Implementation of an Integrated Management System for Quality, Environment and Safety at Blandin Paper Company Paper Mill and Forestry Operations, 2000 Environmental Conference Proceedings

- J. Petrini, C. Firman, J. Marshall, N. Waech -- Blandin Paper Company is the first paper company in the United States to develop and implement an integrated quality, environmental and safety management system. The system not only integrates three functional management areas (quality, safety and environment) it is also common to both mill and forestry operating divisions. The system conforms to ISO 14001, ISO 9001 for quality. How did we get three separate functional management areas and two completely different operating divisions to work together? Their formula is multidimensional but weighted heavily on the side of a considerable commitment on the part of senior management. Equally important but less pronounced individually are management's characteristics of inveentiveness, patience, trial and error, and culture change. The culture change is ongoing and involves training people to treat safety, quality and environment as simply part of doing their job productively, rather than as distinct activities. This paper discusses how we developed the original framework, reporting mechanisms, audit functions and system documentation to achieve integration.