ISO 50001 Energy Management System

Background

The ISO 50001 Energy Management System requires organizations to continually improve energy performance, including energy efficiency, energy use and consumption.

The ISO 50001 Energy Management System is suitable for all businesses regardless of their size, geography or industry.  If the business operates in energy intensive industry or one that faces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions regulation or legislation it is particularly effective.

Benefits of implementing ISO 50001

There are a number of benefits to implementing ISO 50001:

• Identifying opportunities for improvement
• Ensuring greater level of control
• Enhance image
• Satisfy the expectations of most stakeholders
• Reduced costs and improved business performance
• Improved compliance with energy legislation
• Reduce carbon emissions
• Demonstrating transparency and commitment

ISO 50001 Energy Management System is suitable for all businesses regardless of their size, geography or industry. However it is particularly effective though if the business faces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions regulation or legislation or if the business is operating in an energy intensive industry. The ISO 50001 formalizes energy policies and objectives and embeds them into energy efficient thinking throughout the organization.

Key Principles behind ISO 50001

There are 7 principles that management should have to successfully operate an Environmental Management System in accordance with ISO 50001:

• Progress Management
  • This ensures operation of the Energy Management Systems is making progress according to previously designed and agreed plans
• Change Management
  • This Ensures operation of the Energy Management Systems is in line with any changes that happen either internally or externally (responding to threats appropriately)
• Operational Problem Resolution Management
  • This ensures operational problems are dealt with quickly: treating them as opportunities for improvement is vital
• Risk Management
  • This ensures risk factors are assessed in order to secure the position of continual improvement
• Preparation for Contingency
  • Potential emergency scenarios should be documented and procedures devised in order to make sure that suitable safety levels are maintained at all times
• Document Management
  • This ensures vital documents are identified, maintained, updated and available when needed. Unnecessary bureaucracy should be avoided.
• Objective and Target Achievement Evaluation Criteria
  • Top management must provide transparent and objective evaluation criteria for target achievement. This is vital in a successful evaluation of progress or results.

Fundamental Elements of ISO 50001

ISO 50001 is not just about non conformity prevention it sets targets for energy performance improvements and examines if they have been achieved. It also ensures continuous improvement through the use of the “Plan – Do – Check – Act” (PDCA) cycle.

The PDCA cycle is the basis of every ISO standard and it consists of:

Plan – Establish guidelines and provisions for a Energy Management System operation following ISO 50001

Do – Operate the business under the new Energy Management System

Check – Verify that you operate business under the established Energy Management System following ISO 50001

Act – report the result of verification at management review

Energy management system model for ISO 50001

Plan

The overall Energy Management System is outlined in the first step and it provides guidelines for its implementation and control.

Management Role

When establishing a new E top management commitment is crucial as they appoint and authorize projects for the Energy Management Systems champion. The Energy Management Systems champion is a chosen higher management representative that directs activities down to the team and effectively to the whole organization. Top management’s other activities would include allocating resources, setting performance ownership, ensure fair evaluation, direct the management review and define the energy policy.

Energy Policy

A new energy policy has to be created in line with the ISO 50001 requirements. The energy policy must be coherent with the nature, the scale of, and the impact on the organization’s energy use as it will effectively become a framework for setting and reviewing energy objectives and targets. The energy policy should emphasize commitment to continual improvement in energy performance and ensure availability of information and resources authorized by top management.

The top management must be sure that the energy policy is documented, communicated and understood within the organization for a successful implementation of an Energy Management System, in line with ISO 50001. The Energy Management System should also be reviewed and updated when necessary.

Do

This step involves energy planning, and implementation and operation.

Energy Review

An energy review has to be conducted firstly. The energy review analyses energy use based on measurements and other data identifies areas of energy use and consumption and prioritizes and records opportunities for improving energy performance. An example would be the usage of renewable sources, alternative energy sources and other energy conservation opportunities (ECOs). The energy review defines a baseline and target and is used as evidence of energy performance improvement. Energy performance indicators (EnPIs) are also identified and objectives, targets and energy management action plans created.

