In the course of audit which was conducted at Severstal for four days, sample check ups of 23 company units were done, including the procurement department, the manufacturing units, HR department, and the Occupational Health and Safety Department itself.

According to Valery Karpov, BVQI' senior auditor, the Severstal's occupational health and safety management system is recommended for OHSAS 18001:1999 certification.

"This is not the first time I come to Severstal. Therefore, I can see for myself what changes take pace in its management systems. Severstal is one of the first Russian companies that has understood the importance of certification of its integrated management system. This includes the quality management system, certified to ISO 9001:2000, and its environmental management system, certified to ISO 14001:96. We have every hope that the OHSAS certificate will complement that hard work."

In Russia, just Lukoil is certified to OHSAS. According to experts, occupational health and safety management system at Severstal presently meets not just the requirements of OHSAS:18001 but is one of the most well thought out systems of its kind, encompassing all aspects of the company's activity.

International norms require that this certificate is issued to a company for three years. Every quarter international auditors, who issued the certificate in the first place, perform checks of selected company units. In three years the company has to undergo rectification. In the beginning of December Severstal had a recertifying audit of its quality management system, which was recommended for certification to ISO 9001:2000.