Got any Questions?
CALL US NOW
ISO 45001:2018 is the new standard for creating an Occupational Health & Safety Management System (OHSMS). OHSAS 18001:2007 standard was not maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), there is some confusion as to whether this is a replacement standard. If your organization has implemented OHSAS 18001, is it necessary for transition to ISO 45001? Yes, because ISO 45001 will replace OHSAS 18001. Learn the difference between ISO 45001 and OHSAS 18001.
OHSAS 18001 and ISO 45001 standards include many of the same requirements, as both the standards are used to create an OHSMS. Both the standards emphasize the management of Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) hazards and legal requirements, and the involvement of top-level management , there are some new requirements in the ISO 45001:2018 standard that are included to further benefit the company in Dubai and rest of UAE. For more information on the benefits that ISO 45001 can bring, see the article benefits of ISO 45001 for your business.
The biggest changes is to organize the ISO 45001 standard to match the standard format for ISO management systems, called Annex SL, so that the structure and format match the other management systems such as ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 standard. For more information on the structure, see the article ISO 45001 requirements and structure.
.Another change is risk involved in the OHSMS. OHSAS 18001 standard demonstrates about the risks associated with the OH&S hazards in the organization, where as ISO 45001 explains the way to manage other risks and opportunities along with controlling the OH&S hazards.
ISO 45001 certification documentation information is confusing for most of the companies in UAE. The new requirements ISO 45001 certification are basically an amalgamation and simplification of the old requirements for creating and maintaining documents and records in the OHSMS. The ISO 45001 standard clarifies that documented information refers the ISO 45001 certification management system and its processes, information created for the organization, and evidence of results achieved. The process that has been put into place for document and record control in OHSAS 18001 will meet the requirements of ISO 45001.
The new ISO 45001 standard also has different expectations of what documentation will require, so ensure that best ISO consultant compares the current documentation listing with the new requirements to ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 standard. For more information on the structure, see the article get ISO 45001 certification.
Both ISO and BSI have indicated that there is a three-year transition time period to change your OHSMS from OHSAS 18001:2007 to the new ISO 45001:2018 standard. This matches when ISO 9001:2008 is updated to the ISO 9001:2015 revision. Companies who have already OHSAS 18001 certified until 2021, have to upgrade their OHSMS, ISO has indicated that it will make OHSAS 18001:2007 obsolete. Any company in Dubai and UAE that is implementing a new OHSMS, should use the ISO 45001 standard as their requirements, because ISO certification bodies will stop granting certification to the OHSAS 18001 standard sooner than this 2021 deadline.
So, it is clear that ISO 45001 replaces OHSAS 18001. Now, for your transition, you need a great plan. Start with a gap analysis process and compare it to the requirements of the ISO 45001:2018 standard. In this gap analysis, go through every statement and determine whether ISO 45001 requirements are met or not. If some of the requirement are not met, determine what need to do to meet it, and then make that changes. But it can take some time to do. ISO 45001 Gap Analysis Tool can help to perform gap analysis.
Many companies in UAE tend to wait to make the changes in their system, but this can be problematic. Transition from OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001 take some time to accomplish. Waiting to start the transition will only delay your conclusion, and rushing because you started late can hinder the improvements or changes.
Making improvement changes to OHSMS, so that it meets the ISO 45001 requirements does not mean that need to change ISO certificate right away. Take the time to make the changes, implementing the most important first, and get the benefits of each improvement.
ISO Certification in UAE is a most preferred Certification Standard by organizations in UAE from all sectors. WIZMS provides ISO Certification in UAE for all major standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001, ISO 17025, ISO 45001 and more.
WIZMS is the best ISO consultant in UAE and provides ISO consulting services in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ras al-Khaimah, Ajman, Al Ain and Fujairah. WIZMS is one of the leading ISO consultant in Dubai who offers top-class ISO consultancy services including ISO Consulting, ISO Certification, ISO Training in UAE, Gap analysis, Documentation, Implementation, and ISO certification audits in UAE.