ISO 45001 implementation, built around how you work
ISO 45001:2018 is the international standard for occupational health and safety management. We build the system around your operations, not on top of them, and stay on the project until certification is in your hand.
Every clause of ISO 45001:2018, covered in plain terms
ISO 45001 has seven main clauses (4 to 10). We work through each in sequence, building a system that audits cleanly and runs on its own afterwards.
Context
Internal and external issues, interested parties, scope of the OH&S management system.
Leadership
Top management commitment, policy, roles, responsibilities, worker consultation and participation.
Planning
Hazard identification, OH&S risks and opportunities, legal & other requirements, objectives.
Support
Resources, competence, awareness, communication and documented information.
Operation
Operational planning and control, hierarchy of controls, change management, contractors, procurement, emergency preparedness.
Performance evaluation
Monitoring, measurement, analysis, evaluation of compliance, internal audit, management review.
Improvement
Incident investigation, nonconformity, corrective action, continual improvement.
Six months from kick-off to certificate
A typical schedule for a single-site SME. Multi-site or integrated systems run longer; we agree the actual plan at kick-off.
- 1
Weeks 1–2
Gap analysis
Document review, leadership interviews, sample site walk-through, clause-by-clause scoring against ISO 45001:2018.
- 2
Weeks 3–6
Plan & policy
Context, interested parties, OH&S policy ratified by top management, risk & opportunity register, legal register seeded.
- 3
Weeks 7–14
Operational build
Hazard ID, risk assessments, operational controls, emergency arrangements, contractor and procurement integration.
- 4
Weeks 15–18
Audit & review
Internal audit programme run, management review meeting, corrective actions closed out.
- 5
Weeks 19–22
Stage 1 readiness
Certification body Stage 1 documentation review. Gaps closed before Stage 2.
- 6
Weeks 23–26
Stage 2 & cert
Stage 2 site audit support, nonconformity response, certificate issued.
What you have at the end of the engagement
- Gap analysis report with clause-by-clause maturity score
- OH&S policy signed by top management
- Context, interested parties and scope of the management system
- Hazard identification and OH&S risk register, with hierarchy-of-controls evidence
- Legal & other requirements register with compliance evaluation
- Operational procedures sized to your business, not borrowed from a template library
- Internal audit programme, audit reports and corrective action register
- Management review pack and minutes
- Stage 1 and Stage 2 audit support, including nonconformity response
Common questions about ISO 45001
How long does ISO 45001 typically take?
For a single-site SME, around six months from kick-off to certification. Multi-site groups or those integrating with ISO 14001 or 9001 take 9 to 12 months. We agree the timeline against your audit window and resource availability.
Do we need a separate consultant for the certification body audit?
No. We see the project through to Stage 2 and respond to any nonconformities raised. Our fee covers everything up to the certificate being issued.
Can ISO 45001 be integrated with our existing ISO 9001 / 14001 / 27001?
Yes, and it should be. All four standards follow Annex SL (the high-level structure), so one combined manual, one risk register, one audit programme and one management review serves the lot. We build integrated management systems as our default.
What if we have OHSAS 18001 already?
OHSAS 18001 was withdrawn in March 2021. If you still hold an OHSAS certificate, your certification body will have already retired it. We do the gap analysis from your OHSAS baseline to ISO 45001 and close the differences (mainly worker participation, context, leadership engagement).
Ready to start the gap analysis?
We can usually have a kick-off meeting in your diary within a fortnight. Send us a one-paragraph brief and we'll come back with a fixed fee.