Successful certification to DIN EN ISO 14001:2009
6th. December 2011
ODU, the connector specialist company from Mühldorf am Inn, Germany, has reason to be happy after successfully completing certification to the ISO 14001:2009 environmental standard. The introduction of an environmental management system in compliance with ISO 14001:2009 for the ODU Group headquarters in Mühldorf am Inn began on 7 June 2010. ISO 14001, the international environmental management standard, stipulates globally recognized requirements for an environmental management system and is a part of a family of standards. ISO 14001 emphasizes a continual improvement process as a means for achieving each of the defined goals. Environmental management is used to ensure the sustainable environmental compatibility of products and business processes. It encourages environmentally aware conduct and raises the employees' awareness even as early as during the product creation process so that products are evaluated in terms of risks relevant to the environment. The first step in introducing the system was recording the status at the time by means of an environmental inspection. The results of this inspection were entered into an action plan. The specifications relevant to the environment were formulated in procedural instructions, operating instructions, etc., then documented and integrated into our existing management manual. This manual also records our management's intention to introduce and rigorously implement an environmental management system and stipulates the specifications. ISO 14001 is based on the methods of the so-called PDCA cycle. During the Plan stage, the objectives and processes that are necessary for carrying out the environmental policy are defined. In the Do stage, the processes are implemented in the daily work. In the Check stage, the processes are reviewed in terms of legal and other requirements and according to the objectives of the environmental policy. The last stage, Act, involves the continual optimization and associated improvement of the installed processes.
