ISO 9001:2008

ISO 9001:2008 is the International standard for Quality Management Systems (QMS).




It provides your company with a set of principles that ensure a common sense approach to the management of your business activities to consistently achieve customer satisfaction.



Who is ISO 9001:2008 applicable to?

Any organisation can benefit from implementing ISO 9001:2008 as its requirements are underpinned by eight management principles:



a customer focused organisation

leadership

the involvement of people

ensuring a process approach

a systematic approach to management

a factual approach to decision making

mutually beneficial supplier relations

continuous improvement

What are the benefits of registration?

Customer satisfaction - through delivery of products that consistently meet customer requirements

Reduced operating costs - through continual improvement of processes and resulting operational efficiencies

Improved stakeholder relationships - including staff, customers and suppliers

Legal compliance - by understanding how statutory and regulatory requirements impact on the organization and its your customers

Improved risk management - through greater consistency and traceability of products and services

Proven business credentials - through independent verification against recognized standards

Ability to win more business - particularly where procurement specifications require certification as a condition to supply

How to gain registration?

The process of registration follows three simple steps:



Application for registration is made by completing the QMS questionnaire

Assessment to ISO 9001:2008 is undertaken by NQA - the organisation must be able to demonstrate that its quality management system has been fully operative for a minimum of three months and has been subject of a full cycle of internal audits

Registration is granted by NQA and maintained by the organisation. Maintenance is confirmed through a programme of annual surveillance visits and a three yearly re-certification audit.

Initial Certification Audit

The assessment process for achieving certification consists of a two stage Initial Certification Audit as follows:



Stage 1 - the purpose of this visit is to confirm the readiness of the organisation for full assessment. The assessor will:



confirm that the quality manual conforms to the requirements of ISO 9001:2008

confirm its implementation status

confirm the scope of certification

check legislative compliance

produce a report that identifies any non-compliance or potential for non-compliance and agree a corrective action plan if required.

produce an assessment plan and confirm a date for the Stage 2 assessment visit.

Stage 2 - the purpose of this visit is to confirm that the quality management system fully conforms to the requirements of ISO 9001:2008 in practice. The assessor will:



undertake sample audits of the processes and activities defined in the scope of assessment

document how the system complies with the standard

report any non-compliances or potential for non-compliance

produce a surveillance plan and confirm a date for the first surveillance visit

If the assessor identifies any major non-conformance, the organisation cannot be certified until corrective action is taken and verified