International standards make things work! They provide globally recognized specifications for products, systems and services. ISO is the International Organization for Standardization and for most industries, when a company is looking for a supplier, it is often a requirement that they have a Quality Management System certified to an ISO standard in order to be considered.
With ISO 9001, the concept of standardized quality management allows companies to deliver consistent and reliable quality products and services to their customers. The previous ISO 9001:2008 was superseded in September of 2015 by ISO 9001:2015.
ISO 9001 is the most widely used management system standard with over 1.1 million certificates issued worldwide, ISO 9001 helps organizations demonstrate to customers that they can offer products and services of consistently good quality.The new ISO 9001:2015 has been designed to be more flexible so that it can be applied more easily to all organizational types and industries. It follows the basic ISO structure of all management system standards and is therefore easy to integrate with environmental management (ISO 14001) or occupational health and safety (ISO 45001).
The 2015 edition features important changes, which Nigel Croft, Chair of the ISO subcommittee that developed and revised the standard, refers to as an “evolutionary rather than a revolutionary” process.
“Knowing that today’s organizations will have several management standards in place, we have designed the 2015 version to be easily integrated with other management systems. The new version also provides a solid base for sector-quality standards (automotive, aerospace, medical industries, etc.), and takes into account the needs of regulators.”
ISO 9001:2015 holds seven quality management principles:
(1) Customer Focus
(2) Leadership
(3) Engagements of People
(4) Process Approach
(5) Continuous Improvement
(6) Evident-based Decision Making
(7) Supplier Relationship Management
Although not required, there are many benefits to be gained from obtaining ISO 9001 certification. It is not just for large organizations but also smaller entities. By adopting an efficient QMS, organizations will save time, lower overheads, increase efficiency and improve customer relationships.
To be issued an ISO Compliance Certificate, a company must pass a third-party audit to ensure that their Quality Management System is effective and meets all the requirements of the specific ISO standard they are trying to achieve.
AuditComply can be used by organizations to facilitate their ISO compliance needs. Users work with the AuditComply platform to generate bespoke audit templates to streamline and ensure adherence to their internal quality management system processes. With AuditComply, users have the ability to carry out their audits and inspections anywhere across the globe due to AuditComply’s offline functionality.
After completing your internal audit, share your findings with your stakeholders, with an automatic report generated at the touch of a button. AuditComply’s unique grading system enables users to set out rules and thresholds allowing for a more effective process and result. Raising and managing non-compliant issues, is made simple with AuditComply’s 360 non conformance management workflow, simply capture the evidence and attach to your report.
Once audits are completed, all records are securely stored on the cloud for access whenever and wherever you need them. Your audit data can be sorted and filtered with ease using the AuditComply portal, allowing for a greater insight into your internal auditing process.
Organizations across the globe are beginning to realize the true benefits of conducting their internal audits with AuditComply.
ISO’s family of standards on quality management and quality management systems, developed by ISO/TC 176, includes:
–ISO 9001:2015, Quality management systems – Requirements
–ISO 9000:2015, Quality management systems – Fundamentals and vocabulary
To learn more about ISO 9001:2015 check out: Lehrke (ISO 9001:2015)
For more information on ISO9001:2015 please visit: https://www.iso.org.
To find out more about how AuditComply can help you reach ISO 9001 compliance please contact us at info@auditcomply.com
Disclaimer: This blog is not legal advice and should be considered educational in nature.