ISO certification involves multiple steps. Patience and precision are crucial to move through each of these steps successfully. It usually takes anywhere between six months to one year to complete these steps provided you seek assistance from a reputed ISO certification organization. Business owners who intend to accomplish the task on their own may take longer as they require understanding the nitty-gritty’s of this complex certification before they start with the stepwise process. The amount of time involved also depends on the ISO standard you want to achieve.
Let us take a brief look at the different kinds of ISO certification in Mumbai and the steps they involve. This should give you a fair idea about the time you may take to achieve them. By the time you finish reading this article, you shall also have a better understanding about what ISO certification is all about.
Different ISO Standards
ISO, short for International Organization for Standardization, is a globally recognized organization that creates best practices for different industries to help various big and small businesses run systematically and successfully. More than 22,600 ISO Standards have been created to match different industries. Some of these are ISO 9001:2015, ISO 20121, ISO 27001, ISO 45001, ISO 14001, ISO 50001, ISO 31000, ISO 26000 and ISO 22000. Most of them require more or less the same amount of time to accomplish.
ISO Certification – The Various Steps in the Process
ISO certification involves a number of steps. These steps has its own set of rules that organizations must follow to attain ISO certification in Pune. From implementation to registration – the steps are crucial and complex but one can sail through smoothly with the help of professionals that have expertise in the field. Here is a look at the various steps in the process from the very beginning:
Select the ISO Standard
As already mentioned, there are a number of ISO standards. For instance ISO 27001 sets high standards for information security management, ISO 14001 is for environmental management, ISO 22008 is for food safety management, ISO 9001 2008 is for quality management, ISO 16949 is specifically for the automotive industry, ISO 17025 facilitates coordination between industries, TL 9000 sets quality standards for telecommunication industry, ISO 13485 is for medical devices, ISO29001 has been designed for oil and gas industry. Therefore, the first step in the process is to understand which ISO standard is relevant to your industry and as per your requirement and choose the one you want to implement.
Choose an ISO Body
The next step in the process is to choose an ISO certification body. Confused? Well, the certification is done by external bodies and not by ISO. You should choose a credible certification body for this task. While doing so, you must pay attention to the following:
- Go through the profile of different ISO Certification service providers to check their qualification and experience.
- Check if it is accredited or not. Your certification body should meet the ISO Accreditation bodies’ requirement.
- Ensure that they are following the CASCO standards.
Sign the Contract
The next step is to create and sign the contract. The contract should have well defined points related to the rights, liability issues and obligations of both the parties. You and the ISO registrar must agree on the points mentioned in the contract and it should be signed by both the parties as a proof.
Collate and Review the Documents
Collate all the necessary documents pertaining to your company’s policies and procedures and ensure they are complete and up to the mark as the ISO auditor will review them. The auditor will review your documents at length to see if the policies and procedures set by you meet the ISO standards. He will take note of any loopholes or gaps in them.
Create an Action Plan
To achieve ISO certification in Pune, you must create an effective action plan on the basis of the gaps communicated by the auditor. Write down all that you need to do to fill these gaps and start working on them. You may require giving special training to your staff members to overcome the issues. You may even require replacing some inventory/ machinery to meet the ISO standards. This is a crucial step. You must improvise as guided by the auditor.
Initial Certification
Stage 1
The ISO auditor will assess your processes yet again to see whether you have made the suggested changes to meet the set standards. The non-conformities will be divided into two groups – minor and major. You must work upon these and make the necessary changes to qualify.
Stage 2
It is time now for the final audit by the ISO auditor. He will once again check whether you have worked upon and eliminated all the non-conformities or not. If your processes and policies meet the ISO standard then he will prepare the audit report in your favour and send it to the registrar.
The Final Step
The registrar will review the audit report thoroughly and grant the ISO certification if he is satisfied that you meet the set requirement.
In a nutshell, unlike various other certifications, you don’t merely sit through an assessment for a few hours to attain the certificate when it comes to achieving ISO Standard. The process is long, complex and involves several steps. Identifying the ISO Standard you want to implement, choosing the ISO certification body, creating and signing the contract, collating the documents and getting them checked, creating action plan to fill the gaps, undergoing both the stages of certification process and finally getting the approval from the ISO auditor and registrar are among the various steps that form a part of ISO certification process.
The process demands your time and effort. You may take close to 6 months to 1 year to achieve ISO certification. In some cases, the time taken may be even greater. It is best to seek professional help to achieve ISO certification in Mumbai. Do let us know if you require any further information regarding the same. https://newusamarket.com/
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