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• November 25, 2013

Understanding ISO 14001

ISO 14000 is a family of International Standards related to environmental management systems that assist organizations in –

1. minimize how their operations (processes etc.) negatively affect the environment (i.e. cause adverse changes to air, water, or land);
2. comply with applicable laws, regulations, and other environmentally oriented requirements, and
3. continually improve in the above

ISO 14000 is similar to ISO 9000 quality management in that both describe the process of how a product is produced, rather than the product itself. As with ISO 9000, the certification is performed by third-party organizations rather than being awarded by ISO directly. The ISO 19011 audit standard applies when auditing for both 9000 and 14000 compliance at once.

Requirements of ISO 14001 are an integral part of the European Union‘s Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). EMAS‘s structure and material requirements are more demanding, foremost concerning performance improvement, legal compliance and reporting duties.

The concept of an environmental management system evolved in the early nineties and its origin can be traced back to 1972, when the United Nations organized a Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was launched.  These early initiatives led to the establishment of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) and the adoption of the Montreal Protocol and Basel Convention.

In 1992, the first Earth Summit was held in Rio-de-Janeiro, and served to generate a global commitment to the environment. In the same year, BSI Group published the world’s first environmental management systems standard, BS 7750. This created the model for the development of the ISO 14000 series in 1996 by the International Organization for Standardization.

As of 2010, ISO 14001 was in use by at least 223 149 organizations in 159 countries and economies.

Development of the ISO 14000 series

The ISO 14000 family includes most notably the ISO 14001 standard, which forms the foundation for organizations for the design and implementation of an effective environmental management system. Other standards included in this series are ISO 14004, which provides additional guidelines for good environmental management system practices. The critical objective of the ISO 14000 series of is “to promote more effective and efficient environmental management in organizations and to provide useful and usable tools – ones that are cost effective, system-based, flexible, and reflect the best organizations and the best organizational practices available for gathering, interpreting and communicating environmentally relevant information”.

Unlike previous “command and control” type environmental regulations, ISO 14000 was based on a voluntary approach to environmental regulation. The series includes the ISO 14001 standard, which provides guidelines for the establishment or improvement of an EMS. ISO 14001 shares many commonalities with its predecessor, ISO 9000, the international standard of quality management, which served as a model for its internal structure. Both standards can be implemented side by side, or as part of an integrated system. As with ISO 9000, ISO 14000 acts both as an internal management tool as well as a mechanism for demonstrating a company’s environmental commitment to its customers and clients.

Prior to the development of the ISO 14000 series, organizations opted to voluntarily design and develop their own EMS systems. However, this made comparisons of environmental effects between companies challenging, and therefore the ISO 14000 series was developed.

An EMS is defined by ISO as: “part of the overall management system that includes organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes and resources for developing, implementing, achieving and maintaining the environmental policy”.

QRC implements environmental management systems end to end — see our ISO 14001 implementation services.

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• November 25, 2013
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• ISO 14001, News

• November 22, 2013

ISO 13485 – Standards for Medical Devices

ISO 13485:2003 is an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard, published in 2003, that sets forth the requirements for a comprehensive quality management system developed for the design, marketing, manufacture, and service of medical devices.

The standard supersedes previous documents such as EN 46001 and EN 46002 (both 1997), the ISO 13485 published in 1996 and ISO 13488 (also 1996).

While it is tailored to the industry’s quality system expectations and regulatory requirements, an organization need not be actively engaged in the manufacturing of medical devices or their components to seek certification to this standard.

Although it is a stand-alone document, ISO 13485 is generally harmonized with ISO 9001. One significant difference is that while ISO 9001 requires the organization to demonstrate continual improvement, ISO 13485 requires only that the certified organization demonstrate the quality system is effectively implemented and maintained. Furthermore, the ISO 9001 requirements regarding customer satisfaction are not included in the medical device standard.

Other specific differences include:

a)     the promotion and awareness of regulatory requirements as a management responsibility. Examples of market-specific regulatory requirements include 21 CFR 820, the Quality System Regulation for medical devices sold in the United States, enforced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or the Medical Devices Directive 93/42/EEC, required for doing business in the European Union

b)     controls in the work environment to ensure product safety

c)      focus on risk management activities and design control activities during product development

d)     specific requirements for inspection and traceability for implantable devices

e)     specific requirements for documentation and validation of processes for sterile medical devices

f)      specific requirements for verification of the effectiveness of corrective and preventive actions

Some see that compliance with ISO 13485 is often seen as the first step in achieving compliance with certain European regulatory requirements. For example, the conformity of Medical Devices and In-vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices according to EEC-decrees 93/42/EEC, 90/385/EEC and 98/79/EEC must be assessed before sale is permitted.

The preferred method to prove conformity is the certification of the Quality Management System according ISO 9001 and/or ISO 13485 and ISO 14971 by a Notified Body. A result of the positive assessment is the certificate of conformity allowing the CE mark and the permission to sell the medical device in the European Union.

ISO 13485 is now considered to be in line with standards and requirements for medical devices including the “Global Harmonization Task Force Guidelines” (GHTF). The GHTF guidelines are slowly becoming universal standards for design, manufacture, export and sales of various medical devices.

For help building or certifying a device quality system, see QRC’s ISO 13485 consulting services.

Call (800) 244-5409 or request a consultation.

• November 22, 2013
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• ISO 13485, News