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DIN EN ISO 14001 Revision 2015:
Changes and implications
The ISO 14001 international standard for environmental
management has been undergoing revisions since thebeginning of 2012. The revision’s publication in September
2015 permanently replaces the older version from 2004
and its 2009 corrections. For some 250,000 companies
worldwide that are certified under this most popular ofenvironmental norms, several questions arise: What are
the changes? How does this affect my business?
W H AT H A S C H A N G E D ?

The new revision was published in September 2015
following the ISO/FDIS 14001:2015 Final Draft International
Standard (FDIS) from July 2015. One major change
concerns the structure of ISO 14001. This revision adheres
to a so-called “high-level structure”, which works to ensure
identical structures for all management systems as well as
consistent use of core texts and terminology. This makes
the standards easier to understand and renders combined
certifications more efficient.
T R A N S I T I O N P E R I O D F O R I S O 14 0 01

ISO 14001:2015 was released on 15 September 2015, andwww.tuv.com/en

it is highly recommended to examine the implications ofthe newly revised standard. Organizations already certified
under ISO 14001:2004 or its 2009 amendment are granted
three years to migrate their environmental management
system to ISO 14001:2015. Ultimately, by 15 September
2018 all ISO 14001:2004 certificates will be declared voidand must be retracted.

T H E T E N S E C T I O N S O F I S O 14 0 01: 2 015

1. Scope
2. Normative References
3. Terminology
4. Organizational Context
5. Leadership
6. Planning
7. Support
8. Operations
9. Performance Assessment
10. Improvement

2··Conduct a gap analysis to identify necessary changes

R E C O M M E N D AT I O N F O R O R G A N I Z AT I O N S S E E K I N G

in your organizations. Do your training courses havepositive outcomes? Do essential documents or themanagement system documentation require any updates
or adaptations?
Engage in public debate about the new standard and how
to interpret its requirements.
Intensify your scrutiny of environmental impacts within
the supply chain for your products, processes andservices (e.g., production of raw materials, suppliers,customer utilization phase, and disposal).

T H E I R F I R S T C E R T I F I C AT I O N U N D E R I S O 1 4 0 0 1

We no longer recommend to seek an older ISO 14001:2004
certification, since the certificates would only be valid until
mid-September 2018. Instead, have your company certified
under ISO 14001:2015 to take advantage of improved
standards. We are at your service as a competent partner –contact us to learn more!

····

R E C O M M E N D AT I O N F O R O R G A N I Z AT I O N S A L R E A DY
C E R T I F I E D U N D E R I S O 14 0 01

We guide you through the transition phase by individuallyadapting our audit planning to the transition period inan effort to minimize the impact on your business. Our
experts will inform you ahead of time if they anticipate
any additional efforts and modalities during the transition.
Our essential recommendations for previously certified
organizations include:

Different procedures are available for switching to the newnorm depending on your existing certificate’s life cycle.
The following illustration uses two examples to indicate
the most opportune time for companies to initiate theirtransition.

T i m e t a b l e fo r t h e t r a n s i t i o n t o I S O 1 4 0 01 : 2 01 5

P U B L I C AT I O N O FREVISIONEND OF TRANSITION PERIODF O R C E RT I F I C AT E R E V I S I O N

Carry out Gap analysis
Transitional period for the conversion to the revised certiﬁcate

Sept. 15, 2015

2 017

2 016

Sept. 14, 2018

2 01 8July

July

31,201631,201Se
7pt.30,
2017E x a m p l e s o f c o nv e r s i o n t o I S O 1 4 0 01 : 2 01 5EXAMPLE 1

R E C E RT I F I C AT I O N A U D I TSe
pt.30,
20N16ov.30,
2016

SURVEILLANCE AUDIT

EXAMPLE 2R E C E RT I F I C AT I O N A U D I T

E N D O F C E RT I F I C AT E
L I F E C YC L E

2 016

www.tuv.com/enwww.tuv.com/iso14001

E N D O F C E RT I F I C AT E
L I F E C YC L E

Example: 14001:2004 certiﬁcate life cycle: Sept. 30, 2017
The organization may submit an older version forsurveillance or recertiﬁcation audits, assuming it is valid
no later than 14 September 2018.

Example: 14001:2004 certiﬁcate life cycle: Nov. 30, 2016
Transition by recertiﬁcation audit is recommended.
If the organization re-submits an old version, its validity
extends at most until 14 September 2018.

