The ISO 50001 international standard is now widely spread across energy management professionals and it continues to grow. In Europe, the Energy Efficiency Directive references the ISO 50001 standard for energy management as a framework to define energy audits and the implementation of energy saving measures accordingly.
This article includes the basic facts about ISO 50001 such as its purpose, what it really is, misconceptions between the standard and the certification, who should follow the standard, and more.
About the ISO 50001 Standard
The ISO 50001 is an international standard published in 2011 and revised in 2018, with the current standard being ISO 50001:2018. The ISO 50001 Standard provides a framework for organizations to implement an Energy Management System, including the identification of energy saving measures and how to track objectives and improvement strategies.
The ISO 50001 specifies the requirements for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and improving an energy management system. It helps organizations internalize the policies by involving employees across the organization.
The ISO standard is based on the Plan, Do, Check, Act methodology (PDCA) to achieve a continuous improvement cycle, ensuring than energy management is integrated within the business processes and not a one-off activity.
In 2024, an amendment was included to the ISO 50001 standard to incorporate Climate Action changes into several ISO Standards. The base of the Certification remains unchanged.
Who is it addressed to and how can they benefit from ISO 50001?
Any organisation no matter its size, sector or geographical location can benefit from getting ISO 50001, in particular:
- Firms looking to reduce the amount of energy they consume to reduce their costs
- Businesses that want to reduce the impact of energy’s rising costs
- For those companies that strive to meet legislative and carbon reduction goals
- Entities that want to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels
- Companies that dedicate efforts to make a positive contribution to the environment and want to set an example
- Or why not? All the above.
The final result will be a reduction in your energy consumption and related costs, sustained on solid energy management processes for continuous improvement.
How can you be aligned with the ISO 50001 Standard?
These are the main aspects you need to have in place to set up an energy management system in line with ISO 50001:
- Energy policy
- Energy action plan
- General requirements
- Management responsibility
- Implementation and operation
- Performance audits
- Management review
Regarding objectives, ISO 50001 does not establish any specific quantitative targets for organizations. Companies are the ones that set their own targets, create action plans and reach their target. The main purpose continues to be the process, to make sure that energy consumption is being monitored and measures are in place to reduce it on a regular basis.
What is a successful implementation of the ISO 50001 Standard?
For a successful implementation of ISO 50001, a commitment from all levels of the organisation must exist: top management being the most crucial player for its decision over the project being carried out or not. The management board must decide and approve the energy policies and their associated action plan. This would be the starting point and keystone of the entire process.
The process of recording information, suggested measures to be put in place, results and improvement steps need to be clearly recorded to comply. Specially if Certification is your goal, in which case an auditor will look into your systems to ensure alignment.
ISO 50001 Standard vs ISO 50001 Certification
The ISO 50001 is a framework for companies to follow to structure their energy management. It’s not a regulation, an audit, or a tool by itself.
Additionally, ISO 50001 Certification is a step forward to validate their energy management system. Certification acts as a guarantee for companies who want to showcase how they have followed the structure, implemented energy management system and a continuous improvement process. In some instances, an ISO Certification may even be required to participate in public tenders or RFPs.
The terms Standard and Certification are often misused. It is important to know this, since compliance with the Standard is becoming widespread, but Certification is not an obligation. It is the case across Europe with article 11 of the Energy Efficiency Directive, which references ISO 50001 as the process to follow for energy audits for high energy consumers.
The definition of an Energy Management System (EMS)
The concept of Energy management System within the ISO 50001 Standard is wide, open for organizations to interpret. In essence, an EMS is a tool used by a company to monitor energy performance, analyze it and plan actions accordingly to improve energy performance.
The ISO 50001 Standard does not indicate any specific tool to be used, but an Energy Management Software like Spacewell Energy is a powerful tool to support the whole process of monitoring, recording, analysing and improving energy performance.
How to Obtain ISO 50001 Certification?
The first step to think about certification is to ensure that the energy management system is in place, policies and structure are followed in your organization, and energy is being saved. if all of that is in place, you need to find an accredited certification body to undertake an audit. You can consult your legal team and search on the International Accreditation Forum’s global database.
The audit process will involve the auditor evaluating your energy management processes, policies, energy action plan, management responsibilities, energy performance indicators and more. If you pass the audit, the certification is valid for 3 years, after which you need to be audited again.
Do you want to set up an energy management system in line with ISO 50001?
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