Environmental Management Systems

Implementation of EMS (Environmental Management Systems) such as ISO 14001 can bring you big benefits as a company, they can reduce environmental risk (possibly leading to cheaper insurance and reduced non-compliance penalties), they can increase efficiency, improve your company's outward image, help promote a positive work ethic.

Life Cycle Assessment is often used to winkle out inefficient processes that are costing your business. For example encouraging your supplier to provide your goods in a more usable form might be good for both parties.     EMS is an intricate system, but the BSI offer simplified routes for smaller companies (such as The Acorn Initiative) to facilitate with implementation. There are several EMS standards to choose from:

ISO 14001

Some organisations develop their own in-house systems which may be appropriate for their sector or size but most seek independent certification against the international standard ISO 14001 which specifies all the requirements necessary for a robust environmental management system.

BS 8555

A new British Standard, BS 8555, was launched in 2004 to help organisations put in place a full EMS by taking a phased approach which breaks the implementation process down into stages.

EMAS (EU Eco Management and Audit Scheme)

EMAS is a voluntary EU wide scheme which gives recognition to organisations who have implemented ISO 14001and produced a public statement about their performance.

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Case Study:

A Bean Sprout Grower in the UK:

One of its main produce are bean sprouts, which need year-round heat and water. Given the Manchester climate, the company has to create these stable conditions artificially, and spends more than £250,000 on energy. Following implementation of an Environmental Management System, it was able to implement measures which have saved them £30,000 per annum.

Located in Manchester, Simply Fresh Foods produces pre-prepared foods for high street supermarkets. The company employs 330 people and is based at two different sites – one for growing food produce and the other for processing those foods. Bean sprouts are grown and packed on site along with vegetables and noodles.

The two ingredients needed for bean sprouts to grow naturally are heat and water. Because the former is not a permanent feature of the UK climate, the company has to look to the more reliable sources of electricity and gas to ensure that produce grows all year round.

In fact, each year the sites use more than 50 million gallons of water and has energy costs of more than £250,000.

Simple ideas lead to big savings.

• Recovering waste heat from production processes.
• Good housekeeping – turning equipment off.
• Installation of automatic lighting controls.
• Use of heat recovery from refrigeration plant.
• Minimising water waste from washing processes.
• Good management of compressed air equipment.
• Better insulation of high and low temperature equipment.

As a result of EMS, staff at both sites have become more energy conscious.

So far the company’s energy bill has been reduced by £30,000 a year.