How much does ISO 14001 certification costs

General steps followed in obtaining ISO 14001 certification

ISO Certification is an voluntary certificate that can be acquired by an Organization from an accredited certification body. ISO or International Organization for certification develops the standards which are accepted Worldwide ( 165 countries ). It does not involve in certification of an organization directly. It is the job of an certification body to provide an ISO certificate.

There are four stages of successfully obtaining the ISO 14001 certification

i) Gap analysis : It involves in identifying the gaps between the ISO 14001 Environmental Management system requirements and the existing systems that are implemented. The gap auditor identifies the scope of the EMS and the applicable boundaries of the system. The process / activities in the defined scope are clearly defined with an input / value addition activities / output and an performance monitoring to evaluate the process efficiency and the effectiveness. The gap auditor also identifies the Legal (Statutory and regulatory )requirements of the organization in its scope.

ii) Training : Training is an important aspect and it determines how effective the Management system is implemented. An good knowledge in ISO 14001 EMS will show high amount of involvement in the implementation leading to quicker understanding and implementation

iii) Implementation : The employees after proper training and framing the Management system adheres to the defined process and procedures. The activity wherein the employees understands the new systems and adapts to the new management systems by filling up the required records and reporting the same

iv) Certification audit : When an organization determines the requirement of certification of the management system it approaches the certification body which is accredited for certification. The certification body comes up with an two stage audit for certification process.

Country and Location of your Organization

ISO 14001 or the Environmental Management system certification is a global accepted certification. The ISO or International organization for standardization is an NGO that develops internal standards that is accepted in 165 countries.

Certification body and its credentials

A valid ISO certificate is given by the organization when the certification body issuing the certificate is accredited. A proper accredited certification body conductsan two stage audit and awards the certificate for an 3 year validity subjected to surveillance audit and clearance of all the Non conformities effectively.

Variation of costs in CB

The cost of Certification varies from Certification body to certification body due to its accreditation body and the charges applicable to the organization

How to select the a good CB with Low cost

There are many characteristics for selecting an good certification body with Low cost

1) Accreditation body

2) Competence of the auditor

3) Customer support

How to cut down the existing certification cost ?

There are many methods for cutting down the cost of an certification

1) Transferring to other Certification body : Changing from One certification body to another certification body would drastically reduce cost as the cost from CB to CB varies

2) Develop internal resources for the internal audit : An resourceful Internal auditor with competence to apply the skill and knowledge of Management system to the organization reduces the costs instead of hiring an external consultant.

3) Combine standards and get IMS : Integrated Management system is an Management system with two or more systems in combination. Implementation of Integrated management system reduces costs and time in internal auditing, training

Internal competence and its benefits (Qualified auditors)

The internal competence of the employees will reflect the effectiveness of implementation and reduces the cost of hiring an external auditor for consulting

Direct and indirect expenses getting ISO 14001 certification

Direct expenses: The direct costs in certification will be an application cost paid to the Certification body

Indirect expenses : The Indirect costs in certification will be in cost of consultation, cost of implementation of resources such as infrastructure, documentation, cost of training.

Initial cost and Annual cost incurred for ISO 14001 certification

The initial cost in certification shall include the cost to be paid to the certification body, cost of consultation, cost of implementation of resources such as infrastructure, documentation, cost of training

Annual cost for ISO 14001 certification may include the audit cost involved in the Surveillance and recertification.

Is it possible to cut down the cost of ISO 14001 certification ?

The cost of ISO 14001 certification includes the direct cost of certification and indirect cost of implementation. The cost of ISO 14001 certification shall be cut down by

i) Developing competent internal resources

ii) Integrating multiple management system

How the ISO 14001 certification cost is realized ?

The ISO 14001 certification cost can be realized if properly implemented in the field of product life cycle management and in the cost of delayed payment in compliance obligation.