What are Nonconformities, Corrective and Preventative Actions?
In general terms:
- A nonconformity is the non-fulfillment of a requirement, where a requirement is a need or expectation that is stated, generally implied or obligatory.
- A corrective action is an action to eliminate a detected nonconformity and to prevent a recurrence.
- A preventative action is an action to eliminate the cause of a potential nonconformity or other potentially undesirable situation.
Nonconformities in the context of ISO 14001 are any aspects of the environmental management system that do not conform to the requirements of the standard.
There are three general types of ISO 14001 non-conformities:
- Non-compliance with legal or other requirements.
- Non-adherence to the ISO 14001 2015 standard itself.
- Poor performance of the environmental management system.
Nonconformities can be caused by several factors, including incorrect or incomplete documentation, lack of training, inadequate resources, and poor communication.
Corrective and preventive action must be taken to address nonconformities and prevent them from happening again in the future.
Identifying an ISO 14001 Nonconformity
An environmental nonconformity may be identified from several sources, including:
- Surveys, tests and inspections.
- Non-conformance reporting.
- Environmental audits and risk assessments.
- Internal audit findings, second or third-party audit findings.
- Complaints (internal or external).
- Observations and inspections.
- Interested party concerns or complaints.
- In-process concerns, or concerns about environmental stability.
- Environmental incidents or near misses.
- Potential or actual breaches of compliance.
Environmental Corrective and Preventative Actions
An organization’s management should review any major issues raised by an environmental nonconformity to identify the level of corrective or preventative action that is required.
Repeated nonconformities of the same nature or significant deviations from procedures or policies should be reported to the controlling representative for action and prompt resolution.
Environmental corrective or preventative actions should always be taken as a result of:
- Genuine customer concerns or complaints.
- In-process concerns.
- Concerns about environmental stability.
- Environmental accidents or incidents.
Any corrective and preventative action plans developed should include the details of who is responsible for applying corrective or preventative actions and the appropriate timing for the completion of such actions.
Contents of this ISO 14001 Nonconformity and Corrective Action Procedure
- Approval.
- Purpose.
- Scope and Objectives.
- Terms and Definitions.
- Roles and Responsibilities.
- Procedures.
- Non-Conformities, Corrective and Preventative Action Process Overview.
- Non-Conformities, Corrective and Preventative Action Flowchart.
- Root Cause Analysis of a Nonconformity.
- Corrective and Preventative Actions.
- Corrective and Preventative Action Reviews.
- Related Procedures, Forms and Documents.
- Review Criteria.
- Record Management.
- References.
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