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#1 Posted : 07 February 2008 13:31:00(UTC)
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Posted By Darren Kirk I have been asked to implement ISO14001 at the company i work for, now i know there is lots of web advice, but i have come to the conclusion that my MD will ask me to implement without external guidance. Has any body any advice on the pros & cons for doing this myself. i.e length of time to implement in hours/days/weeks/ months and what sort of cost are we looking at. I would also be grateful if anyone has an auditing format or system i could use instead of starting one myself. I will be grateful to receive any information and advice you have. We are a metal fabrication company. Thanks Darren
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#2 Posted : 07 February 2008 13:35:00(UTC)
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Posted By Robert K Lewis Darren Whatever time frame you think you can do the task in unaided, you can treble it if you are doing it without support. If time frames are not important then you can do it by trial and error. The reason consultants exist is that we have made the mistakes in the past and learnt from them. We also tend to understand therefore some of the non explicit requirements of such systems. Bob
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#3 Posted : 07 February 2008 13:45:00(UTC)
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Posted By Gerry Marchant Darren...first off..why does your MD want to go for ISO 14001...is it the badge on the wall, client requirement or simply he/she feels it is something important to consider and has spoken to various other organisation about it. Secondly..if your organisation is a member of a trade group ask them for advice Third...set a realistic time scale..18 months really is worth considering if your going alone...it's taken me that long! Talk to a few accreditation providers..they can assist with information...and lastly take a look at BS8555..its a route to 14001 but is done in stages...may help you all the best with it Gerry
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#4 Posted : 07 February 2008 13:45:00(UTC)
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Posted By Darren Kirk Bob Thanks for the reply, I was hoping to implement it in 12 months with external help. Is that reasonably possible? as i need to build a very strong case for the resources to be made available for external help. Darren
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#5 Posted : 07 February 2008 14:11:00(UTC)
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Posted By Robert K Lewis Darren Dependent on your familiarity with ISO standards 18 months really is a minimum including the full implementation phase prior to stage 1 assessment. But alone, without suppport I reckon 24 months would be good going. That will not account fully for the implementation phase though. This will take at least 9 months without full support from your maangers. Bob
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#6 Posted : 07 February 2008 14:52:00(UTC)
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Posted By Gra Clarke Hi Darren, Have sent you something that may help you in gaining 14001, any problems get back to me. Graham
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#7 Posted : 07 February 2008 18:54:00(UTC)
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Posted By D H Where are you based Darren? D H
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#8 Posted : 07 February 2008 19:07:00(UTC)
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Posted By Darren Kirk DH I am in the south West. Darren
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#9 Posted : 07 February 2008 21:36:00(UTC)
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Posted By Barry Cooper Darren 12 months is possible with external help, Our company did it within that time frame, but it is a lot of hard work, and not convinced it is worth it, particularly if it is just to get the badge. Although usually it is the customers who require companies to gain it. Barry
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#10 Posted : 08 February 2008 08:39:00(UTC)
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Posted By Deborah Perry Darren, At my previous job I was required by a customer edict to implement a ISO14001 EMS across 2 manufacturing sites at the same time. With the help of a consultant, and with me working on it literally 100% of the time, we were able to "get the badge on the wall" in 18 months. This included starting improvement projects, all the awareness training for >600 people and having all the baseline data in place for continuous monitoring. If it had been me working on my own I think it would probably have taken closer to 2 1/2 years. How you go about it and the time it takes will all depend on the pressures being applied from external sources to achieve it, the amount of time that your bosses are willing to let you work on it and the complexity / type of organisation you're working in. If you're doing it on your own alongside other tasks - start looking at 2010! Good luck! Debbie
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#11 Posted : 08 February 2008 15:58:00(UTC)
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Posted By Linzi P Hi Darren I put in ISO14001 back in 2004 and this took about 12 months, I did this with the help of a booklet called "Avoiding the pitfalls of ISO14001." I think I may have a copy of this in pdf format so I will email it you. If you need further help let me know. Good luck
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#12 Posted : 08 February 2008 16:36:00(UTC)
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Posted By Rasput Darren, I used to work for a Rivet manufacturer and wrote, implemented and got full accreditation to ISO14001 within 6 months, if you want to chat about it give me a call anytime on 07957 408417. Best regards R
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#13 Posted : 09 February 2008 04:59:00(UTC)
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Posted By Wayne Harris Hi Darren, It always amazes me that people quote such long time periods from 12 months to 2 years for developing and gaining certification to ISO Standards, this normally means a consultant who wants a long contract. For your info we gained certification to ISO 14001, 9001, and OHASAS 18001 at the same time by developing a fully integrated management system, this was achieved within 6 months in a vary complex and heaving engineering /design environment. Send me your contact details and I can give you some tips etc. Wayne
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#14 Posted : 11 February 2008 08:41:00(UTC)
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Posted By Robert K Lewis Wayne It is not that it cannot be done but only with extreme commitment and a strong previous management system. But I do wonder where the audit records came from to demonstrate the system was fully implemented and functional. With my 3rd party Auditor hat on I am reluctant to accept much less than a 12 month history of internal audits before moving on to certification. Bob
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#15 Posted : 11 February 2008 09:24:00(UTC)
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Posted By Joanne Laing Hi Darren Emailed you direct!
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#16 Posted : 11 February 2008 17:21:00(UTC)
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Posted By Matthew Fletcher I was charged with implementing BS14001 in a Shopping Centre which had 80 plus tenants. The hardest thing was to get the tenants to buy into the processes etc. It took around 14 months with five external visits from an advisor. Good Luck M
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