ISO certification is difficult to achieve, but it is generally worth the time and effort involved. ISO certification is universally recognized as a measure of quality, reliability and performance. It can be a selling point with customers. It may be a requirement to be allowed to supply large corporations products or services, whether you’re delivering car parts or financial software. Here is an overview of how to get ISO certification for your company.
Understand Your Objectives
Nearly any company can become ISO certified with regard to their product or service quality. This requires setting up a quality management system to collect the necessary metrics and setting up and enforcing formal processes.
ISO certification can be more specific than this. For example, you may need to meet ISO standards for material quality, environmental testing of products or IT security. Know what ISO certifications you need to meet before you select a consultant. After all, an ISO 9001 quality certification doesn’t guarantee your plastic pipes meet water quality standards.
Choose the Right ISO Consultant
Once you have identified the ISO standards you need to meet, you need to find the right ISO consultant. Click here to visit this website to find the best ISO automotive experts, whether you need to meet IATF 16949 standards or need help determining the right statistical process control metrics to track. Work with quality management system experts when you’re first setting up a QMS to meet ISO 9001 standards, and only hire an environmental expert to set up formal processes for meeting the ISO 14000 environmental standards.
Implement Your New Procedures
Whether you’re setting up a basic quality management system for parts or performing detailed functional testing, you need to set up ISO compliance systems. It isn’t enough to have formal procedures on how to do everything. Your organization must train people in how to perform these procedures and ensure that they are doing so correctly. They must get in the habit of filling out the necessary documentation and running the appropriate tests correctly. Once these systems are established, work with the ISO consultant to verify that the system is effective. Be certain that the process is stable and reliable. Then you can register your system for ISO certification.
Maintain Certification
ISO certification is never “once and done”. You’re subject to audits from the ISO to verify that you remain ISO compliant. Customers who only want to work with ISO certified organizations may audit your records or your processes themselves. As your business processes or designs change, your procedures need to change as well.
This means you need to have your business periodically audited by an ISO consultant to ensure that you remain in compliance with the ISO standards you want to meet. Consider voluntary preliminary ISO audits an investment in your business, because you can’t afford to lose customers because you failed to maintain your ISO compliant processes or didn’t keep up with the paperwork.
Consider bringing in a consultant when you’re planning on changing your processes, whether you’re going to install new shop floor data management software or begin buying parts you used to make in house. Get advice on how to select the right suppliers and guarantee that they meet ISO standards themselves.