2 017

2 01 8

3
Summary of important changes to individual chapters:

C H A P T E R 4 : O R G A N I Z AT I O N A L C O N T E X T“More stakeholder management”
This new chapter encourages organizations to place greater
emphasis on external interests and influences related totheir environmental management system. The demands
and expectations of “interested parties” should be better
understood and evaluated with a view towards any specificrequirements that may arise from them.
CHAPTER 5: LEADERSHIP“Take responsibility and delegate meaningfully”
Accountability for the management system’s efficacy
and for its integration into business processes now rests
with executive management. Environmental policies aresupposed to extend the mantle of environmental protection
beyond the company itself. Instead of a designatedofficer, responsibilities and competencies should now beadequately spread across the organization.
CHAPTER 6: PLANNING“Look at the big picture when assessing environmentalrisks”
The entire planning process for environmental management
has been restructured in an effort to better cover the(positive and negative) environmental impacts of activities,
products and services “from a life-cycle perspective”.
While this does not necessarily include an explicit
ecological accounting of products and services, it does
evaluate important environmental aspects as well as
additional responsibilities (legal, customer-specific, etc.)
along with associated risks.
C H A P TE R 7: SU PPOR T“Do good things and talk about it”
Compared to previous standards, newly introduced
commitments to environmental protection should be

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reflected more clearly in the field of communications.
External accounts and reporting have to be regulated. In
terms of documents and records, the new standard simply
uses the term “documented information” in order toaccount for modern recording media.
C H A P T E R 8 : O P E R AT I O N S“From cradle to grave”
If possible, operations scheduling and control should be
expanded to include upstream as well as downstream – andabove all outsourced – processes. This also comprises theenvironmental impact of products and services along theentire supply chain, from cradle to grave.
CHAPTER 9: PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT“Make environmental performance measurable”
Building on the extended environmental assessments (seechapter 6), demands on the evaluation of environmental
performance have also increased. Already during thedefinition of ecological objectives (chapter 6), appropriate
indicators should be used to measure the achievementof targets and environmental performance. To this end,
the standard includes a cross-reference to ISO 14031“Environmental Management –Environmental Performance
Evaluation”. This makes it more important than ever towork with key figures. Monitoring and measuring now
explicitly encompass any additional commitments andrisks a company faces in their environmental management
strategy.
C H A P TER 10: I M PROVEM ENT“Improve on all fronts”Corrections due to deviations from the norm, as wellas the improvement process itself, are now more firmly
focused on organizational context and improving the overall
environmental performance.

4Five steps to your ISO 14001 certification

1 . P R E - A U D I T / G A P A N A LY S I S ( O P T I O N A L )Auditors conduct a preliminary audit to determine
which requirements for the DIN EN ISO 14001
standard have already been met in your company. ISO
14001:2004-certified companies are advised to conducta gap analysis during their transition to ISO 14001:2015.
The analysis helps to confirm the conformity of previously
implemented processes and to identify systems, processes
and documentation that still need improvement.

and functionality of your environmental management
system in accordance with ISO 14001. Furthermore, yourcompanies is enrolled in our online Certipedia databaseof certificates. Learn more about Promoting Your Businesswith TÜV Rheinland.
4. SURVEILL ANCE AUDITS

Our annual surveillance audits support you in the continual
improvement of your environmental management system.

2 . C E R T I F I C AT I O N A U D I T

5 . R E C E R T I F I C AT I O NThis is where you demonstrate the practical applicability ofyour environmental management system under ISO 14001.
Our auditors test its efficacy.

Undergoing recertification after a period of three years
sets you on a path of permanent improvement to yourenvironmental management system. It represents thoroughand lasting documentation of your commitments to a leaner
ecological footprint.

3 . I S S U I N G T H E C E R T I F I C AT E

Your company receives the certificate once all criteria
have been satisfied. It attests to the standards compliance1

P R E - AU D I T /G A P A N A LY S I S ( O P T I O N A L )2

D O C U M E N TAT I O N
REVIEW

3

C E RT I F I C AT I O N
AU D I T

Auditors conduct a
preliminary assessment.
Companies certiﬁed under
ISO 14001:2004 are advised
to commission a gap
analysis to enable asmooth transition toISO 14001:2015.

Inspection of
documentation provided
for quality management.

Demonstrating thepractical application ofyour quality management
system and evaluation ofits efﬁcacy.

654R E - C E RT I F I C AT I O N

Certiﬁcates must be
renewed after a period of
three years. Continual
improvement processes
are documented
accordingly.

S U RV E I L L A N C E
AUDITAnnual review with aview towards processoptimization andstandards compliance.

ISSUING THE
C E RT I F I C AT E

Certiﬁcates attest tocompliance with norms
and functionality. Includes
an entry in the online
Certipedia database.

C O N T I N U A L I M P R OV E M E N T P R O C E S S

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