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| ISO 9001 & ISO 14001 >> |
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| ISO 9001 |
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Customers are becoming more sophisticated, better informed and their expectations are growing. Any business that wants to stay in business has to keep up by offering quality products and services as well as providing assurance of this commitment. Organizations can demonstrate this and secure themselves a future through an ISO 9001 Quality Management System (QMS) certification.
This standard is recognized worldwide in more than 140 countries and belongs to the ISO 9000 series of standards. The ISO 9000 series is amongst the International Organisation for Standardisation's (ISO) most widely known and used standards.
ISO 9001 has been designed to be a 'generic' management system standard, applicable for organizations of any size and type. Thus, it is widely accepted and adopted by manufacturing and service organisations, non-profit organizations, and even governmental departments the world over. The ISO 9001 provides an effective framework for any quality conscious organisation that would like to consistently provide products and services that meet their customers' requirements; and continually improve on their products, processes and system to enhance satisfaction. |
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| Benefits of Implementation |
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ISO 9001 provides uncountable benefits - both tangible and intangible. A typical organisation would enjoy the following: |
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a systematic approach to control all its processes and well defined procedures and supporting documentation |
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greater transparency and consistency in its output |
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an established plan-do-check-act approach that drives improvements |
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greater quality awareness amongst employees and reduced defects, scraps, rework, failures and service recovery |
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the means to assure a sound quality management system by having a third party certification that is recognised worldwide |
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correspondingly, a reduced need for multiple second party audits |
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and ultimately, a reduction in customer complaints, retention of customers and an increase in its ability to penetrate new markets and increase its market share |
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ISO 14001 |
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| ISO 14000 is a series of international standards on environmental management. One of the series of standards is ISO 14001, an internationally accepted specification for an Environmental Management System (EMS). It specifies requirements for establishing an environmental policy, determining the environmental aspects and impacts, planning the environmental objectives and targets, implementation and operation of programs to meet them, checking, corrective action and management review. Compliance to environmental regulation is also an element that is addressed in the standard.
Another commonly known document within the series is ISO 14004 which provides guidelines on the development and implementation of an EMS . |
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Benefits of Implementation |
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| ISO 14001 provides uncountable benefits - both tangible and intangible. A typical organisation would enjoy the following: |
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improved corporate image among regulators, customers and the public |
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improved perception and understanding of key environmental issues by all within the organisation |
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a framework for continuous improvement of the organisation's environmental performance and an improved ability to comply with regulatory requirements |
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measures taken to generate less waste will lead to reduced product, material handling and waste disposal costs that can be ploughed back into the business |
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increased efficiency and better use of energy and raw materials will invariably lead to savings and a more profitable business |
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a strong environmental image can help to attract environmentally conscious customers and in this, expand market share |
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increased awareness and environmentally conscious actions will lead to betterment of the environment for the community and the nation at large |
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