Maclean has adopted ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System since 2009. In the previous two articles, we’ve talked about ISO 45001:2018 Occupational Health and Safety Management System and ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management System, which we adopted in 2024. These three systems make up Maclean’s Integrated Management System (IMS), and they were audited by Intertek, a leading Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide.1
What is an Integrated Management System?
IMS refers to a comprehensive framework that combines three management systems within an organisation to create a unified approach in governance, risk management, and compliance. This allows organisations such as Maclean to work as a singular unit towards the same goals, increasing efficiency and productivity within different teams.
The backbone of Maclean’s IMS lies in the ISO Annex SL structure, a format utilised in many industry management systems standards to effectively track, improve, and expand processes and standards portfolio. The structure makes it easier for us to align our processes, ensuring a consistent and effective approach.
Why Integrated Management System Matters?
Implementing an IMS has been an important step for Maclean, not just for our operations but also in how we serve our clients. Here’s how our IMS enhances our service delivery.
1. Enhanced performance through streamlined processes: By integrating our management systems, we’ve eliminated redundant processes and administrative burdens. There’s also less disruption to our operations when audits are performed, and it has enabled better decision-making and resource allocation, and aided in delivering consistent and efficient cleaning services for our clients.
2. Better communications and collaborations: IMS encourages a culture of collaboration and improves communication within Maclean. Today, we foster a shared understanding of business objectives and utilise a unified approach to problem-solving. Our employees become more engaged in operational processes, thus increasing productivity and job satisfaction.
3. Enhanced compliance: Our IMS ensures that we meet all regulatory and statutory requirements across quality, environmental, and safety standards. It also results in smoother and coordinated internal audits, reduces the risk of non-compliance and penalties, and gives our clients confidence that our operations are in line with best-practice industry standards.
4. Commitment to exemplary quality: Maclean has quality control measures to instil consistent improvements and ensure better customer satisfaction. Our customers’ trust is a precious asset to us, and we don’t mess about with that!
5. Cost efficiency: An IMS has also allowed Maclean to lower operational costs, as we consolidate audits, training, and document management. It has also reduced duplication of effort, minimised errors and unnecessary rework, leading to more savings, which are then channelled into improving our services for our clients.
6. Culture of improvement towards better outcomes: By regularly monitoring and analysing our processes, we’re able to identify areas for performance improvements and identify new ways to serve our clients better.
7. Sustainability and innovation: We have integrated environmental and safety standards to support sustainable practices in our operations. This benefits the environment and also ensures that our growth isn’t at the expense of our employees’ or clients’ well-being.
Maclean’s Journey Towards Integrating Three Management Systems
Our path to establishing an IMS has been a journey of growth and learning, which was spearheaded by our dynamic leadership team. Here are our key milestones and accomplishments.
1. Strategic planning and assessment: We began by embarking on a comprehensive assessment of existing processes and identifying opportunities for integration. A strategic planning phase was initiated, and it was crucial in identifying key areas for our IMS, allowing us to plan strategically and set clear goals for the future.
2. Formation of IMS team: Implementing the IMS was a team effort. Maclean formed a dedicated IMS team to engage with employees, clients, and suppliers throughout the process. We also held regular training programmes to build awareness and competence among employees.
3. System integration and implementation: We then moved on to integrating the ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 standards into a unified framework. This involved aligning our documentation, processes, and policies to create a cohesive system that enhances efficiencies and ensures compliance with relevant regulations.
4. Implementation and proactive actions: We don’t stop at implementation. We continue to monitor and refine our IMS to this day, to ensure that our IMS is continuously effective, adaptive to changing needs of our clients and the cleaning industry, and that we’re able to respond in a timely manner.
5. Certification and recognition: We achieved certification for our IMS upon clearing Stage One and Stage Two of external audits. It marked a significant milestone for Maclean as it’s a testament to our commitment to quality, occupational health and safety, and environmental stewardship.
Our IMS journey doesn’t end with certification. We continue to review, refine, and innovate to continually improve IMS to remain effective, efficient and stay true to our triple bottom line goals - profit, people and planet.
We’ve placed great emphasis on IMS because our clients entrust us with the cleanliness and hygiene of their space. And that’s all the reason we need to ensure that we deliver high standards of service in a sustainable and safe manner. We are honoured to share our accomplishments with you and we look forward to providing you with exceptional cleaning services, while remaining at the forefront of the industry.
References:
1. Intertek Group PLC. Integrated Management Systems.