If you’re like the vast majority of readers, your company has probably gotten certified to one or more management system standards because someone told you to do so.

While certification is considered to be a cost of doing business these days, companies that invest in becoming certified to a future global energy management standard may also do so for another reason: to save big money.

The future ISO 50001 is expected to form the basis of a new third-party certification program that may rival or exceed demand for widely-used certification programs such as OHSAS 18001 on occupational health and safety, ISO 14001 on environmental management, and even the ISO 9001 standard for quality management. The latter boasts close to one million certified organizations around the world—more than any other such standard.

It’s simple economics, according to Edwin Piñero, a former U.S. presidential appointee, who chairs the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) drafting committee for ISO 50001. The coming standard is intended to help organizations manage their energy consumption and reduce greenhouse gases through a systematic approach.

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