Quality Assurance – the Key to higher Customer Satisfaction

  • Today, more than 340,000 Europian organisations are assessed against the ISO 9001 quality benchmark each year and almost 1,100,000 world-wide, highlighting the value in this globally attractive ‘transaction passport’.

    Once considered only applicable to factories and production centres, the revised ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems (QMS) Standard now has widespread international acceptance as the ISO 9001 quality benchmark for all types of organisations.

    Sophisticated workflow processes make a decisive contribution to the quality of your products or services. A quality management system that uses ISO 9001 certification is therefore well suited for all sectors and sizes of company – from start-ups to international corporations. With its process orientation, ISO 9001 certification takes your company’s specific requirements and outlook into consideration. It also ensures ongoing development using a continuous improvement process (CIP).

    Eight Quality Management Principles using by ISO 9001 is:

    • Customer focus
    • Leadership
    • Involvement of people
    • Process approach
    • System approach
    • Continual Improvement
    • Fact based decision making
    • Mutually beneficial supplier relationship

    Benefits at a Glance

    ISO 9001 certification from TÜV SVERIGE enables you to:

    • Generate      confidence and enable global comparisons
    • Improve      your company’s customer focus
    • Cut costs
    • Improve      processes and structures sustainably
    • Motivate      your employees with better communication and information that is easier to      access

    Why seek ISO 9001 certification?

    ISO 9001 certification by an accredited certification body shows commitment to quality, customers, and a willingness to work towards improving efficiency.

    It demonstrates the existence of an effective quality management system that satisfies the rigors of an independent, external audit.

    ISO 9001 certification enhances company image in the eyes of customers, employees and shareholders alike.

    It also gives a competitive edge to an organization’s marketing.

ISO 9001

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 TUV SVERIGE - the organization 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 TUV SVERIGE and      maintained by the organization. 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 organization 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 organization cannot be certified until corrective action is taken and verified.