ISO 55001 in an Integrated Management System: Combining with ISO 9001, 14001 & 45001

What is an Integrated Management System?

An Integrated Management System (IMS) is a single, unified management system that satisfies the requirements of two or more management system standards. Rather than operating separate, parallel systems for quality (ISO 9001), environment (ISO 14001), occupational health and safety (ISO 45001), and asset management (ISO 55001), an IMS combines them into a coherent governance framework.

The rationale for integration is compelling. Asset-intensive organisations — utilities, transport operators, mining companies, oil and gas producers, and infrastructure managers — typically hold multiple certifications. Without integration, each standard operates as a silo with its own documentation, audit schedule, management review, and improvement processes. This creates duplication, inconsistency, and governance fatigue.

An IMS eliminates these problems by establishing:

• One governance framework — a single policy, single management review, and unified leadership oversight
• Shared processes — common procedures for document control, competence management, internal audit, nonconformity handling, and continual improvement
• Coordinated risk management — a holistic view of organisational risks across quality, environment, safety, and asset management
• Streamlined auditing — integrated internal and external audits that assess all standards in fewer days

Annex SL: The Foundation for Integration

Annex SL (previously known as the High-Level Structure or HLS) is the framework that makes integration practical. Published by ISO, it defines the common structure, clause titles, core text, and terms and definitions that all ISO management system standards must follow.

All four standards discussed in this article — ISO 55001, ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018 — conform to Annex SL. This means they share identical clause numbering and titles:

ISO 55001 + ISO 9001: Quality and Asset Management Synergies

ISO 9001 (Quality Management) and ISO 55001 (Asset Management) share a fundamental concern: ensuring that organisational processes consistently deliver intended outcomes. The synergies between these standards are natural and significant.

Where They Overlap

• Process approach: Both standards require organisations to manage activities as processes with defined inputs, outputs, and performance criteria
• Customer and stakeholder focus: ISO 9001's customer satisfaction requirements align with ISO 55001's stakeholder requirements analysis
• Continual improvement: Both require systematic improvement — ISO 9001 through quality objectives and ISO 55001 through asset management objectives
• Supplier management: ISO 9001 Clause 8.4 (Control of externally provided processes) directly complements ISO 55001 requirements for outsourced asset management activities
• Document and record control: Identical requirements for documented information management

Unique ISO 55001 Requirements

Beyond the shared ground, ISO 55001 adds requirements that ISO 9001 does not cover:

• Strategic Asset Management Plan (SAMP) linking organisational objectives to asset management
• Asset lifecycle management from acquisition through disposal
• Asset criticality assessment and prioritisation frameworks
• Long-term capital investment planning and lifecycle costing
• Asset portfolio-level decision-making

Practical Integration Points

In practice, organisations can integrate quality and asset management by:

• Including asset management objectives within the unified quality/asset management policy
• Extending quality management reviews to include asset performance data
• Using the same nonconformity and corrective action process for both quality and asset management issues
• Aligning supplier evaluation criteria to cover both quality performance and asset management competence

ISO 55001 + ISO 14001: Environmental and Asset Management Synergies

The relationship between asset management and environmental management is particularly strong in asset-intensive industries where physical assets have direct environmental impacts throughout their lifecycle.

Where They Overlap

• Lifecycle perspective: ISO 14001's lifecycle thinking (Clause 6.1.2) directly aligns with ISO 55001's asset lifecycle management requirements
• Legal and compliance requirements: Both standards require identification and management of compliance obligations — often from the same regulatory sources
• Operational control: Environmental controls on asset operations (emissions monitoring, waste management, energy efficiency) are inherently linked to asset condition and performance
• Emergency preparedness: ISO 14001's emergency preparedness requirements (Clause 8.2) complement ISO 55001's requirements for managing asset-related risks
• Monitoring and measurement: Environmental monitoring data (emissions, effluent quality, energy consumption) often serves as asset performance indicators

Unique ISO 14001 Requirements

• Environmental aspects and impacts identification
• Environmental policy with specific commitments (pollution prevention, compliance, continual improvement)
• Life cycle perspective for products and services
• Emergency preparedness and response specific to environmental incidents

Practical Integration Points

• Asset criticality assessments that include environmental impact as a criticality dimension
• Capital investment decisions that factor environmental compliance costs into lifecycle cost analysis
• Maintenance strategies that consider environmental risk (e.g., leak prevention, containment integrity)
• Asset disposal procedures that address environmental decommissioning requirements
• Environmental performance data integrated into asset condition monitoring dashboards

ISO 55001 + ISO 45001: Safety and Asset Management Synergies

The connection between asset management and occupational health and safety is perhaps the most intuitive of all integration opportunities. Poorly managed assets are a primary source of workplace injury and fatality — making the integration of ISO 55001 and ISO 45001 a matter of both governance and worker protection.

Where They Overlap

• Hazard identification: ISO 45001's hazard identification process (Clause 6.1.2.1) directly intersects with ISO 55001's asset risk assessment — asset failures are among the most significant workplace hazards
• Worker consultation and participation: ISO 45001 requires worker participation in safety matters; ISO 55001 benefits from frontline input on asset condition and risk
• Operational controls: Safe work procedures, permit-to-work systems, lockout/tagout protocols, and confined space entry are simultaneously safety controls and asset management controls
• Incident investigation: Asset failures that cause safety incidents require investigation under both standards — a single investigation process serves both
• Competence requirements: Technical competence for asset maintenance is inseparable from safety competence for working on those assets

Unique ISO 45001 Requirements

• Worker consultation and participation mechanisms
• Hierarchy of controls for hazard elimination and risk reduction
• Management of change specific to OH&S risks
• Contractor and procurement safety controls
• Injury and ill health recording and reporting

Practical Integration Points

• Asset criticality assessments that include safety consequence as a primary criticality dimension
• Maintenance procedures that integrate safety risk controls (isolations, permits, PPE requirements)
• Asset condition monitoring that triggers safety alerts when deterioration reaches unsafe thresholds
• Capital renewal programmes that prioritise assets with the highest safety risk profiles
• Incident investigation protocols that assess both the safety impact and the underlying asset management failure

Benefits of Integration

Organisations that successfully integrate ISO 55001 with ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 consistently report the following benefits.

