ISO 9000 certification standards were invented by the International Organization for Standardization. International standardization began in the electrotechnical field: the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) was created in 1906. Pioneering work in other fields was carried out the International Federation of the National Standardizing Associations (ISA), which was set up in 1926. The emphasis within ISA was laid heavily on mechanical engineering. ISA’s activities ceased in 1942, owing to WW II . Following a meeting in London in 1946, delegates from 25 countries decided to create a new international organization “the object of which would be to facilitate the international coordination and unification of industrial standards”. The new organization, ISO, began to function on February 23, 1947. The first ISO standard was published in 1951 with the title “Standard Reference Temperature for Industrial Length Measurement”. This is just a little history to inform you of how we got here to today. We need to remember that without the ISO we would not have the ISO 9000 standards. ISO is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies, at present comprising 130 members, one in each country. ISO is a non-governmental organization. Their mission is to promote the development of standardization and related activities in the world with a view to facilitating the international exchange of goods and services, and to developing cooperation in the spheres of intellectual, scientific, technological and economic activity. ISO certification plays a major role in setting quality standards for global manufactures. Many European companies require that their vendors meet theses standards as a must for doing business with them (Chase, 1998).
ISO 9000 is becoming the most popular quality standard in the world. Thousands of organizations have already adopted this important standard, and many more are following. ISO 9000 applies to all types of organizations. No matter how big or small your business is ISO 9000 can make your company better for the future. ISO 9000s, is a series of four international industrial (ISO 9000-9004) (Cateora, 1999).
What is ISO 9000
As stated earlier ISO 9000 are International Standards used to make
life simpler and to increase the reliability and effectiveness of the goods
and services we use. Also the ISO 9000 Standards define the requirements
for a Quality System. The requirements outline the foundation for
good, common sense business practices. Although ISO 9000 is generally
voluntary, except for certain regulated products, the EU Product Liability
Directive puts pressure on all companies to become certified. The
directive holds that a manufacturer, including an exporter, will be liable,
regardless of fault or negligence, if a person is harmed by a product that
fails because of a faulty component (Cateora, 1999). The more a manufacturer
has a well-documented quality system the better able to prove that their
products are defect-free and thus minimize liability claims. As the
market demands quality and more and companies adept some form of TQM, manufacturers
are increasingly requiring ISO 9000 registration of their suppliers. Buyers
in Europe, are refusing to buy from manufactures that do not have internationally
recognized third-party proof of their capabilities (Cateora, 1999).
Here are the definitions for the four ISO standards.
ISO 9000- is used to clarify concepts and too see which ISO publications
you should study.
ISO 9001-Quality systems-Model for quality assurance in design, development,
production, installation and servicing.
ISO 9002-Quality systems –Model for quality assurance in production,
installation and servicing
ISO 9003- Quality systems-Model for quality assurance in final inspection
and test
ISO 9004-is used if you intend to develop a quality system, list elements
that make up the quality system. There are 20 points that you important
to ISO 9004.
Why is International Standardization needed
The existence of non-harmonized standards for similar technologies in
different countries of regions can contribute to technical barriers to
trade. Export mained industries have long sensed the need to agree
on world standards to help rationalize the international trading progress.
This is why the ISO was established in the first place.
Main reasons:
1. Worldwide progress in the trade liberalization
2. Interpenetration of sectors
3. Worldwide communications system
4. Global standards for emerging technologies
5. Developing countries
How are ISO standards developed
The principles are developed according to:
Consensus:
The views of all interests are taken into account, vendors,
manufacturers, users, and consumer groups, testing laboratories, governments,
engineering professions and research organization.
Industry-wide:
Global solutions to satisfy industries and customers worldwide.
Voluntary:
International standardization is market-driven and therefore
based on voluntary involvement of all interests in the market place.
Why should an organization implement ISO 9000, that is easy, to keep customers. To keep them satisfied and still buying your product, your product needs to meet the customer’s requirements. Also to have a successful implementation of a quality system a major commitment of people and time is needed.
The keys to an efficient implementation of a successful quality
system are:
1. Starting with a solid plan
2. Know what you already have in place
3. Know what you need to add to meet the ISO Standard
4. Know the best way to add the needed components
5. Involve employees who understand the ISO standards and you quality
system goals
During implementation you can see benefits such as process improvements
and
Increased quality awareness. Later after implementation you will
notice the presents of market advantages and internal advantages.
To receive ISO 9000 certification a company requests a certifying
body to conduct a registration assessment. The assessment is and
audit of the key business process of a company. The assessor will
ask questions about everything from blueprints to sales calls to filing.
Two important question that will be ask are does the supplier meet promised
delivery dates and is there evidence of customer satisfaction. When
accreditation is granted, the company receives certification. A complete
assessment for recertification is done every four years (Cateora, 1999).
