Outlining Environment Management

The preceding figure shows the various governments around the world that have issued environmental regulations to protect the environment and the ecosystem. For example, in U.S. there is the Clean Air Act to ensure good quality of air, the Clean Water Act to protect the natural waters and minimize pollution.

Similarly, other governments have issued similar policies and regulations to protect the environment.

Beyond governments enacting laws to protect the environment, various internal and external stakeholders are pressuring organizations / businesses to improve their environmental performance and report it.

For example, investors are asking companies to report their environmental performance data annually in the Sustainability reports.

Business partners are asking for certification to prove they have good environmental management systems in place - for example, ISO140001.

Internal management is concerned about the negative impact to the brand for not being environmentally compliant.

The environmental management challenges are:

• Following all requirements from various applicable regulations, policies, and permits.
• Being aware of changes to multiple specific rules and requirements.
• Fulfilling of compliance requirements and record-keeping in a timely manner.
• Ensuring proper data collection and calculation accuracy.
• Maintaining consistent, transparent, and auditable inventory processes.

Government policies and internal and external stakeholders pose a challenge to an organization to ensure they stay compliant all the time. Organizations must identify all the requirements that they must comply with, be it from policies, regulations, or permits. Sometimes, one location can have thousands of requirements. Organizations must:

• Keep up with changing regulation.
• Implement compliance requirements in a timely manner.
• Keep records.
• Collect and / or calculate environmental data.
• Implement a consistent, transparent, and auditable compliance process.

As you have already learned in the previous unit, SAP product Environment Management can help with creating inventories of air emissions. The same product can also help with generating greenhouse gas (GHG) emission inventories. SAP Environment Management supports customers in calculating, monitoring, and reporting their GHG emissions. It does so by using functionality such as a prebuilt equation and emission factor library for some regulations. It offers workflow-based data collection including proactively flagging data with issues, monitoring, and reporting of GHG emissions.

SAP's Environment Management product supports customers in the following ways:

• Leverages prebuilt emission factor library and equations.
• Collects activity data like fuel used, or electricity used.
• Proactively flags data issues with data collection or emission calculations.
• Monitors thresholds of greenhouse gas emissions.
• Reports on greenhouse gas emissions.

The preceding image represents all master data objects involved in environmental management processes and their related actions.

The environment management application component helps companies to stay compliant with emissions-related environmental regulations. The solution covers the processes and sub-processes of managing compliance scenario activities to ensure compliance. These processes enable you to create and incorporate a strategy of managing environmentally related data from data collection, sampling, calculation, and aggregation of emissions into the daily operations within your companies.

• Manage air and water emissions to fulfill legal requirements.
• Calculate and aggregate emissions while fostering proactive data transparency and monitoring.
• Detect and communicate deviations, manage investigations, and track follow-up activities.

Regulatory and Permit Compliance supports the process of managing a central legal, permit, or policy requirement registry and consistent processes to support the full lifecycle of compliance-driven tasks and exceptions.

The solution provides the following capabilities:

• Receive automated change updates to applicable regulatory requirements from content providers.
• Establish and maintain a comprehensive EHS legal, permit, or policy requirement registry.
• Manage all compliance related tasks by monitoring compliance tasks using the Task Calendar.

Customers benefits:

• Ensuring transparency on compliance requirements and improve compliance performance.
• Reducing the risk of noncompliance and ensuring auditability.

The regulatory and compliance management has a linear process.

The environment manager is supported in the creation of a compliance requirements repository. The compliance requirements can be either manually created or they can be retrieved as regulatory content from a third-party solution. The Environment Management solution comes with a build-in option for integration of the SAP content provider partner RegScan and their RegScan One solution. Other integrations with content providers like ENHESA can be easily built.

After the compliance requirements have been created or imported from a content provider, they can be assigned to specific locations.

The environment manager can schedule compliance tasks directly from the compliance requirements, trigger the execution of the tasks, monitor tasks by using the task calendar view, and perform the analysis.

The process starts with the creation of the regulatory content. Compliance requirements can be created manually or retrieved through the content provider integration.

The applicable requirements based on regulations can be imported from external content providers using the Import Compliance Requirement app. Automatic updates to requirements are also made available when applicable regulations change.

In the process step Maintain Compliance Requirements, the EHS regulatory expert can monitor the compliance requirements and make further changes, if necessary. To accelerate the creation of the compliance requirements, the existing content can also be copied. Import from a spreadsheet is also possible.

Based on external or internal guidelines, a corporate EHS regulatory expert maintains the compliance requirements in the system. This is how the legal repository is established in the system and can be used as a source for other processes in environment management.

