Time and Cost Analysis on ISO 14001 Implementantion – janeiro 1997
Artigo apresentado no “The Gulf´s Congress on ISO 14000 and Environmental Management Systems – Emirados Árabes/ Dubai janeiro 1997 – Roteiro passo a passo para implementar um Sistema de Gerenciamento Ambiental na Empresa.
ABSTRACT Similarly to other projects, ISO 14001 Implementation projects require a strict time and cost management to successfully develop, implement and certify EMS´s. The paper presents key factors influencing time and cost management on EMS implementation. It includes a listing of main time consumer activities and main categories of costs on that kind of projects. It discusses the influence of cultural, organizational and technological factors on implementation time and cost. Finally, it concludes with some suggestions to improve time and cost management on ISO 14001 projects.
1) INTRODUCTION Many organizations have strong interest on implementing Environmental Management Systems – EMS in the next few years, as shows many articles on newspaper and magazines, and the increase of ISO 14001 Internet sites. Companies like IBM, FORD, SCANIA, PHILIPS and SAMSUNG are implementing EMS in several plants worldwide. On this context, justifies itself the importance of analysing ISO 14001 implementation projects, specially regarding time and costs involved. Although EMS implementation increased only from 1993, accumulated experience can be used to this objective, on a qualitative approach as described on the next items. (*) Environmental Consultant from Bureau Veritas Brazil
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2) KEY FACTORS INFLUENCING EMS IMPLEMENTATION TIME AND COSTS. Many factors contribute to determine the way a project work or doesn’t work. It follows some cultural, organizational and technological topics that are considered to have influence on the beginning and the development of ISO 14001 implementation.
I) Cultural Factors Top management commitment and support to the project; Environmental culture and awareness of the personnel; “Green wall” between the environmental and business staff;
II) Organizational Factors Existing management systems, like TQC, ISO 9000; Parallel projects implementation, such as quality system, health & safety system; Organization changes, like fusion, acquisition, reengineering; Organization size and percentage of contractors;
III) Technological Factors Complexity of process and its environmental aspects; Level of available environmental data, such as analysis, studies; Level of environmental control and legal compliance on the main aspects such as air emissions, wastewater discharges and solid waste management.
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3) MAIN TIME CONSUMER ACTIVITIES ON ISO 14001 IMPLEMENTATION As experienced in ISO 14001 projects, the main implementation activities concerning time demand are listed in sequence:
I) Evaluating Environmental aspects – this task it is one of the most importants of the project. It takes time to get a good evaluation, and it needs a big involvement of the company departments. It may include, where necessary, campaigns to analyse/measure emissions , and specific environmental studies in some circumstances;
II) Planning Defining implementation plan – one key activity, based on establishing schedule, tasks and responsibilities, in order to optmize developing of EMS; Defining Environmental policy, objectives targets and programme – another key activity to estabilish the strategic view of the EMS and the continual improvement of the environmental performance; Defining routine controls-activity demanding discussions to decide key controls, parameters, equipments, monitoring plan, emergency prevention and response actions;
III) Implementing Procedures Writing procedures – there will be a need to write procedures and work instructions involving departments such as operation/production, maintenance, laboratories, environment, marketing, engineering, etc;. Implementing Procedures – procedures and work instructions shall be discussed and approved prior to issue;
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IV) Training Operational Training – there will be much time involved on training personnel on procedures and work instructions. It is very common the training of contractors too. Awareness and Sensibilization Training – activity usually requiring training to all internal personnel and sometimes to some contractors; ISO 14001 understanding training – some people involved on implementation planning activities often require a period of ISO 14001 trainings; Auditors training – training to prepare internal auditors;
V) Implementing control/prevention improvements Defining improvements – it may be necessary to define changes on control/prevention activities in order to meet requirement or simply improve practices; Implementing improvements – implementing improvements may include constructions or process changes, demanding time proportionally to size and complexity.
4) MAIN CATEGORIES OF ISO 14001 IMPLEMENTATION COST Key sources of cost identified on ISO 14001 implementation projects are described as follows:
I) Human Resource Working man day – the EMS implementation is intensive on use of employees labor, especially regarding planning, evaluating environmental aspects and implementing procedures. This cost can be associated to the normal work not being done, or to the salary of an equivalent number of employees; Training man day – there are a lot of man day consumed on different training activities, as detailed on chapter 3, item IV, Training. This cost can be evaluated similarly to the “working man day” one;
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II) Technology Evaluating – in many times there is a need to make measurements and analysis to evaluate environmental aspects and/or monitor them. Besides, it might be necessary to buy and/or adequate analytical instruments and invest on calibration demands; Environmental control equipments and facilities – there are normaly investments in control equipments and facilities, such as retention walls, wastewater treatments, drainage systems, waste stocking areas, etc.; Process changes – it may be necessary sometimes investments on process changes to prevent pollution;
III) Support Consultancy – many organizations are using external consultants to assist on the ISO 14001 implementation; Training – training companies are usually contracted to give necessary courses and sensibilization programs; Legislation – some organizations are prefering to contract specialized law firms to identify, collect and resume legal requirements regarding the environment.
5) INFLUENCE OF CULTURAL, ORGANIZATIONAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL
FACTORS ON IMPLEMENTATION TIME AND COST In this chapter it is analysed the causative relation between each key factor identified and the time and cost categories listed before.