Implementation and Operation

The implementation and operation consists of applying six additional elements in establishing the energy management action plan:

• Competence, training and awareness – resources should be put in place that ensure that the Energy Management team has adequate skills to control the Energy Management Systems
• Communication – appropriate communication channels should be defined
• Documentation – a system for the requirements and control of procedures and plans has to be in place
• Operational control – general guideline and provision for overall Energy Management Systems operation
• Design – guideline to reduce energy by reviewing the designs of facilities and manufacturing processes
• Procurement of energy services, products and equipment – the collaboration with suppliers is key in becoming a ‘greener’ organization

The ISO 50001 does not mention product design but it is part of ISO 14001; the reason for its exclusion is that product design does not necessarily deal with energy even though it could affect it.

Check

This step involves checking of performance and it is done in four parts which are:

• Monitoring, measurement and analysis – as by designed guidelines and procedures
• Non conformities, correction, corrective and preventative actions – this ensures continual improvement of the energy management system
• Evaluation of compliance with legal and other requirements – the Energy Management Systems has to stay alert; the recorded information can be presented during management review to serve Energy Management Systems purpose
• Internal audit of the energy management system – can be conducted as a part of organization’s audit programme. It examines that the Energy Management Systems conforms to energy objectives and target that have been established and that the Energy Management Systems is properly implemented and energy performance improved

At planned intervals a performance review must be done, the guidelines and procedures prepared in the previous steps should make this process easy to conduct. All documents and reports are then prepared for the management review.

Act

One of the most important Energy Management Systems processes is the management review. Management review:

• Reassures top management role and responsibility
• Accelerates the Energy Management Systems progress for continual improvement
• Evaluates people’s effort
• Understands and recognizes the changes made

It is the output of the management review not the analysis that drives the Energy Management Systems forward. If necessary the management review should conduct changes in energy performance or energy performance indicators, changes in energy policy, objectives, targets or baseline and should allocate resources appropriately.

Key steps to getting certified for ISO 50001

In order to get certified for ISO 50001 by NSAI there are a number of steps involved:

Applying

The first step involves the application for certification

Gap Assessment

This is where:

• An on-site analysis of your current system is conducted
• This will then be assessed against the standard
• A report is then prepared to highlight the gaps between your current system and the standard

The gap assessment is optional and is not required for the certification process.

Preliminary Assessment – Stage 1

Your documentation has to be inspected and various areas have to be reviewed including:

• The proposed scope of your registration
• The status of implementation of your management system
• The appropriate regulatory and legal requirements
• Your management policies and objectives
• Whether the system addresses the key areas of your business
• Your site-specific activities – top level process review
• Your key management elements, e.g. internal audits, reviews and complaints procedures
• Your readiness to move onto Stage 2 of the assessment, the Registration Assessment

There should be a period of several weeks between preliminary assessment and registration assessment so that any issues can be sorted in relation to the preliminary assessment. If there are major non-conformities a second preliminary assessment will have to be carried out.

Registration Assessment – Stage 2

This involves a full review of your management system in order to confirm that your management system is controlled. When the registration assessment is complete a notified body issues a detailed report along with the outcome which recommends registration or not. If any issues arise during the assessment you will be expected to submit an action plan which should describe what changes are to be made to the management system in order to reduce or eliminate the risk of the same issues occurring again.

Surveillance and Re-assessment

A notified body visits each company at least once a year to make sure the management system is being maintained and that it is achieving it’s expected outcomes. A part of the management system is reviewed in depth during each visit.

There is an expiry date on the certificate and the certificate expires every three years. Before the expiry date occurs a detailed assessment of the whole management system is undertaken to ensure every element of the system is performing satisfactorily and the results of the previous visits are taken into account.

During the registration period, changes are inevitable. In order to make sure the management system remains sound the notified body works with each registered organization. Usually, change can be reviewed and assessed during routine surveillance visits. The notified body reserves the right to suspend or revoke certification in cases where change leads to the breakdown of the system.

