple organisations out there with the authority to grant the certification is wonderful news for you: they’ll all be competing for your business, and it’s in their interest to give you as much help as possible.
Receiving ISO 14001 certification can definitely give you a leg up on your competitors. If you’re looking to create a more sustainable business and receive all the benefits that go along with it, start the process of receiving ISO 14001 certification today.
Why is this action important?
Companies play a huge role in climate change. To make a genuine difference in the world, sustainable decisions have to be made on an organisational level. Receiving an ISO 14001 certification demonstrates a commitment among a company’s decision-makers to act responsibly, and that the company has processes in place to carry out these actions.
Environment
Pollution and climate change as a whole are massive problems in today’s world. Companies can go a long way to ensuring our skies stay clear and that harmful waste is kept to a minimum by holding themselves to ISO 14001 standards.
Wellbeing
Climate change puts people at risk. Air quality is just one example of how this happens: pollution caused by human activities like industrial factory operations can cause respiratory diseases, cancer, heart problems and aggravate asthma and allergies. Chemicals infiltrating our drinking water is another danger. Businesses can play a key role in ameliorating these risks.