EMS in factories. The introduction of Environmental Management Systems in the metalprocessing and ceramic industry in Romania and The Netherlands (Engelstalig),

During the last decades environmental issues and environmental policy have become more important. One of the most important newest developments in policies is the ISO 14000 series, an international standard of environ-mental management systems. This policy is focused on mapping the factories in such a way that continuous improvement of environmental aspects is achieved, using five specified steps. In this study, an example is given of the implementation of environmental management systems in two types of factories, in two different countries. To be able to compare the current environmental policy in ceramic and metal factories, three factories in The Netherlands and two in Romania were visited. Case studies were performed to review factory policy and technical data were gathered to establish the main environmental aspects of the factories. In the Netherlands, factories are generally smaller and more focused only on parts of the metal treatment process. Automation is a powerful tool for the Dutch factories, also to achieve their environmental targets. In Romania most processes are controlled manually. All factories were open to share information. Their general policy is to incorporate environmental policy with their quality control. In this case, the popular ISO 9000, a quality control standard, can be a useful tool for implementing ISO 14000