Integrated management systems

The front-runner firms in industry are moving towards a more sustainable management of their production and products. Integrated Management Systems (IMS) are in this paper viewed as a step in this direction. The traditional management focus on economics has in several firms been extended with other areas, such as quality, the environment, occupational health and safety as well as social accountability. International standards like ISO 9001, ISO 14001, EMAS, OHSAS 18001 and SA 8000 are made for each of these areas. Up till recently there has been a major difference between especially the quality and the environmental standards, when it comes to the underlying understanding of organisations. However, since the new version of ISO 9000 in 2000 the similarities have increased regarding the core aspects of management. This has paved the road for the idea of an integrated management system, and at the same time making it easier for companies to comply with several standards. This paper discusses the development of a standard for IMS, the organisational challenges with IMS, the experiences with IMS in industry and finally the drafts of IMS standards in Danish and Spanish context is analysed.

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