Management Standards Certification - The Organisations Involved

For ISO 9001 and other ISO Management Standards – the certification bodies are important. They check compliance and issue the certificates. Overall, they provide a consistent implementation of the ISO Standards across the board. Further, they ensure your certification meets the appropriate standards.

Management Standards Certification Assessment

The whole process of Management Standards Certification is a complex activity. The various bodies involved in the full process have different roles. This is to ensure there are proper cross checks for consistency in the certifications. Consequently, there are specific organisations responsible for assessments for the final issue of a certificate.

The Accreditation Bodies like UKAS or ANAB check and approve certain Certification to audit and certify companies to the relevant ISO standard. 

There are certification assessors or bodies for the different ISO Management Standards. These include ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, as well as the other management standards. It is these bodies which provide the assessors who audit or check organisations wanting to be certified. Consequently, their aim is to ensure the candidate organisation meets the relevant Standard to the global level of compliance.

Who are the Management Standards Certification Bodies

The Certification Bodies are distinct from accreditation bodies. Certification bodies are independent organisations. They are assessed and registered by government set-up ‘Accreditation Bodies’.

For example, UKAS in the UK, ANAB in the USA who function as Accreditation Bodies. They provide global scope to “Check on the Checkers”. This builds consistency into certification on a national and wider scale. As a result, there is a consistent auditing standard worldwide.

What Must Management Standards Certification Bodies Show?

There are a few specific things that certification bodies must show to qualify. Explicitly, these are

1. Full independence from the Accreditation Bodies.
2. Independent of the organisations that they assessed/registered.
3. Checked and Registered by UKAS, ANAB or equivalent national Accreditation Body.
4. Independent of the consultancy assisting the documentation & implementation of the ISO 9001 or other Management Standards.

Certification bodies in the UK fall into the following main groupings. Specifically:

• Large international multi-disciplinary bodies such as BSI, NQA, SGS, Lloyds Register and TUV.
• Industry specific bodies such as Loss Prevention Certification Board and SCCS.
• Smaller Certification bodies such as Auva and IEC.

Making the Right Choices

Charter 4 have experience of the ISO Certification bodies in a wide range of industries and niche areas of Standards implementation. So, we would be pleased to help you make the right choice of Management Standards Certification Body.

Making the right decision is important for your future certification. Please contact us today and we will be pleased to help you get the right fit for your specific case.