Once a year, Stadtwerke Gießen - like all other companies of this size - has to undergo an audit of its energy management system. The result of last December's audit: passed without any deficiencies.
Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) continues to fulfil all the requirements of the ISO 50001:2011 standard, as confirmed by the certificate issued by TÜV Rheinland at the end of January. Translated into normal language, this means that SWG applies the energy management system (EnMS) introduced in 2014 and recertified for the first time three years later in everyday life, acts accordingly and uses energy sparingly in all areas of the company. The fact that SWG once again passed the strict annual audit - a kind of interim test - with flying colours comes as no surprise to those responsible. "Using energy efficiently is part of our DNA and forms an important cornerstone of our corporate strategy," says Matthias Funk, Chief Technical Officer at SWG, commenting on the successful audit.
Energy management is an ongoing issue. And not only for energy suppliers like SWG. Above a certain size, companies must introduce an
companies of a certain size must introduce an EnMS and use this legally required instrument to prove that they are using energy responsibly and permanently reducing their demand. Auditors check whether this is happening year after year. Consequently, all areas of the company are always involved. "Successful energy management is a task for the company as a whole, to which literally all employees make their contribution," continues Matthias Funk.
Constantly increasing requirements
Despite all the care taken by SWG, such an audit is not a foregone conclusion. This is because the auditors are constantly becoming stricter as their experience grows. "The experts from TÜV now know very well where it is worth taking a closer look," summarises Matthias Funk. For example, the inspectors paid particular attention to work processes, compliance with deadlines - such as for energy performance certificates for own properties - or the maintenance of the relevant databases, such as consumption values or key figures. Last but not least, they also took a look at the organisation. To find out how SWG tackles the issues of substitution arrangements and capacity planning. "We were able to answer all the questions and convince them on all points," summarises Matthias Funk.
The second recertification is due at the end of this year. However, the government is tightening the rules for this. For example, ISO 50001:2018
involves top management more in the EnMS in terms of leadership and commitment. Furthermore, companies need to more clearly outline the various roles, responsibilities and authorisations and have the appropriate personnel in place. In the new standard, documentation also plays a greater role than before and the planning of energy data collection will be more important in future. In addition, companies will be scrutinised even more closely in future to ensure that they comply with legal regulations and other requirements. However, the last important innovation is likely to prove particularly exciting. The continuous improvement of the system, which is already included in the current standard, will be more clearly emphasised in the next recertification. "For companies like us, which are already operating at a comparatively high level, the air is naturally getting thinner and thinner. But I am firmly convinced that we will also master the upcoming recertification without any problems," predicts Matthias Funk.