I) Influence of cultural factors On table 1 is briefed the influence of cultural factors on a time and cost, on qualitative approach. Low top management commitment and support to the implementation group can result on delays on discussing key elements of the system. It happens by giving their priority to another tasks or assigning another responsabilities to the personnel involved on the implementation. That fact will possibly increase the working man day consumption and cost.
6 TABLE 1 – Influence of cultural factors on ISO 14001 implementation time and cost.
time spended on evaluating, planning and implementing procedures. It happens because of lack on knowledge and background to develop this tasks. As, a result the training time will increase to supply that background, and the costs of working/training man day will raise together. External costs of consultancy and training may grow too. High conflicts between the environmental department and the other ones brings problems on evaluating and planning activities. The “green wall” barrier identified in many organizations lead the production departments to consider EMS as exclusive from the environmental sector, and they decide not to participate on it. Much efforts have to be spended to break this actitude, as well as it cost many working man days to the company.
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II) Influence of organizatione factors The influence of the organizational factors identified on chapter 2 on implementation time and cost is presented on table 2 and is detailed as follows. TABLE 2 – Influence of organizational factors on ISO 14001 implementation time and cost
Low level of management systems results on more difficulties on activities like planning and implementing procedure, because personnel doesn´t use to think, plan and formalize routines as required by ISO management systems or TQC. This situation leads to bigger demanding for training and consultancy. The cost associated with man day consumption and external support increase as a consequence. High number of parallel project usually brings as a result a competition for available time of personnel involved, and in many times the EMS implementation loses. In that cases the time implementation grows up, especially on the intensive human resource activities, like evaluating environmental aspects, planning and implementing procedures. The cost associeted with working man day may increase because of replacement of people involved, and the need to do again some tasks.
8 Organizational changes affects strongly the implementation group work, including his motivation. In many times it is necessary to do again some parts of planning and implementing procedures activities to adapt to new structure, personnel replacement, new guidelines, etc. Working man day consumption and cost increases, consequently. Big Organizations will need to spend more time on evaluating environmental aspects, planning, implementing procedures and training, demanding as a result more consumption of internal man day and, possibily, external assistance. An organization with high percentage of contractors acting on its behalf will demand higher efforts to assure they are trained and are aware of their duties. Many companies are training their contractors, with higher costs and man day consumption.
III) Influence of Technological Factors The qualitative influence of technological factors listed on EMS implementation time/cost is described on table 3. TABLE 3 – Influence of technological factors on ISO 14001 implementation time and cost
9 High complexity of process will generate more evaluating work, and more care on routine controls, planning and training, resulting on increasing man day and evaluation costs. Low level of available environmental data makes developing environmental aspects/impacts analysis and monitoring activities more difficult. Maybe it would be necessary to contract studies and analysis, resulting in a higher evaluating time and cost. Low level of environmental control and legal compliance identified on the beginning of the project will demand strong efforts on planning and implementing control/prevention improvements. Investments may be need on equipments, facilities, process changes to guarantee legal compliance. Additional time and cost on training and implementing procedures may be necessary.
6) SUGESTIONS TO IMPROVE TIME AND COST MANAGEMENT ON ISO
14001 IMPLEMENTATION Analysing key factors influencing time and cost management on EMS implementation, it is possible to act on them, in order to optimize company efforts. It is presented on this chapter, as a conclusion of this paper, some suggestions to improve management to ISO 14001 implemention projects.
I) Assure management commitment and suport provide seminars to managers; conduct managment review reunions since the beginning; provide information of status project periodically, presenting barriers and potential delays;
II) Involve departments an contractors let each department do it bussiness and provide necessary information and support to do it; assign key elements in each relevant department; provide seminars to contractors directors and operational/awareness training to operators, if necessary;
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III) Work in multidisciplinary groups assign an implementation group involving all key departments; use multidisciplinary groups to evaluate environmental aspects; conduct reunions of the group periodically to discuss the implemention steps, problems and actions;
IV) Assign adequate personnel and assure available worktime name enough elements to the group, and in each department, proportionally to the work dimension ; estimate a monthly man day consumption and agree with the management this period to dedicate lto ISO 14001 project, if necessary;
V) Establish an implementation plan and verify it compliance define an implementation plan and review it after environmental aspects evaluation; design an logycal implementation flow/diagram and define the critical path verify periodicallly project status and take actions agreed with the implementation group and top management, if necessary;
VI) Integrate management systems include environmente requirements on existing management systems procedures (for example, document control, training, etc.); use EMS procedures to other demands (for example, emergency response plan together with safety one, comunications to all kinds of purposes, etc.);
VII) Spend time on evaluation, planning and training plan carefully the methodology to evaluate environmente aspects and train all persons involved; discuss general procedures until maturating, as well as the environmental policy; train personnel to write and implement procedures, if this culture doesn´t exist on the organization;
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VII) Get the best from available data and actual practices use all data/analysis/studies available to evaluate environmental aspects; consider as a rule: ¨write what you do and do what is written¨ Improve them only where it is necessary;
XIX) Begin early to implement legal compliance activities where legal compliance gaps are identified, discuss and implement actions early in the project.