But to implement the project will typically take about 12 months, but can
range anywhere for 9 to 18 months. A few factors can affect the timeline
including size and complexity of the organization, how much existing documentation
is available which can be used. Also the amount of resources available
for the project and the ISO expertise available will have an affect on
the timeline for your company. If you still need more information
on the ISO 9000 they have training programs to help. ISO and many of its
members are involved in consulting and training services which include
seminars on the application of standards in quality assurance systems,
technical assistance to exporters concerning standards requirements in
other countries, workplace on consumer involvement in standardization,
and conferences and symposia covering recent developments in the testing
and certification.
ISO PINS
This is a neat idea to celebrate a job well done. These
pins say things from ISO 9001 Registered to Quality Hero. These pins
were designed to advertise a company’s registration and recognize those
who contributed to implementing an ISO 9000 or QS 9000 quality system.
Here are just a few companies that have purchased buttons to show that
they believe in quality, IBM, Silicon Graphics, Nokia Telecommunications,
Xerox Business Services and Argo Systems, Inc. (Boeing Company). When I
found this I was pleased to know that someone come up with an idea to encourage
people to show how proud they are about quality.
What is the
year 2000 series
Each ISO technical committee is responsible for reviewing its
standards every 5 years in order to see if the standards are still relevant.
They submitted a revision in 1998, with several key goals to have universal
acceptance, current compatibility, forward compatibility, and forward flexibility.
At this time the release for the standard have no specific date. Besides
having a few goals they have also made a list of things that are to be
looked at more closely. They are as follows: changing to an
emphasis on consumer satisfaction, changing to four main points instead
of the twenty points, subcontractors will be called suppliers and there
is more emphasis on quality objectives.
Companies that use ISO 9000 Standards
IBM uses ISO 9000
standards. So I took a look at the IBM Canada ISO 9000 Consulting
Practise. Which was created in 1993 as a result of the experience gained
from having three Canadian and 150 worldwide IBM sites registered to the
ISO 9000 standard. IBM Canada stated their own plan to meet the ISO 9000
standards. They did this for many reasons some stated earlier, but
here are some that were important to IBM. Customer demand, Government
requirements, process improvement, visibility and customer satisfaction
are very important to IBM. That is why IBM Canada ISO 9000 Consulting Practise
was started.
When doing research I found an article that talked about a small
company that that has been working toward ISO certified for a few years.
The company was Zenmar Power Tools &Hoists, in Cockeysville, Md.
It talks about the procedures that they are going though to get to the
ISO 9000 process, such as the documentation that is needed to get in a
condition to get certified in the ISO 9000 standards. A Company hope
to get certified by the end of 1999 (Frazia, 1999). We sometime forget
about the small companies and all they have to go though to get certified.
In my research I also found that many companies in less developed nations
were getting certified. A company in Chile in the mining business
is getting certified. In an article it is stated which mining industry
likely to be certified under ISO 9001, 9002, 9003(Chadwick, 1999).
It is nice to learn of other companies that I would not have thought of
would be interested in ISO 9000 Standards.
There is a lot to understand when doing research on ISO 9000.
There is a lot of
Information to be found on the subject. I believe that it is
very important for companies to have these standards. By having these
standards we are improving the quality of products and services.
As future business people, we need to be aware of the growing awareness
that is sweeping the nation dealing with quality. ISO standards are
here to stay and are only becoming a bigger part of the business world.
We just need to stay informed. Maybe in twenty years the whole world will
be ISO 9000 certified or at least on their way to getting certified.
1. ISO 9000 Checklist- http://www.iso9000checklist.com/index.html
2. ISO 9000 Translated into Plain English- http://connect.ab.ca/~praxiom
3. Quest Analytical, Inc.- http://www.questanalytical.com/welcome/ISO/iso.htm
4. Introduction to ISO- http://www.iss.ch/infoe.htm#
5. Manufacturing Solutions-
http://www.can.ibm.com/mfg/iso9000.html
Production and Operations Management ”Manufacturing and Services”, eight
edition
Chase, Aquilano, and Jacobs: 1998 Irwin/McGraw-Hill
International Marketing, tenth edition
Cateora, and Graham: 1999 Irwin/McGraw-Hill
Chadwick, John. “ISO 9000” Mining Magazine Feb 1999 v180
Frazia, Victoria. “Making Quality A Priority” Industrial Distribution
May 1999
My name is Gretchen Lear. I was born in Winfield, Ks.
I have lived my whole life in that beautiful place. It is know to
many as the home of Southwestern College. I have a younger sister
and brother. I will graduate in the fall of 1999 with a degree
in Business. My major is business administration. I hope to
find a job in sale field or human resources upon leaving ESU. In
my free time I like to spend time with my friends and my family.
Lasted updated 7/27/99
For comments email Gretchen
Lear