Why ISO 14001 should be fundamental to waste and recycling companies

Every business, no matter what sector, has a responsibility to manage its environmental impact. For companies in the waste and recycling industry, this should be a given yet, with some irony, it’s not as common as it should be.

You can spot those serious in their commitment by the ISO 14001 certification. This is an internationally agreed standard that outlines the requirements for an Environmental Management System (EMS). The purpose of an EMS is to consistently review progress towards meeting environmental objectives. This involves identifying environmental impacts, determining the significance of those impacts, and creating a framework for setting environmental objectives to continuously improve. Performing these tasks can be done through different processes:

• Efficient use of resources
• Reducing waste
• Commitment to becoming leaders in sustainability and protection of the environment, including reducing carbon emissions in line with science-based targets

What ISO 14001 tells you about a company

Companies with this certification are demonstrating the desire to be part of the solution to climate change. Desire, however, is not enough. They’re proactive, complying with statutory and regulatory requirements. As these requirements change, you can be assured that the company will adapt its strategy as necessary, showing a dedication to continuous improvement, which is part of the ISO 14001 standard.

They’re taking a leadership role instead of burying their heads in the sand. Striving to reduce their carbon footprint will involve a level of employee engagement, which is another good sign – a company that can engage employees is more productive.

Companies with ISO 14001 certification are also cutting their costs by reducing their waste and energy usage. This shows not only a sense of duty to the environment but attention to creating efficiencies. They blend environmental issues with their business aims, and that’s the type of company you want to work with.

The solutions you use have an environmental impact

Digitalization and the cloud can help your organization significantly lower its own carbon footprint. If you’re considering achieving ISO 14001, or you’re looking at how to continuously improve as part of your EMS, this will be a point of interest for the auditors, who’ll examine how you work.

Using AMCS Platform, you can show auditors measurable results, which is what really counts. A carbon-footprint calculator and reporting tool are built into Microsoft Azure, which is leveraged by AMCS Platform. You can calculate your carbon usage, measure KPIs and create reports.

Another advantage is AMCS Route Optimization, which eliminates wasted journeys. It can reduce your miles driven, time spent on the road and your CO2 emissions by up to 25%. AMCS solutions can also help you reduce the number of trucks, or driver shifts, needed by up to 15%. These solutions enable you to measure your results, which will further help you achieve certification.

AMCS RFID bin tags enable pay-as-you-throw schemes, which will drive more people to waste less and recycle more. The tags can also alert you when bins are full so that you’re not putting a vehicle on the road unnecessarily. Digital invoicing, route sheets, documents stored on drivers’ tablets – these are just a few ways that you can drastically reduce your paper usage.

Another aspect of AMCS’ solutions: they run on the cloud, which reduces your dependency on paper, encourages the use of recycling paper, and removes the need for your own data servers. This alone can cut your energy consumption by up to 87%. You can learn more about how switching to the cloud drastically reduces your carbon footprint here.

AMCS is ISO 14001 certified

At AMCS, we’re already ISO 14001 certified. Our product stewardship is one reason why – we offer the tools that help customers lower their carbon emissions.

We’re also developing a carbon-reduction programme which will include preventing pollution through consistent monitoring, measuring, and improvement programmes. If all goes as expected, we’ll roll the programme out across all our sites. Know that our targets are based on science – we are led by the power of data – and having that data to hand forms our strategies.

We invite you to get in touch to learn more about how we can help you reduce your carbon footprint. Contact us here.