ISO 14001:2015 -  
      Environmental 
      Management Systems
      Meeting stakeholder expectations 
                                              White paper
       Abstract
       ISO 14001 - the international standard for environmental management is the most widely recognised environmental 
       management system (EMS) standard in the world.
       By providing a best practice approach, ISO 14001 sets out the requirements for an EMS to help organisations 
       improve their environmental performance, e.g. through more efficient use of resources and the reduction of waste. 
       They can also gain a competitive advantage and the trust of their stakeholders.
        TÜV SÜD 
           Contents
           ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT CHALLENGES                       3
           RELEVANCE OF ISO 14001 IN TODAY’S CONTEXT                 4
           OVERVIEW OF ISO 14001:2015                                5
           HOW TO GET STARTED                                        7
           THIRD-PARTY CERTIFICATION BY TÜV SÜD                      8
           WHY CHOOSE TÜV SÜD                                        9
           CONCLUSION                                                10
           About the TÜV SÜD expert
                              Fred Wenke
                              Head of Certification Body and Head of Product Compliance Management, TÜV SÜD
                              Over the last 25 years Fred Wenke has gained experience working worldwide as a 
                              manager and auditor in the third-party certification industry. Fred is a Diploma Chemical 
                              Engineer (BSc equivalent), specialising in waste water treatment/water chemistry, and 
                              a Biological Technical Assistant with main subjects in ecology and pollution control. 
                              He contributed to the ISO 14001:2015 revision as a German delegate and is currently 
                              the convenor of the ISO ad hoc group on the future challenges for a next revision of the 
                              standard.  
                              Fred Wenke can be reached at fred.wenke@tuvsud.com.
              2                                    ISO 14001:2015 - Environmental Management Systems | TÜV SÜD
                Environmental management challenges
                                                                                  KEY PRINCIPALS OF ISO 14001:2015
                ISO 14001 is suitable 
                for organisations of                           1 Driven by                 2 Overall                    3 Protecting the 
                all types and sizes, be                              leadership                  strategic fit               environment
                                                                                                                       Focus on proactive 
                they private, not-for-                        Strong commitment           Close alignment              initiatives and 
                profit or governmental.                       from those at the top       with your strategic          improving 
                                                                                          direction                    environmental 
                                                                                                                       performance
                Organisations have turned to ISO 
                14001 for more than twenty years to            5 Effective communication                  4 Life cycle thinking
                help them develop an Environmental 
                Management System (EMS)                       Driven through a communications            Considering each stage from 
                framework. The latest version of              strategy                                   development to end-of-life
                the standard was released in 2015 
                and included key improvements              Source: ISO sub-committee with responsibility for ISO 14001
                such as the increased prominence 
                of environmental management                to protect the environment by,              ■	 Improved product footprint
                within the organisation’s strategic        for example, preventing pollution,              –  Address environmental issues 
                planning processes, greater                minimising waste, and reducing                     during product design.
                input from leadership, and a               energy and materials consumption.               –  Focus on each lifecycle stage. 
                stronger commitment to proactive           Based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act              ■	 Enhanced environmental 
                initiatives that boost environmental       methodology, it provides a systematic          performance
                performance.                               framework for the organisation to               –  Raise awareness and 
                                                           establish environmental objectives                 involvement.
                What is an EMS?                            and processes in accordance with the 
                An EMS gives organisations of any          environmental policy, to implement          The ISO also outlines the following 
                size a universal structure to ascertain    the processes, to monitor and               organisational values and benefits:
                and manage their environmental             measure these processes against             ■	 Integrated strategic approach
                issues.                                    defined criteria and  to take actions to        –  Align environmental  
                                                           continually improve.                               management to business 
                As ISO 14001 adopts the High-Level                                                            strategy.
                Structure, common to many other            The International Organization for              –  Align environmental initiatives 
                standards such as ISO 9001 Quality         Standardization (ISO)  outlines how                with business priorities. 
                Management, ISO 45001 Occupational         taking an EMS approach delivers the             –  Align EMS processes with 
                Health and Safety Management and           following environmental values and                 other management system 
                ISO 50001 Energy Management, it is         benefits:                                          processes.
                easy to integrate into any existing ISO    ■	 Risk-based approach to protect the       ■	 Fulfillment of compliance 
                management system.                            environment                                 obligations
                                                               –  Prevent adverse impacts.             ■	 Mitigation of adverse effects on 
                ISO 14001 supports an organisation             –  Pursue opportunities with               the organisation
                in developing and integrating its                 beneficial impact and                    –  Realise operational efficiencies 
                environmental management practices                competitive advantage.                      and financial benefits.
                     TÜV SÜD | ISO 14001:2015 - Environmental Management Systems                                                         3
                 Relevance of ISO 14001 in today’s context
                One key goal of the United Nations’ 
                2030 Agenda for Sustainable 
                Development is to protect the planet 
                from degradation through sustainable 
                consumption and production, the 
                sustainable management of natural 
                resources, and taking urgent action on 
                climate change. Adopted by all United 
                Nations Member States in 2015, at its 
                core sit 17 Sustainable Development 
                Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent 
                call for action by all developed and 
                developing counties in a global 
                partnership.                                of their entire supply chain, many         For environmental management, 
                                                            businesses also require suppliers          responses from users suggested that 
                While the SDGs address governments          to report results at regular intervals.    organisations have realised significant 
                and countries, their aims in                Supply chain sustainability is             value from ISO 14001 in terms of 
                many cases may also influence               therefore a key outcome of ISO 14001       meeting legal requirements, improving 
                expectations and requirements               certification, as businesses are faced     environmental performance, and 
                related to commercial practices and         with customer requests to establish        enhancing management commitment 
                business operations. Out of the 17          and document environmentally and           and stakeholder engagement.
                sustainable goals, several address          socially responsible practices.
                environmental sustainability. These                                                    Responses from users also suggest 
                goals seek to reduce vulnerabilities                                                   that ISO 14001 has provided 
                to environmental shocks; strengthen         Supply chain                               considerable value for business 
                capacity for adaptation to climate          sustainability is a key                    management, most notably for 
                change, extreme weather, flooding,                                                     meeting stakeholder requirements, 
                any other disasters; progressively          outcome of ISO 14001  improving public image, achieving 
                improve land and soil quality; and          certification.                             strategic objectives and integrating 
                reduce hazardous chemicals in the air,                                                 with business management systems. 
                water and soil.
                                                                                                       More than half of the participants 
                Supply chain demand                         What the end-users say                     indicated ‘high’ to ‘very high’ value, 
                                                                                                       and more than 80% indicated at least 
                                                                           1
                For most OEMs, their supply chain’s         An ISO survey , issued via national        a moderate value in these areas.
                environmental credentials are               member bodies, received an 
                intrinsically linked to their own           unprecedented response with close          These results correspond with 
                corporate sustainability. Upstream          to 5,000 participants in 110 countries     reported motivations for adopting the 
                supply chain customers are therefore        worldwide. The survey included             standard. Based on user rankings 
                increasingly demanding that their           questions relating to the perceived        of factors influencing their adoption 
                suppliers identify and quantify             value of the ISO 14001 standard, for       of the standard, the strongest 
                environmental aspects themselves,           both environmental management and          environmental drivers for adopting 
                using key performance indicators            business management, and the extent        ISO 14001 included commitment 
                to identify areas of alignment and          to which ISO 14001 should address          to environmental protection/
                opportunities for improvement. To           or strengthen attention to future          conservation and reduction of risk of 
                assess the environmental impact             challenges for EMS.                        adverse environmental impact.
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