Reduced Audit Fatigue

Integrated audits typically require 20-30% fewer audit days than separate audits for each standard. For an organisation holding all four certifications, this can mean a reduction from 20+ audit days per year to 14-16 days — a significant saving in management time, preparation effort, and certification costs.

Streamlined Documentation

Shared processes (document control, internal audit, management review, nonconformity handling) are documented once and applied across all standards. This eliminates the common problem of maintaining four separate versions of essentially the same procedure.

Consistent Decision-Making

An IMS ensures that decisions about assets consider quality, environmental, safety, and asset management implications simultaneously. This prevents the optimisation of one dimension at the expense of others — for example, deferring maintenance to save cost (asset management) while increasing safety risk (ISO 45001) and environmental exposure (ISO 14001).

Better Cross-Functional Collaboration

Integrated systems break down functional silos. Quality, environment, safety, and asset management professionals work within a common framework, attend the same management reviews, and contribute to the same improvement programme.

Holistic Risk View

An integrated risk assessment considers all dimensions — asset condition, quality impact, environmental consequence, and safety risk — providing leadership with a comprehensive view of organisational risk that informs better strategic decisions.

IMS Documentation Structure

A well-designed IMS documentation structure avoids both duplication and complexity. The following hierarchy has proven effective for organisations integrating ISO 55001 with other standards.

Level 1: Integrated Policy and Manual

• Single integrated management system policy covering quality, environment, safety, and asset management commitments
• IMS manual describing scope, exclusions, process interactions, and standard-specific supplements
• Strategic Asset Management Plan (SAMP) — unique to ISO 55001, referenced from the IMS manual

Level 2: Shared Procedures

• Document and record control procedure
• Internal audit procedure (with standard-specific audit criteria appendices)
• Management review procedure (with standard-specific input checklists)
• Nonconformity and corrective action procedure
• Competence and training procedure
• Communication procedure
• Risk and opportunity management procedure

Level 3: Standard-Specific Procedures

Level 4: Records and Evidence

Operational records serve as evidence for multiple standards simultaneously. For example, a maintenance work order provides evidence of operational control (ISO 55001), quality of work (ISO 9001), environmental compliance (ISO 14001), and safe work execution (ISO 45001).

Integrated Auditing

Integrated auditing is where the practical benefits of an IMS become most visible. Both internal and external audits can be conducted as integrated assessments.

Internal Audit Programme

An integrated internal audit programme should:

• Cover all requirements of all standards over the audit cycle (typically 12 months)
• Audit common processes once — assessing conformity to all applicable standard requirements simultaneously
• Audit standard-specific processes against the relevant standard
• Use auditors competent across the standards being assessed (or audit in pairs)
• Report findings with clear reference to the specific standard clause(s) affected

External Certification Audit

Accredited certification bodies can conduct integrated certification audits that assess multiple standards in a single visit. Key considerations:

• Accreditation scope: The certification body must hold accreditation for every standard in the integrated audit scope
• Auditor competence: The audit team must collectively have competence across all standards — this may require multi-disciplinary teams
• Audit days: Integrated audit days are calculated using a formula that provides a reduction (typically 20-30%) compared to the sum of individual audit days
• Separate certificates: Even with an integrated audit, separate certificates are issued for each standard
• Nonconformities: Findings are raised against specific standard clauses, and each standard's certification decision is independent

Implementation Approach

For organisations planning to integrate ISO 55001 into an existing IMS (or build an IMS from scratch), the following phased approach is recommended.

Phase 1: Gap Analysis and Planning (4-6 weeks)

• Map existing documentation and processes against all target standards
• Identify common requirements that can be addressed through shared processes
• Identify standard-specific requirements that need dedicated procedures
• Define the IMS documentation structure
• Establish a project plan with milestones and responsibilities

Phase 2: Common Framework Development (4-8 weeks)

• Develop or update the integrated policy
• Establish the IMS manual with scope and process interactions
• Create shared procedures for common processes
• Define the integrated risk and opportunity assessment methodology
• Establish the integrated internal audit programme

Phase 3: Standard-Specific Implementation (8-12 weeks)

• Develop the SAMP and asset management plans (ISO 55001-specific)
• Implement standard-specific processes and controls
• Conduct risk assessments for each standard's specific scope
• Train staff on integrated system requirements and their specific roles
• Populate records and evidence to demonstrate operational effectiveness

Phase 4: Verification and Certification (6-10 weeks)

• Conduct the first integrated internal audit
• Hold an integrated management review covering all standards
• Address findings from internal audit and management review
• Select a certification body accredited for all standards in scope
• Undergo Stage 1 (documentation review) and Stage 2 (implementation audit) certification audits

The most successful integrated management systems are designed around the organisation's actual processes — not around the standards. Map your processes first, then demonstrate how each process satisfies the relevant requirements of each standard. This approach produces a system that people actually use, rather than a documentation exercise that exists only for auditors.

Frequently Asked Questions