Airbus expands Environmental ISO 14001 Certification to US and China

Strong commitment and support from Airbus management to eco-efficiency

Airbus Americas and Airbus China Beijing Campus have achieved certification according to the ISO 14001 standard for Environmental Management Systems. This international standard requires organisations to develop an integrated, structured approach in setting and achieving environmental policies and objectives with the goal of supporting protection of the environment, prevention of pollution and compliance with regulatory requirements.

In the United States, sites now covered by the ISO 14001 certification include: Airbus Americas Headquarters in Herndon, Virginia; the Spares Centre in Ashburn, Virginia; the Training Centre in Miami, Florida; plus two Engineering Centres in Wichita, Kansas and Mobile, Alabama respectively. Meanwhile, in Beijing, China, the recent certifications include Airbus China Limited and its subsidiaries. These subsidiaries comprise Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre, Hua-Ou Aviation Support Centre, and Airbus (Beijing) Engineering Centre.

As a precursor to these awards, preparatory certification audits for both Airbus Americas and Airbus China Beijing Campus were conducted in December 2008 by an independent third-party registrar. The registrar identified several strengths regarding eco-efficiency programmes. These strengths included: a strong commitment and support from executive management; green construction; and communication with stakeholders on the environment.

In January 2007, Airbus became the first aerospace company in the world to receive ISO 14001 “full life-cycle approach” environmental certification. Initially compliance focussed on the 16 production sites, including Airbus’ headquarters in Toulouse. Furthermore, from early 2008, the programme was expanded to target certification at Airbus’ subsidiaries in the United States as well as Airbus China’s Beijing Campus. Looking ahead in 2009, the next stage for environmental certification of Airbus sites in China will involve the recently inaugurated A320 “Final Assembly Line China” in Tianjin.

“The expansion of ISO 14001 certification to both Airbus Americas and Airbus China Beijing Campus is a significant step in achieving global implementation of the Airbus Environmental Management System (EMS),” said Christian Dumas, VP Sustainable Development & Eco-Efficiency at Airbus. He added: “Airbus, as a 100 percent subsidiary of EADS, shares the same environmental policy which applies eco-efficiency as a major goal of EADS’ Vision-2020 strategic roadmap. The target is to maximise the benefits of aircraft products and services to customers and other stakeholders, while minimising the environmental impact of operating and manufacturing these products throughout their life-cycle.”