Experience with an integrated management system in a sugar and ethanol manufacturing unit: Possibilities and Limitations

Purpose – Over recent the past decades, integrated management systems (IMS) have emerged as one of the major tasks for practising managers and the academic community. In this context, this paper aims at identifying relevant practices related to an IMS in an organisation that belongs to the sugar cane and ethanol agricultural industrial sector in Brazil.Design/methodology/approach – A review of mainstream literature on IMS is conducted followed by case‐based research used as the methodological approach. Data were gathered through a questionnaire as well as face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews. The analysis was done a posteriori to construct the case description and perform the analysis.Findings – Issues that motivated the IMS implementation were identified. The paper also highlights the difficulties experienced and benefits accrued during implementation. The existence of a previous quality management system facilitated the implementation of the IMS. Nevertheless, a longitudinal study is desirable to ass...

[1]  Stanislav Karapetrovic,et al.  Integration of quality and environmental management systems , 1998 .

[2]  Alan Griffith,et al.  Better environmental performance : a framework for integrated management systems (IMS) , 2009 .

[3]  M. F. Renzi,et al.  Itegration between ISO 9000 and ISO 14000: Opportunities and limits , 2000 .

[4]  M. Javad Paknejad,et al.  Environmental versus quality standards ‐ an overview and comparison , 1997 .

[5]  Stanislav Karapetrovic,et al.  Difficulties and Benefits of Integrated Management Systems , 2012, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[6]  Barrie Dale,et al.  Integrated Management Systems:: a model based on a total quality approach , 2001 .

[7]  Stanislav Karapetrovic,et al.  Integration of management systems: focus on safety in the nuclear industry , 2003 .

[8]  Stanislav Karapetrovic,et al.  Systems thinking for the integration of management systems , 2004, Bus. Process. Manag. J..

[9]  R. Salomone.  Integrated management systems: experiences in Italian organizations , 2008 .

[10]  P. C. Miguel.  Estudo de caso na engenharia de produção: estruturação e recomendações para sua condução , 2007 .

[11]  Robert B. Pojasek,et al.  Is your integrated management system really integrated , 2006 .

[12]  Vivian W. Y Tam,et al.  Towards occupational health and safety systems in the construction industry of China , 2008 .

[13]  J. J. Dahlgaard,et al.  Implementing ISO 14000 in Sweden: motives, benefits and comparisons with ISO 9000 , 2003 .

[14]  Jonathan Jingsheng Shi,et al.  A synergetic model for implementing an integrated management system: an empirical study in China , 2007 .

[15]  G. Wilkinson,et al.  An examination of the ISO 9001:2000 standard and its influence on the integration of management systems , 2002 .

[16]  P. López-Fresno,et al.  Implementation of an integrated management system in an airline: a case study , 2010 .

[17]  Wouter Van Dieren.  The Concept of Sustainability , 1995 .

[18]  Stanislav Karapetrovic.  Strategies for the integration of management systems and standards , 2002 .

[19]  Amrik S. Sohal,et al.  Adoption and maintenance of environmental management systems: Critical success factors , 2004 .

[20]  Dirk Mackau,et al.  SME integrated management system: a proposed experiences model , 2003 .

[21]  Alex Douglas,et al.  Integrated management systems in small and medium enterprises , 2000 .

[22]  Chi Ming Tam,et al.  An empirical examination of benefits from implementing integrated management systems (IMS) , 2011 .

[23]  Henry C. W. Lau,et al.  A self‐assessed quality management system based on integration of MBNQA/ISO 9000/ISO 14000 , 1999 .

[24]  Mark Pagell,et al.  An examination of strategies employed for the integration of management systems , 2009 .

[25]  Rodger Holdsworth.  Practical applications approach to design, development and implementation of an integrated management system. , 2003, Journal of hazardous materials.

[26]  Barrie Dale,et al.  Integrated management systems: an examination of the concept and theory , 1999 .

[27]  R. Yin.  Case Study Research: Design and Methods , 1984 .

[28]  J. Fresner,et al.  Experiences with integrated management systems for two small companies in Austria , 2004 .

[29]  Carlos Ricardo Soccol,et al.  Bioethanol from lignocelluloses: Status and perspectives in Brazil. , 2010, Bioresource technology.

[30]  S. C. Laroiya,et al.  Integrated management systems in Indian manufacturing organizations , 2010 .

[31]  Alan Griffith,et al.  Improving environmental performance through integrated management systems (IMS) in the UK , 2008 .

[32]  Amrik S. Sohal,et al.  Integrated management system:the experiences of three Australian organisations , 2005 .

[33]  S. Karapetrovic.  Musings on integrated management systems , 2003 .

[34]  Tine Herreborg Jørgensen,et al.  Integrated management systems: three different levels of integration , 2006 .

[35]  Martí Casadesús,et al.  How integrated are environmental, quality and other standardized management systems? An empirical study ☆ , 2009 .