2009-06-15 13:52:24 - A credit to the industry

VWS (UK) Ltd, which incorporates the UK’s leading water and wastewater treatment companies Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies and ELGA Process Water, has gained full ISO14001 accreditation of its Environmental Management System. Bob Snowden is the Business Systems Manager for ELGA Process Water and he has been working hard since 2006 with a project team drawn from all of the VWS divisions to implement the management system and achieve accreditation. This was awarded following a detailed audit of all five of VWS’s UK sites by Lloyds Register Quality Assurance (LRQA).

ISO 14001 is the internationally recognised standard for environmental management systems and defines processes and procedures which assist a business to identify the aspects of its operations that affect the environment,

allowing it to assess their impact on the environment and control and reduce those impacts.

VWS (UK) Ltd decided to seek accreditation and set up a team of specialists with representatives from all the company’s sites. This team assessed the company’s activities and developed and implemented systems to control and reduce their affects on the environment. “This accreditation demonstrates to our customers and the public that we have taken responsibility for our environmental impact”, say Bob. “For example waste from our process is minimised and wherever possible recycled or reused”

Whilst acquiring ISO14001 accreditation is a commendable achievement – few companies in the water treatment field have such recognition – VWS is far from complacent. “This is a really important for us”, says Bob, “but it’s just the first step. We’ll continue to develop our systems, monitored by six-monthly audits by LRQA, to ensure the continuing improvement of the company’s environmental performance.”

For further details of the products and services visit www.elgaprocesswater.com or www.veoliawaterst.co.uk

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About the company:

ELGA Process Water is part of Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies (VWS), a subsidiary of Veolia Water. VWS is a leading design & build company and a specialized provider of technological solutions in water treatment. With over 8,900 employees in 57 countries. VWS recorded revenue of €2.5 billion in 2008.

Veolia Water, the water division of Veolia Environnement, is the world leader in water and wastewater services. Specialized in outsourcing services for municipal authorities, as well as industrial and service companies, Veolia Water serves 139 million people worldwide. With more than 93,400 employees, its 2008 revenues amounted to about €12.6 billion.