You have successfully got your company incorporated in India, made the right plans and established quality systems and completed an audit. Now you’re probably wondering what the next step is. It is the ISO registration and this how you go about it to get the best value from your investment. This article would show you the procedures you need to follow to obtain your ISO registration after company incorporation in India.
The ISO Registration Process
The ISO registration process begins after you have completed the ISO 9001 audit of your company. This ISO registration aims to show that you have satisfied the requirements. Here are the procedures to follow in ISO registration:
Finding An ISO Registrar
Within the 2-3 months your company I still trying to build its quality system, you should be actively looking for an ISO Registrar. You can start by checking the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB) website to choose a registrar that would just be right for your needs.
The registrar you choose must satisfy the requirements of the ISO Accreditation bodies. Some of these requirements include independence; this means the registrars cannot be a consultant. Accreditation bodies keep directories of all the registrar organizations that they have accredited. You can get these directories on their website.
You can also find a directory of US Registrars on the ANSI-ASQ (ANAB) website. This has searchable databases of US-based accredited registrars. In Canada, you can get the directories of Registrars can be obtained from the Standards Council of Canada’s website. For other countries, you can contact the accreditation bodies for directories of their registrars.
Choosing an ISO registrar
Ensure you choose a registrar that has the relevant experience in the specific industry your company falls under. You can get all these info on the ANAB website. While selecting a registrar that is right for you, do keep the following in mind: accreditation, fees, comfort level and scheduling issues.
The qualifications of the registrar are essential in your choice of who to select. Registrars must possess relevant accreditation in a specific industrial area to be able to certify a company in that particular sector. Some registrars have accreditations in several sectors; some other registrars are accredited in some specific sectors. The best way to ascertain a registrar’s qualification is for you to contact him.
Another factor to consider in your choice of a registrar is the pricing. Ensure you are fully briefed on the total cost such as fees, expenses and the cost of surveillance.
Crafting An ISO Application
Promoters of the company and the registrar would have to agree on how to craft the application. This is very important as it defines the rights and responsibilities of each party and includes liability issues, access rights and confidentiality issues.
Conducting A Quality Document Review
The registrar would need a copy of your company’s quality manual and procedures to check if all the standard requirements were duly satisfied. The ISO registration process is not what you rush over; it takes about 2-4 weeks for a registrar to review all the relevant documents thoroughly.
Defining Pre-Assessment Needs
This 2-4 weeks interval helps the registrar to identify any possible omissions or areas of weaknesses. It saves time for the registrar, and it allows him to resolve any issues before the actual assessment audit is carried out. It entails an initial review of the company’s Quality Management Systems to detect any relevant omissions or weaknesses to correct them.
Issuing an ISO assessment
During the course of the audit or an on-site inspection, the auditors would issue findings if there is anything that does not confirm their requirements. Audit findings are referred to as nonconformities and can be classified into two categories based on their severity:
A minor nonconformance entails the minor breach of procedures or minor system failures in satisfying the ISO 9001-2008 requirements. This would not delay your registration.
A major nonconformance involves issues where a nonconforming product may get to a customer or where there is a complete breakdown of the Quality System that results in the system not been able to meet the requirements of the standards. This type of nonconformance would delay your registration.
High return on your ISO investment
The aim of registration and the audit process is so that you can valuable feedback that would improve your system. In the end, it’s your company and your registration. So be sure to get the most out of your ISO investment.
The above represents the procedures to take if your company has been recently incorporated in India.