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 ISO 14001 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Table of Contents
What is ISO? What does the organization do? ISO is the International Organization for Standardization, which was founded in 1946 in Geneva, Switzerland. Approximately two hundred countries are members of ISO. ISO's key role is the development of international consensus standards for use by its member bodies. This is accomplished primarily through the harmonization of existing national standards for a particular product, service or activity. ISO 14001 is an international, voluntary standard for environmental management systems (EMS) that was published by ISO in 1996. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has adopted it as a US national standard for EMS. ISO 14001 specifies minimum requirements for an effective EMS. It does not specify requirements for environmental performance. As with all ISO standards, ISO 14001 was developed by an ISO technical committee (TC207). This technical committee is comprised of experts from many ISO member countries. TC 207 also is responsible for the “maintenance” of ISO 14001, since ISO rules require that all of its standards be reviewed every five years for possible revision (or for elimination if the standard is no longer needed). Why should we care about this Standard? One of the primary reasons that SPI members should be interested in ISO 14001 is that conformance with the Standard may be required or encouraged by various customers, as we have seen with Ford, GM, Xerox and a number of other major companies. In addition, the USEPA and many state regulatory agencies are interested in the application of ISO 14001 and EMS concepts as well as how the adoption of such systems by the regulated community might impact regulatory and enforcement programs. Finally, many companies that have implemented ISO 14001 have found that it can provide a number of environmental and other business benefits (see below). How does ISO 14001 relate to ISO 9000 and/or QS9000? As the first management system standard published by ISO (in 1987), ISO 9000 was, in many ways, a model for ISO 14001. ISO 14001 shares many management system principles with ISO 9000, and companies are encouraged to integrate their management systems for quality and environment, to the degree appropriate. Will our customers require our company to conform to ISO 14001? That depends on who your customers are now (or are likely to be in the future). At this time, the automotive and electronics sectors appear to have the most customer requirements (or endorsements) of ISO 14001. However there are other companies outside these sectors (such as Bristol-Myers Squibb) that also are encouraging their suppliers to conform to ISO 14001. A recently-signed Executive Order will require US Federal agencies to implement an EMS over the next few years, so this action could result in some type of ISO 14001/EMS promotion by Federal agency customers in the future. In addition, the Standard is being adopted quickly in certain European and Asian countries, especially in Japan. Our advice is to monitor what your key customers (and competitors) are doing about ISO 14001 and to act accordingly. Will ISO 14001 help us to comply with environmental laws and regulations? A commitment to compliance with legal requirements is one of the foundations of an effective EMS. There are many elements of ISO 14001 that can help a company to enhance or sustain its compliance performance. For example, top management must define a policy that includes a commitment to compliance with relevant environmental legislation and regulations. Among other things, the Standard also requires that an organization must have:
Taken together, these and other provisions of ISO 14001 should help a company identify and manage its compliance obligations in a systematic fashion. What is third-party registration? What is involved in the process? Third-party registration involves an assessment and attestation by an independent, objective third-party organization (typically called a “registrar” in the US) that a company's EMS is in conformance with the requirements of ISO 14001. This involves an audit of the company's EMS, including an on-site audit that generally lasts for several days. After an initial registration has been issued, the registrar conducts periodic surveillance audits (generally once or twice per year) to determine whether the EMS is still being implemented in a manner consistent with ISO 14001. Are there other ways to demonstrate conformance to the Standard besides third-party registration? The Standard itself does not require third-party registration, which is a market-driven activity. ISO 14001 explicitly states that self-declaration of conformance is a legitimate method for a company to demonstrate its conformance with the Standard. How many companies are certified to ISO 14001 now? As of June 2000, there were approximately 17,000 organizations certified (or registered) to ISO 14001 on a worldwide basis. Approximately 4,000 of these registrations are in Japan alone. In the US, there were about 750 registrations as of June 2000. It is anticipated that this number will increase rapidly because of various customer requirements, as mentioned earlier. For an update on the number of companies certified worldwide see ISO World. Why should my company want to implement ISO 14001? Are there any real benefits? Companies that have implemented ISO 14001 report that they have gained a number of benefits from implementing the Standard. These benefits generally fall into the following categories:
Will ISO 14001 implementation take a lot of time and money? That depends on a lot of factors, such as the quality of your existing environmental systems and programs, whether you already conform to ISO or QS 9000, the availability of in-house resources and expertise, and whether you need third-party registration, among others. Most companies find that the cost of implementation is largely driven by the need for in-house (employee and management) time. What is SPI's position on ISO 14001? SPI is neither promoting nor discouraging its members from pursuing ISO 14001. SPI's primary interest is providing information and technical assistance to those members that choose to implement the Standard. How do I obtain a copy of the ISO 14001 standard? The standard can be purchased from ISO as well as from several organizations in the US, including ANSI, ASTM, and NSF. For more information on how to obtain a copy, go to SPI's ISO Resources List. Where do I go to find additional information on ISO 14001? SPI's ISO Resources List provides a number of sources that you might find helpful. If you have other questions, contact Marie Martinko at SPI (202-974-5330) or simply complete the form below. Complete the form below and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.
Go back to the ISO 14001 Web page.
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 © Copyright 2001 The Society of the Plastics Industry.
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