Acorn Industrial Services is a leading distributor of bearings, power transmission products, linear systems and maintenance solutions. Operating across the UK, the company delivers stock from a range of over 40,000 products. According to Clive Simkins, Business Development Manager, it was vital that Acorn Industrial Services could demonstrate its commitment to corporate responsibility.
“In today’s global marketplace, many large organisations want to know a company is credible before they will consider placing them on their supplier lists,” he said. “So it was essential that we apply for such a valuable standard.”
The company approached IMSM for support gaining ISO 14001: “I was surprised at just how smoothly everything went. IMSM’s Assessor first visited us in early September. By early November, we had received the certificate.” For Clive, being ISO 14001 certified is about much more than wielding a piece of paper showing the company’s compliance. It’s an ongoing process of continuously analysing performance and improving practices.
“This is just the start. We’re a dynamic business, so as a company we need to set time aside to look at what we’re doing and how we’re going to continually improve and to pass next year’s audit. With this standard, you can never stand still.”
The company has put many new working practices in place, including introducing extra recycling bins and separating certain waste products from other materials. However, as Clive explains, it’s not just the big changes that make a difference. “The process made us consider lots of things, from how we use our trucks to making sure we switch lights off before leaving the office. From small actions come big results.” Acorn Industrial Services is already getting the message across through various media.
“We’re promoting the standard on our website,” he said. “Our emails also feature a banner showing our achievement – and we’ve added the logo mark to our business cards. I’m confident that attaining ISO 14001 will help us achieve even greater success.”