Implementing ISO Systems

The steps in the implementation of an ISO system are as follows:

• Gap Analysis Audit
• Project Planning
• Implementation
• Full Systems Audit
• Certification

We are also acutely aware that many of its customers are often under tight deadlines for the implementation and certification of management systems, a problem that is often exacerbated by the difficulties in releasing staff members from the day to day needs of the organisation to work on this type of project. Therefore in order to meet the requirements of our clients we provide the following services:

Turn-Key Implementation:

We can provide a complete turn-key system, whereby we will undertake every aspect of the implementation specifically the preparation of the manuals, procedures, work instructions & forms for each process owner.

Dedicated Personnel:

We will provide a dedicated consultant to the project who will remain solely with the project for the duration of the implementation and will provide a contact/reference point for all members of the organisation. Should the project be of such a scale where additional consultation is required, this can be catered for at a moment’s notice. In addition we will also provide further specialist consultation in specific areas such as waste management, energy reduction etc.

Project Management:

At the outset of any project we will provide a complete project plan outlining each deliverable and its respective target date in order to ensure the project is brought in on time and within budget. The project plan will be forwarded on a weekly basis to the organisation for review.

Staff Timeline Plan:

In order to allow for changes in our clients workload, at the outset of each project we will provide a project plan outlining which of the clients staff will be required, when and for how long in order to implement a system. This plan is flexible but it allows the client to plan from the outset the requirements placed on the organisation.

Paperless Systems:

Both the Quality and Environmental systems can be designed and implemented in a completely electronic format this in turn will reduce hard copy paperwork which benefits the environment and increases personal efficiency within the organisation.

Certification Management:

We maintain strong links with largest and most recognised certification bodies presently operating in Ireland. We will arrange and manage all aspects of the certification process including quotation, time tabling & leading the audit with any certification body the organisation sees fit to use.

The above are just some of the practical benefits provided by us over the course of each and every implementation of a Management System.

Maintenance of ISO Systems

By using an outside company to maintain your ISO systems, the following benefits can be achieved:

• The organisation is always in a state of audit readiness and will be in a position to receive customer audits at a moment’s notice.
• An individual from the organisation does not have to be responsible for the day to day maintenance of the system which thus ensures the organisations staff is free to concentrate on the core aspects of their jobs.
• In using an outside company to maintain & review systems, the organisation gets the benefit of an independent and unbiased review of its operations.

Each certified Management System contains a number of mandatory elements such as which must be reviewed on an on-going basis as a requirement of the Management System such as:

• Internal System Audits
• Management Reviews
• Legislation Reviews
• Improvement Plans
• System Policies
• Corrective & Preventive Actions

Each maintenance contract is tailor made through discussion with the client to ensure the organisations requirements and needs are being met whilst also striving to offer constructive opportunities for improvement to the organisation should they arise.

The above elements will all be covered as a minimum of any maintenance contract.

Integrating ISO Systems

By integrating Management Systems the organisation will achieve the following benefits:

• A reduction in the number of auditing days required per annum by the certification body, as all certified systems will be audited at the same time. This should provide a significant cost saving.
• A reduction in the number of maintenance days required by the organisation, as both systems will be reviewed at the same time. This again should provide a significant cost saving.
• As both systems will be integrated, those similar elements of each system will only need to have action taken once, which will reduce the number of installation consulting days and again provide a significant cost saving.
• With the integration of the systems there will be no paperwork repetition which in-turn will ensure the organisations staff are always focused on value added tasks.

The ISO:9001 Quality Management System, ISO:14001 Environmental Management System, ISO:16001 Energy Management System and to a lesser extent the OHSAS:18000 Occupational Health & Safety System have been written as complimentary systems, meaning each system can be easily combined with another to form one simple to manage system.

System integration is simple solution to providing cost savings to the organisation and achieving enhanced benefits from your Management Systems.