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Iso Certified

Iso Standards 101: Understanding the Basics of Iso Quality Management Systems

There are more than enough ISO standards to confuse any organization that's looking to get certified. Today, there are over 16,000 standards being used by certifying bodies to assess, monitor and audit any organization seeking to improve its quality management system. Here is a short explanation on what these standards are and their specific usages:

ISO Standards
ISO standards contain the metrics or specifications required in order to achieve the guidelines or criteria specified under that series. These standards are referred to as ISO series in order to refer to groups of standards used for quality management and assurance.

An ISO standard is identified as the ISO series and its version. For example – ISO 9001:2005. This indicates that the ISO standard in place is ISO 9001 with the 2005 version.

Here are some of the most popular ISO standards applied for:

ISO 9000
This is a very popular ISO series, ranging from ISO 9001 to ISO 9999. ISO 9000 is the quality management system used by companies that engage in production. ISO standards in these series include:

ISO 9126 – used as a model for software quality
ISO 9362 – used to regulate BIC or Bank Identifier Code
ISO 9564 – used to maintain quality in PIN (Personal Identification Number) security and management

ISO 14000
This series is the system used to implement standards in environmental management, specifically in a production environment. A few standards in these series include:

ISO 14001 – standard for general environmental management
ISO 14064 – standard used for handling greenhouse gases
ISO 14230 – implemented for diagnostic systems used for road vehicles
ISO 14698-1 – used for bio-contamination control

ISO 10000
This series is used to establish ISO standards and guidelines for project management quality. The series includes:

ISO 10012 – used to implement standards in the production of measuring equipment and for measurement processes
ISO/IEC 10077 – sets the standards for the calculation of heat transmittance in products such as shutters, windows and doors
ISO 10211 – establishes the necessary guidelines for making detailed calculations of surface temperature for the construction of buildings
ISO 10628 – sets the standards for the creation of flow diagrams used in process plants

ISO 20000
The ISO 20000 series sets the standards for guidelines used in establishing an IT service management system. It covers standards for the following:

ISO 20022 – covers standards used for companies offering financial services
ISO 22000 – establishes guidelines used by certifying bodies that audit other companies' management systems in food safety
ISO/IEC TR 20943 – used for setting standards for procedures used to achieve consistency in registry content of metadata

Which ISO standard is right for your company?
The choice of ISO standard your organization will apply for will depend on the type of company you have, the nature of its business, its production or manufacturing processes, the type of products and/or services involved and the quality management system you wish to achieve.