ISO 9001: 2000

ISO 9000 is a generic name given to a family of standards developed to provide a framework around which a quality management system can effectively be based. The ISO 9000 family of standards was revised in December 2000. ISO 9000 family of standards can be implemented by any organization irrespective of size, nature or complexity of the business.

ISO 9001:2000, the requirement standard, includes the following main sections:


Quality Management System
1. Management Responsibility
2. Resource Management
3. Product Realization
4. Measurement Analysis and Improvement
Why ISO 9001:2000

Internal Benefits
• Better management of core business processes.
• Increased awareness of quality among staff.
• Improved productivity and quality .
• Improved internal communications .
• Reduced wastage and cost per unit/service

External Benefits:
1. Competitive Advantage: 72.3% of corporations with ISO 9001:2000 report a major competitive advantage. This means they are winning more business. (Source – Dun and Bradstreet Survey)
2. Improves Customer Demand: 33.4% of corporations with ISO 9001:2000 report improved customer demand. This means they are winning more business. (Source – Dun and Bradstreet Survey)
3. Protect Your Business: 69.3% of surveyed businesses that do not have ISO 9001:2000 say they have lost a customer bid or proposal to an ISO 9001:2000 certified competitor. Many of these companies said they didn’t know why they were losing the business until it was too late.

4. Your Competitors Are Doing It: In many industries, 35 to 40% of your competitors are ISO 9001:2000 Registered or in the process. The longer you wait to start, the greater is their competitive advantage.
5. Easy & Cost Effective : Getting ISO 9001:2000 is no longer the costly, time consuming proposition that it once was. Using our system to become ISO 9001:2000 compliant is very simple and inexpensive. It will put you way ahead of your competition and will enable you to improve your systems and operations.
6. Qualify for Government Contracts : The Department of Defense, Food and Drug Administration, Railways, Department of Energy and the General Services Administration have all approved the use of ISO 9001:2000 in contracts and bids.
7. Increased Credibility : You can generate a significant increase in business, as many corporations will only deal with ISO 9001:2000 Registered or Complaint companies.

ISO 14001
An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a structured approach to address the environmental issues affecting your business. As a pragmatic system it helps you to understand the inter-relations and importance of each of its elements, from Policy to Operational Control, including Training and Communication among others. As a result ISO 14001 is by far the most used and recognized model for an EMS.

In fact ISO 14001 has been growing fast since it was published in 1996, see chart below. Even if not perfect, ISO 14001 helps your organization to achieve and communicate the implementation, maintenance and certification of an EMS. An ISO 14001 certificate is recognized all around the world, from Argentina to Zimbabwe, eliminating barriers and facilitating trade.