Client Quotes

We have been extremely happy with Woodhams overall. Dean has done a fantastic job over seeing the project. He understood the importance of getting things right and ensured that everything on the snagging list was completed to a high quality. Dean was a pleasure to deal with and although he is clearly busy he always […]

Mr & Mrs Coffey

Woodhams Awarded Environmental Standard ISO 14001

Geoff Roy 1st May 2018 Company News

Woodhams Group is pleased to announce their achievement of the British Assessment Bureau accreditation ISO 14001. This certification represents the core set of standards used by organisations for the design and implementation of an effective environmental management system or EMS.

This achievement is the latest to show our organisation’s pursuit of working practices that mark us out as a forward-thinking company. The ISO 14001 follows our accreditation of the ISO 9001 quality management standard and OHSAS 18001 occupational health and safety standard. We are proud of our commitment to continually refining our processes to become the best that we can be in a wide range of organisational areas.

Why is ISO 14001 important?

This standard is more than simply a mechanism to comply with the regulation. Environmental issues are becoming increasingly prioritised by many organisations, Woodhams included. Our construction and engineering projects have a long-lasting impact on both the surrounding environment and the people who use the services that our work facilitates. For this reason, we feel that it is imperative that we work in the most environmentally considerate way that we can. Using the ISO 14001 standard to build our EMS, or environmental management system, we have been able to ensure this compliance.

What is an EMS?

An environmental management system is a mechanism to assess the ecological strengths and weaknesses of a business. For us at Woodhams, we have been able to achieve a reduction in waste, reduction in energy consumption and an increase in efficient material use. Through our EMS, we have successfully documented an environmental policy and established a programme to manage environmental impacts.

How is ISO 14001 achieved?

The first part of the process is the Stage 1 Audit. This review is made by a lead assessor, who documents an organisation’s existing systems and provides them with a gap analysis report, identifying the actions that are required to meet the ISO 14001 standard. It is from this report that an organisation can structure their EMS.

The assessor will visit again to carry out a Stage 2 Audit which will evaluate the effectiveness of the planned environmental management system and conclude whether it fulfils all the requirements of the ISO 14001 standard.

At this point, an organisation will then be recommended for certification. The process tends to take between three and sixth months, depending on the policies and structures that an organisation already has in place.

How will the ISO 14001 be implemented?

For us at Woodhams, our processes have become both more efficient and sympathetic to their environmental impact. For our clients, the reassurance that this accreditation offers is reinforced with the knowledge that the projects and contracts that are awarded to Woodhams will have the minimal environmental impact into the future.