Draft energy management standard approved

Since 2011, organisations have been able to follow a systematic approach in achieving continual improvement of energy performance, including energy efficiency, energy use and consumption, thanks to ISO 50001. Now, the time has come for ISO 50001 to undergo periodic review to ensure that it continues to meet the rapidly changing needs of the energy sector.

The work is being carried out by the ISO technical committee responsible for energy management and energy savings (ISO/TC 301), whose secretariat is held by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), ISO’s member for the USA, in a twinning arrangement with the ISO member for China, the Standardization Administration of China (SAC). Professor Deann Desai, from the Georgia Institute of Technology, is convenor of the working group tasked with revising the standard.

“Perhaps the most important change for the 2018 version is the incorporation of the high-level structure, which provides for improved compatibility with other management system standards,” said Professor Desai.

“Because organisations often implement a number of management system standards, the use of a shared structure, as well as many of the same terms and definitions, helps to keep things simple,” she continued. This is particularly useful for those organisations that choose to operate a single (sometimes called ‘integrated’) management system that can meet the requirements of two or more management system standards simultaneously.

“There are other improvements in the 2018 version to help ensure that the key concepts related to energy performance are clear for small and mid-sized businesses (SMEs),” Professor Desai continued. This is important in encouraging uptake of the use of management system standards by SMEs, which can be used to build customer confidence and reduce costs across all aspects of the business — including meeting regulation requirements.

The Draft International Standard ISO/DIS 50001 was approved in November 2017, and the new version of ISO 50001 is expected to be published in 2018.

Image credit: ©iStockphoto.com/Mauro Saivezzo