Three types of requirements can be maintained:

• Regulations
• Permits
• Policies (defined company internally)

The regulatory content imported from internal sources can be used as an example. Using the copy function of the compliance requirement you can further enhance the content with company-specific data.

In the process step, Assign Compliance Requirements to Locations, the local EHS mangers maintain the compliance scenarios by assigning the compliance requirement to actual locations in the company.

The overall environmental compliance of your company consists of the environmental compliance of all pieces of equipment (or locations) across the company. Therefore, to control and monitor the compliance on a global company level, you have to plan and carry out environmentally relevant activities for the various locations at the company.

To organize all these environmental activities at a given location in the company, you can use an object called compliance scenario. You can use this object to plan and carry out as many instances of these activities as the specific business case requires. The compliance scenario represents the applicable regulatory requirements in the context of the location/facility and all its activities and tasks.

By assigning the compliance requirement to the compliance scenario you can directly reference all predefined compliance data such as environmental limits, equations, and regulatory lists.

Similarly to the tasks in the other EHS components, you can use tasks in environment management to schedule and assign the work required to perform environmentally related actions. A task, for example, a maintenance task, is a reactive or proactive step or activity that relates either to an entire compliance scenario or to a specific aspect of a compliance scenario. For example, affected equipment or assigned compliance requirement.

As a responsible manager, you can add the task and start the corresponding process directly in the compliance scenario. Then, the system communicates the task to the inbox of the assigned implementer. SAP EHS Management uses workflows to provide the sequence of steps that either a person or the system processes.

In the process step, Schedule Compliance Tasks, the related compliance tasks can be defined and scheduled from the compliance requirement.

The local EHS manager defines the activities and tasks that must be implemented to ensure compliance of the requirements from regulations, permits, or policies. To be able to schedule the task, the manager creates a definition of the task. It contains the information needed for the execution of the task, such as:

• Priority
• Scheduling and recurrence
• Responsibilities
• Extra information, for example, attachments or links.

Later, the task process can be started from the created task definition.

In the process step, Execute Compliance Tasks, the EHS manager triggers the process for execution of the task.

Depending on the assigned responsibility the EHS manager, supervisor (field operator) or technician receives the work item in their My Inbox app. The received task can be completed, forwarded, or suspended. Comments, attachments, and links can be displayed and opened if necessary.

In the process step Task Management (Calendar), the EHS manager can monitor the execution of the tasks related to compliance activities in the system using theTask Calendar app. With this app, the tasks for the team can be planned in a calendar view. This view provides an overview of existing task instances in a time schedule. Based on the overall schedule, you can view the status of the tasks and the workload of the team members. You can adjust the plan by rescheduling the tasks between assignees.

The responsible EHS Manager can:

• Get an overview of planned tasks based on the filtering criteria of your view.
• Add and remove contacts in the calendar to manage the task plan for one or multiple teams.
• Save lists of contacts, with the filter settings, as view variants to easily switch between teams and view their tasks.
• View contact and task details directly in the calendar.
• Navigate to the Display Task Instance app for detailed task management.
• Navigate to the Manage Task Definition app to view task definition details.

Tasks can be filtered based on location, status, and type. Managers can reassign the tasks by dragging and dropping them between individual users. Managers can change the start and end date by stretching or shrinking the taskbars.

Daily or monthly views are available for monitoring team tasks.

In the process step, Task Monitor and Analysis, the EHS manager can perform the required analysis and monitor the execution of the tasks using the monitoring apps in the system.

The various monitoring applications in the environment management component enable the monitoring of the environmentally relevant data that is available in the system. The Task Processes Explorer application enables you to find and monitor environmentally relevant tasks (actions) that were created in the compliance scenarios. Using the application, tasks can be filtered out based on various criteria, such as:

• Start, or implementation dates.
• Priority
• Compliance scenario
• Compliance requirement paragraph.
• Person responsible, or implementer.

Furthermore, in the application, the task can be processed directly in terms of its implementation status or to perform further task-related operations.

The Monitor Tasks app supports the EHS manager in monitoring the tasks corresponding to certain locations. The tasks can be filtered by:

• Start Date (From and To)
• Implementation Date (From and To)
• Overdue Tasks Only
• Completed Tasks
• Priority
• Responsible
• Implementer
• Location

The data can be exported in spreadsheet format and shared with external experts without the need to provide access to the system.

The regulatory and permit compliance solution consist of three main functional components:

• Compliance Requirement
• Compliance Scenario
• Task Management

To be environmentally compliant, a given location (or a piece of equipment) must adhere to certain requirements: these may be part of the documents (regulations or permits) issued environmental agencies or of the policies issued by the companies themselves. These documents consist of conditions and requirements that are relevant for various industries or businesses and are organized into a given structure (such as chapters, subchapters, parts, subparts, paragraphs). The functional components related to the compliance requirement support the environment manager in creating the compliance repository in the system.

