Occupational Health and Safety in a Changing World towards Integrated Management Systems
OHSMS- Latest ISO 45001 Meeting
The 8th international meeting of the ISO PC 283 Work Group took place on 6-10 February 2017 in Vienna.
The Vienna meeting brings ISO 45001 closer to reality, with a real prospect of publication later this year. This 8th international meeting was convened to progress the draft international standard, consolidating the work of previous meetings that began back in 2013.
Good progress was made and scheduled work completed, with all terms and definitions now agreed. The meeting split into groups to help align the Annex with the revised clauses and ensure it adequately aids their interpretation. Overall, there was a great sense of achievement and optimism, given the progress made and level of consensus reached.
What happens next?
Over the next few weeks the ISO Secretariat will edit and produce the next draft, DIS 2, which will be sent to National Standards Bodies, possibly by end of February. They’ll then have two months for translation, which should be completed by end of April 2017. Then there’ll be a two-month consultation period and voting on DIS 2, between May and June. At that stage, it’ll just be seeking comments on significant issues, given the extensive and detailed commentary that’s already taken place.
The next meeting is planned for 18-23 September 2017 in Malacca, Malaysia, where the results of the DIS 2 ballot and resulting comments will be reviewed to determine the next steps in the development process. Assuming there was a positive vote on DIS2, it’s expected this’ll be the final meeting, with publication of the finalised ISO 45001 standard anticipated by the end of 2017. BS OHSAS 18001 will then be withdrawn and there’ll be a three-year migration period to ISO 45001.
If DIS 2 is approved and the final draft international standard (FDIS) stage is not required, publication could be as early as October/November 2017. However, if FDIS is required, then publication is likely to be March 2018.
Other developments
Work on BS 45004 (implementation guidance) is already underway and targeted for release at the same time as the new standard ISO 45001: 2017.
Benefit will also be in the integration with other ISO Standards
In today's competitive business environment, streamlining operations is essential to keeping overhead costs low. Key principles of lean management include eliminating redundancies and consolidating systems. Implementing an integrated management system provides a framework for doing just this. Integrated management systems provide greater benefit than running separate management systems in parallel.
What are integrated management systems?
An integrated management system is a single system designed to manage multiple aspects of an organization’s operations in line with multiple standards, such as those for quality, environmental and health and safety management.
Most businesses already have systems — either formal or informal — for dealing with these issues; however, what many managers don't realize is the degree to which they are duplicating processes or creating unnecessary extra work for their staff. Ultimately, safety, environmental management and quality control have many common points, and all work towards the goal of making organizations more effective and efficient.
In practice, an integrated management system involves merging existing formal systems and implementing specific best practices organization-wide.
Benefits of Integration
In an integrated management system, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Successfully integrating management systems can have a number of very tangible benefits for organizations, including:
o Avoiding duplication of effort
o Making more effective use of senior management time
o Using resources to implement and manage systems in a more efficient manner
o Achieving more cost efficient certification
o Reducing audit fatigue and costs
Management Integration and Certification
Most businesses are aware of the value of certification under DIS ISO 45001, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and other management system standards. It's important to remember that the purpose of ISO and other standards is to help you run a better organization. If they are causing your staff to duplicate work unnecessarily, they aren't delivering the value they should be.
Annex SL and integration
Annex SL is the document that defines the new high level structure for all ISO management systems standards. Annex SL is designed to better facilitate the use of integrated management systems, providing organizations with the tools they need to streamline current protocol, encourage standardization and transform existing management systems into an integrated model.
The common structure has been introduced in the new ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, and in DIS/ISO 45001 (the replacement of OHSAS 18001). This will make the standards more compatible and enable more effective integration. Aside from the other benefits of consolidation, adopting integrated management systems now will ease the transition into this model.
Making Integrated Management System Standards More Compatible
The common structure will be introduced in the new ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 (the replacement of OHSAS 18001). This will make the standards more compatible and enable more effective integration of management systems in three key areas: quality, environmental management and occupational health and safety. Here’s a brief overview of each of these universally adopted and implemented integrated management system standards:
o ISO 9001. Certification in the ISO 9001 integrated quality management system standard demonstrates that your organisation is meeting stringent quality management system requirements in the following areas: facilities, people, training, services and equipment.
o ISO 14001. Attaining ISO 14001 certification is essential for any organisation that intends to establish, implement, maintain and improve an efficient environmental management system. The extent to which ISO 14001 standards are applied is based on factors such as the organisation’s specific environmental policies, the types of products and services it provides, and its location and operating conditions.
o ISO 45001. Intended for implementation in 2017, the ISO 45001 standard encompasses the extremely important area of occupational health and safety. This standard will provide a framework for reducing workplace risks, improving employee safety, and generally creating better working conditions for employees throughout the world.
Advantages -SHEQ Integrated Management System
Implementation of proper Safety, Health, Environment and Quality Management System as per requirement of the new DIS ISO 45001, ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 standards will improves business overall and ensure operational control over the functional fields.
SHEQ standards provide a comprehensive model for safety, health, environmental and quality management systems that can make any company competitive. Among the wide advantages of the SHEQ standards are the following:
- Creates a more efficient, effective operation.
- Increases customer satisfaction and retention.
- Reduces third party audits.
- Reduce risk of accidents and incidents.
- Improves employee motivation, awareness, and morale.
- Promotes international trade.
- Increases profit.
- Reduces waste and increases productivity.
Johan Taljaard
Founder Member
ISTEC Training
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