ERA Environmental Blog

What is ISO 14001 Certification and How to Prepare for It?

ISO 14001 is considered the gold standard when it comes to businesses demonstrating a commitment to environmental management. Developed by the experts at the International Organization for Standardization, ISO 14001 lays out the ground work for an effective Environmental Management System (EMS). Over a quarter of a million organizations globally have an ISO 14001 certificate, with some of the world's greenest businesses touting their ISO certification as part of their sustainability accomplishments and / or choosing to do business only with other ISO 14001 certified suppliers.  

If you're reading this article it likely means you are interested in learning how to get ISO 14001 certified and what ISO 14001 certification costs. This article will put you on the right path to getting your certification and explain some of the finer points you may not be aware of. 

The process towards ISO certification can be a difficult one. Whether you are preparing for your first audit for ISO 14001, or simply readying to re-certify for the latest revision, approaching ISO can seem a daunting task. The goal of this article is to promote the use of ISO, as well as to inform and educate, describing the various potential problems one may face when readying for ISO certification. It will also cover the benefits of ISO 14001 certification. Once the potential pitfalls have been addressed, we have included several suggestions to aid in overcoming them. The first step is the most difficult, and one that you have already taken, which is recognizing the need to prepare.

As regulations tighten around the automotive industry, OEMs will have to push these increased regulatory requirements down to suppliers in order to keep up. Regulations like REACH that prohibit manufacturers from including chemicals and substances of very high concern in products made in the EU or imported to the EU have forced OEMs to request more information from suppliers about their products. In essence, OEM standards are setting the pace for the rest of the supply chain.