The Compliance Scenario supports the organization of the necessary environmental activities at a given location in the company. The solution provides the possibility of the assignment of compliance requirements to the respective locations, supports the data collation process, and helps in organizing the sampling process. The environment manager is also supported in scheduling the identified compliance tasks.

Using the common process for managing tasks in SAP EHS Management in SAP S/4HANA, the environment manager is supported with the My Inbox app for completing compliance tasks. For example, monitoring the tasks execution through the Task Calendar app.

Regulatory and Permit Compliance supports different ways of presenting the data. With the Monitor Tasks app, the environment manager can monitor the execution of the tasks and organize the follow-up activities. The system fully supports the timely completion of these activities by providing improvised data outputs.

The environmentally related data can also be exported to spreadsheets.

The environment management application component helps companies to stay compliant with emissions-related environmental regulations (air and water emissions.) The solution covers the processes and sub-processes of managing compliance scenario activities to ensure compliance. These processes enable you to create and incorporate a strategy of managing environmentally relevant data from data collection, sampling, calculation, and aggregation of emissions into the daily operations within your company.

The emissions management process supports the day-to-day operations, starting with data collection through validation and reporting.

The data collection is typically done by the operations teams using workflow-based data collection tasks or mobile devices. It is also possible to have an automated data flow.

Data can be uploaded:

• Through Excel mass upload.
• Manually: A mobile app is also available.
• Through interfaces, for example, from process control systems.

When the data is captured, data validations can start. The built-in validation tools can provide insights into the raw data captured and also show what is still missing or which tasks are overdue.

There can also be automatic data aggregation and calculation based on predefined rules.

If data is missing or if there's a data quality problem, a data deviation can be captured to track what data problems were found and what action was taken. This deviation can be done at any stage. If there are limit exceedances, deviations can also be created automatically. The exceedance that must be reported to the authorities can also be investigated with deviations. Corrective actions can be assigned as a part of the investigation.

Master data is a prerequisite for the emissions management process and is used, for example, when defining a compliance scenario.

In this process, a location structure must be created in the system. Without locations, the emissions management process cannot run. The environment manager has to ensure that the required master data is available in the system.

The first step in the process is to identify and prepare the compliance requirements in the system. This is the task for the environment manager in the company. Depending on the purpose of each requirement, the environmental manager can create:

• Regulations
• Permits
• Policies

Regulations, permits, and policies, which are relevant for your operations are modeled in the form of compliance requirements (see the preceding screenshot on the left.)

Inside a compliance requirement, its structure and content are modeled in a hierarchy of paragraphs with environmental limits, regulatory lists, and equations (see the preceding screenshot on the right.)

The compliance requirement details support the environmental manager in defining and adjusting content:

• Environment Limits:

  Limits are used in limit checks and are important to help you stay compliant. Limit definitions are flexible and easy to define. An icon indicator is showing at glance the limit check results.

  Define environmental limits by providing a name, a type such as 'upper, lower, or range limit,' the subject and unit of measure. It is possible to define a limit value and a warning value.

• Regulatory Lists:

  Maintain regulatory list data such as emission factors, which can be used for emissions calculation at a later stage. Depending on the used substance and the pollutant you have to provide the applicable emission factor.

• Equations:

  Equations can be defined within the compliance requirement and can be used for calculating emissions for multiple locations by referencing them in a Compliance Scenario.

They can be used later in the compliance scenario.

Once the compliance requirements are identified and created in the system, the environment manager can document all emissions-related activities into a compliance requirement. The next step in the process is that the environmental manager starts planning the emissions by creating and setting up the activities in the required compliance scenarios.

The compliance scenario is the object that supports the execution of one or more compliance requirements. The main goal of a compliance scenario is to define and plan various types of activities, such as:

• Data collections (most of all emission data)
• Samplings (determining properties and compositions of used materials)
• Calculations (determining emissions from used materials)
• Location-based data aggregations
• Execution of tasks

In the process steps Collect and Sample Data and Calculate and Aggregate Data, the environmental manager must perform the required steps to complete the planning. The respective compliance scenarios for the relevant locations must have been created beforehand.

The step Calculate and Aggregate Data uses the following input data to derive new data from it:

• Collected and aggregated data.
• Data (like emission factors) from the regulatory lists assigned to the compliance requirement.

The Data Collection activity inside a Compliance Scenario defines the responsible persons who collect the emissions data. Also, the schedule of the data collection can be maintained.

