What Is ISO 14001:2015? Requirements, Process, and Benefits

Organizations today are increasingly concerned with minimizing their negative environmental impacts. However, environmental sustainability doesn’t just happen. It requires planning and the development of policies and procedures that guide every aspect of operations.

ISO 14001 is designed to guide organizations through that process. Developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), ISO 14001 provides a framework for the design and implementation of an environmental management system (EMS). It has been adopted by more than 300,000 organizations of all sizes since its introduction in 1996. The most recent version is ISO 14001:2015, which was published in 2015.

What Is an EMS?

An EMS is a set of plans, policies, and processes that govern an organization’s interactions with the environment. It also provides for monitoring and reporting on the organization’s environmental sustainability. When well-designed and properly implemented, an EMS can dramatically reduce an organization’s environmental footprint while increasing efficiency and reducing waste. The reporting mechanisms also facilitate regulatory compliance and allow for continual improvement. 

How Does ISO 14001:2015 Work?

ISO 14001 provides a set of best practices that should be incorporated into every EMS. Like other ISO standards, ISO 14001 is not a set of detailed instructions. Instead, it offers guidelines that each organization must tailor to its processes and legal requirements. 

The first step is to identify gaps in existing environmental practices and develop a project plan for implementing the EMS. Existing processes may have to be redesigned to meet the standard’s requirements. The EMS is then documented to ensure proper controls, and employees throughout the organization are trained to work within the system. Employees should play a key role in improving the EMS as it’s put into practice.

Organizations can seek certification by a third-party organization that assesses whether their implementations meet the standard’s requirements. If the registrar finds elements of the EMS that are not in conformance, the organization will have an opportunity to correct those issues.

What Are the Benefits of ISO 14001:2015 Certification?

Organizations become ISO 14001 certified because they believe in environmental sustainability. However, certification offers several other business benefits as well.

Reduced Costs and Waste

One of the primary goals of the ISO 14001 standard is to reduce the amount of waste organizations produce. It also aims to increase efficiency and reduce energy consumption. These efforts naturally lead to reduced costs.

Improved Regulatory Compliance

Failure to comply with environmental regulations can lead to significant fines and penalties and bad publicity. ISO 14001 certification helps organizations stay abreast of the latest legal and regulatory requirements and provides a framework for compliance.

Competitive Advantages

Increasingly, consumers and business partners alike prefer to buy from companies that are working to reduce their environmental footprints. ISO 14001 certification displays clear evidence of those efforts and sets the organization apart from competitors who are not certified. In an increasing number of industries, certification has become an essential part of doing business. 

Enconnex is ISO 14001:2015 Certified

After developing a quality management system and earning our ISO 9001:2015 certification, the Enconnex team got to work on our next milestone - earning ISO 14001:2015 certification. Drawing inspiration from companies across the data center industry who are committed to sustainability, Enconnex has developed an EMS to promote sustainability across our organization and was ISO 14001:2015 certified by TUV Rheinland of North America in August 2023. You can view the certificate here. 

Four key principles underlie the Enconnex EMS:

• Commitment to compliance with environmental regulations
• Commitment to sustainability initiatives
• Development and implementation of effective waste management programs
• Commitment to increasing environmental awareness.

Employees throughout Enconnex were involved in establishing measurable standards and processes to minimize the company’s negative environmental impact. The company is also committed to continually improving its environmental performance.

If environmental sustainability is important to your organization, we invite you to review our Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability policies. We believe in being a good corporate citizen while delivering high-quality data center infrastructure solutions. Contact us today to learn more about how we’re implementing sustainability across our operations and portfolio of products.