BS 160012009 energy management systems certification services 5

Certification

Certification proves that the energy management system meets the requirements of ISO 50001. This gives customers, stakeholders, employees and management more confidence that the organization is saving energy. It also helps to ensure that the energy management system is working throughout the organization.

Another advantage of a certification is its emphasis on continual improvement. The organization will continue to get better at managing its energy. Additional cost savings can be generated over several years. Furthermore, certifying an organization shows your public commitment to energy management.

UKAS, the certification bodies’ accreditation scheme in UK, accredits certification bodies to carry out certification of business energy management systems to ISO 50001. In July 2018, there were 15 UK bodies with the necessary accreditation to carry out independent audits and issue Energy Management Systems Certification to ISO 50001.

Impact

ISO reported that the standard was warmly received by the market when it was first published. To the end of January 2012, around 100 organizations in 26 countries had already achieved certification to ISO 50001. ISO also listed several users who had reported significant early cost savings and benefits.

In China, Delta Electronics, a provider of power and thermal management solutions, reported reducing power consumption by 10.51 million kWh as compared to the same period in 2010. This is equivalent to a reduction of 10.2 thousand tons of carbon emissions and a saving of CNY 8 million ($1.2m).

In India, the Dahanu Thermal Power Station in Maharashtra expected to accrue annual savings of about INR 96.4 million ($1.7m) from raised energy efficiency and management.

In Austria, the municipality of Bad Eisenkappel, with 2,400 inhabitants, expected its consumption of energy to be reduced by nearly 25 per cent, with the main savings achieved by updating the waste water plant and reducing energy consumption by 86 000 kWh, equivalent to €16,000 ($20.7k).

BSI Group published a case study showing that Sheffield Hallam University in the UK reduced its carbon emissions by 11 per cent once it was certified to ISO 50001. This yielded annual savings of over £100,000 ($160.7k).

In December 2013, the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change became the first Central Government department to achieve certification against the requirements of ISO 50001, leading by example with the belief that structured energy management will lead to substantial energy reductions and thus mitigate the effects of climate change.

ISO has stated that it believes in due course the standard could influence up to 60 per cent of the world’s energy use.

ISO 50001 and ISO 14001

SO 50001 is data driven and focuses on energy performance improvement, while ISO 14001 provides a more qualitative look at all significant environmental impacts of an organization. Both standards can be implemented individually or they can be integrated with each other, or with any other ISO management system standards, such as ISO 9001.

If energy is an organization’s most significant environmental impact, ISO 50001 might be more appropriate than ISO 14001. Many organizations will manage energy successfully via ISO 14001, but especially in organizations where energy is a significant cost, ISO 50001 provides a more specific framework that enables organizations to apply a sharper focus to energy efficiency.