The Sampling activity inside a Compliance Scenario defines which substances or components to analyze (= analytes) and what sampling method to use for it.

Calculations determine amounts of gas emissions by using the amounts of incinerated materials (like coal or oil) collected earlier together with the emission factors that apply for those materials. More complicated calculations also exist. The environmental limits can optionally be referenced in a calculation.

Each calculation result can be monitored through Monitor Calculated Data.

The environment manager can use this activity to acquire aggregated values for the environmental data; this aggregated data can be used for environmental assessments and for reporting to the authorities. The aggregation of data is done based on the location structure. These location-based aggregations use as input data collections, sampled data, and calculated data stored for your locations.

In the process step, Monitor Data and Identify Data Issues, the environment manager can check the environmentally related data and identify if there are any issues with the data.

The Monitor Data app shows the available data in the system in form of line charts (see preceding screenshots) or in tabular view.

The app can also be used to approve, replace, invalidate, and create deviations for data with warnings or for exceeded data.

Data can also be imported from MS Excel format.

Collected and calculated data is automatically compared to associated limits in a compliance scenario and flagged, if exceeded.

Limit warnings and exceedances are displayed in the Data Issues - Exceedances and Warning app.

In the Analyze Data and Forecast process step, the environment manager can forecast future emissions and can compare forecasted emission data against the environmental limits.

The environment manager can forecast emissions data based on past emission data with the help of predictive learning algorithms and statistical methods.

Also, it is possible to compare the forecasted emission data against the environmental limits. By getting an early indication of future deviations or noncompliance, the environment manager can plan proactively, to avoid potentially unwanted events.

In the process step, Monitor Data and Identify Data Issues, the environment manager can check the environmentally related data and identify if there are any issues with the data.

The Environmental Data Explorer app enables the environmental manager to monitor environmental data (collected, calculated, sampled, or aggregated) at any given location and below in a hierarchy.

The main concept of the tool is to allow the environmental manager to check, verify, and analyze the data using flexible filters.

The Environmental Explorer provides a functionality to export the data to:

• Spreadsheets
• File-based report

There are few profiles delivered by the standard that could be directly used or can be used as templates and bases for custom file-based reports.

In the process step, Identify Deviations, the environmental manager starts monitoring the data on a plant level and performs checks against company goals about compliance with applicable environmental limits.

A deviation record is an event that indicates the violation of specific environmental requirements.

The environmental manager realizes that there are deviations from the environmental limits and deviation records have to be created to further investigate these causes.

Once deviations have been identified, they can be created as records in the system, and a proper investigation can be performed and documented. The environmental manager can use this procedure to review and complete deviation records that have been created for inconsistent environmentally related data. During the review and completion process, you can check the information that is already available for the deviation and change it if necessary.

Within the deviation record all related tasks, which support the analysis of the deviation can be defined and triggered. The data must be approved before the task is complete.

Based on the monitoring and analysis of incoming monthly emission data, a deviation incident can be created for the data where company goals are not met. A deviation incident for a selected data record (collected or calculated data) can be created. An investigation can then be triggered to analyze the reason for it as part of another process. A deviation record is an event of violation of specific environmental requirements.

You can define actions and notifications that must be implemented in response to a deviation. This includes starting processes that trigger their implementation in SAP EHS Management or integrated components. 

Data records from deviations must be approved before they can be used as input in calculations.

This slide gives an overview of the functional components and objects used in the five main phases of the emission management process:

1. Identify and structure the relevant environmental requirements.
2. Plan the necessary activities to fulfill the above requirements.
3. Collect and/or calculate emission data.
4. Monitor the collected and calculated data.
5. Record and process deviations (= violations of environmental requirements, missing data, or data quality problems.)

To be environmentally compliant, a given location (or a piece of equipment) must adhere to certain requirements. These requirements are part of the documents (regulations or permits) issued by the global environmental agencies or of the policies issued by the companies. These documents consist of conditions and requirements that are relevant for various industries or businesses and are organized into a given order (such as chapters, subchapters, parts, subparts, or paragraphs). The functional components related to the compliance requirement support the environment manager in creating the compliance registry in the system.

The compliance scenario consists of components that mainly support your organization for all the environmental activities at a given location in the company. The solution provides the possibility of assignment of compliance requirement to the respective locations. It also supports the data collation process and helps in organizing the sampling process. The environment manager is also supported in scheduling the identified compliance tasks.

Using the common process for managing tasks in SAP EHS Management on SAP S/4HANA, the environment manager is supported with My Inbox for completing compliance tasks and monitoring the tasks' execution using, for example, the Task Calendar app.