The ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is an independent, non-governmental, international organization that develops standards to ensure the quality, safety, and efficiency of products, services, and systems. As a small business owner, if you plan to bid on projects, particularly tenders released by larger corporations and government bodies, there is a good chance you will come across a requirement for ISO certification. While there are many types of ISO certifications, they are all designed to ensure that the products, services and process a company uses conform to acceptable international standards. As technology continues to rapidly develop, new standards are drafted and implemented by people at all levels within the global industry going through standardization.
Type of ISO Certification
First of all, you need to choose the type of ISO certification required for your business. There are various types of ISO certification available such as :
ISO 9001 2008 | Quality Management |
ISO 14001 | Environmental Management |
ISO 27001 | Information security Management |
ISO 22008 | Food Safety Management and so on. |
Required Documents for obtaining ISO Certification
- Company profile
- Company letterhead
- Copy of Sales & Purchase bill
- Address Proof
- Pan card
- Visiting card
Process to becoming ISO Certified:-
Individuals cannot become ISO certified only businesses and organizations can. Additionally, ISO doesn’t provide the certification; certifications are only made possible through third-party organizations. However, as you might expect, the ISO does have a Committee on Conformity Assessment (CASCO) which manages the qualifications of the certification process. The ISO does not certify organizations itself. To become certified, you need to contact a third-party that will audit your organization and determine whether or not your processes, products and services full fill the ISO criteria. Most companies begin with ISO certification, which is the basis for most of the other ISO standards. The cost of being certified varies depending on the size of your company. The process can take up to a year or more.
Organizations that can provide your company with ISO certification also have standards that they should adhere to, which are developed by the ISO’s Committee on Conformity Assessment, or CASCO. You may choose an organization that is accredited by CASCO as fulfilling its requirements, however the ISO acknowledges that not all certifying agents need to be CASCO-accredited.
Once your company is ISO certified, you will be provided with a certificate from the certifying agency, which you can use when bidding for contracts or in your advertising to clients to show that your products or services adhere to the ISO’s exacting standards. When choosing a certification body, it’s important to evaluate a few agencies to select the best fit for your organization. One of the points to consider is if that agency utilizes the latest, relevant standards and if they are an accredited body. The timeline of certification training depends on numerous factors, including studying the requirements, level of preparation of an organization, and the size and complexity of the organization. Most can expect to receive their certification in three to six months.
ISO certification ensures that an organization runs its business using international standards for products, services and processes. These can include business management, environmental policies, or they can be standards that were developed by the ISO for specific business sectors.
Cost of certification
The cost of accreditation varies from organization to organization. Therefore, it is based on many factors like:
- The nature of business and type of certification applied for
- The certification body chose
- The size of the organization, employee count and the number of processes involved
- The risk level associated with the processes
FAQs:-
Qus:-What is needed for ISO certification?
To become ISO certified, a company or organization must submit documents that report its internal processes, procedures and standards. These documents (or Quality Management System) determines that a company is able to provide quality products and services consistently.
Qus:-Does ISO certification expire?
Talking about the validity of ISO 9001 certification, we can often see that ISO 9001 certification is valid for 3 years. During the validity of the certificate, the certification body conducts annual monitoring and evaluation. … The reevaluation is conducted in the same way as the first certification audit.
Qus:-How do I maintain ISO 9000 certification?
The way to do this is through an annual—or biannual—surveillance audit between certifications. These surveillance audits don’t really have to be as extensive as the initial audit. Two years of surveillance audits are then followed by the recertification audit.
Qus:-Which ISO certification is best?
All standards within the ISO 9000 family refer to quality management. ISO 9001 is among ISO’s best-known standards, and it defines the criteria for meeting a number of quality management principles. It helps businesses and organizations be more efficient and improve customer satisfaction.