About ISO

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is the world's largest developer and publisher of International Standards. ISO is a network of the national standards institutes of 159 countries, one member per country, with a Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, that coordinates the system. ISO is a non-governmental organization that forms a bridge between the public and private sectors. On the one hand, many of its member institutes are part of the governmental structure of their countries, or are mandated by their government. On the other hand, other members have their roots uniquely in the private sector, having been set up by national partnerships of industry associations. Therefore, ISO enables a consensus to be reached on solutions that meet both the requirements of business and the broader needs of society

ISO's origins
In 1946, delegates from 25 countries met in London and decided to create a new international organization, of which the object would be "to facilitate the international coordination and unification of industrial standards". The new organization, ISO, officially began operations on 23 February 1947, in Geneva, Switzerland.

ISO's name
Because "International Organization for Standardization" would have different acronyms in different languages ("IOS" in English, "OIN" in French for Organisation internationale de normalisation), its founders decided to give it also a short, all-purpose name. They chose "ISO", derived from the Greek isos, meaning "equal". Whatever the country, whatever the language, the short form of the organization's name is always ISO.

What "international standardization" means

When the large majority of products or services in a particular business or industry sector conform to International Standards, a state of industry-wide standardization exists. The economic stakeholders concerned agree on specifications and criteria to be applied consistently in the classification of materials, in the manufacture and supply of products, in testing and analysis, in

terminology and in the provision of services. In this way, International Standards provide a reference framework, or a common technological language, between suppliers and their customers. This facilitates trade and the transfer of technology.

The ISO brand

Democratic Every full member of ISO has the right to take part in the development of any standard which it judges to be important to its country's economy. No matter what the size or strength of that economy, each participating member in ISO has one vote. Each country is on an equal footing to influence the direction of ISO's work at the strategic level, as well as the technical content of its individual standards.

Voluntary ISO standards are voluntary. As a non-governmental organization, ISO has no legal authority to enforce the implementation of its standards. ISO does not regulate or legislate. However, countries may decide to adopt ISO standards mainly those concerned with health, safety or the environment - as regulations or refer to them in legislation, for which they provide the technical basis. In addition, although ISO standards are voluntary, they may become a market requirement, as has happened in the case of ISO 9001 quality management systems, or of dimensions of freight containers and bank cards. ISO itself does not regulate or legislate.

Market-driven ISO only develops standards for which there is a market requirement. The work is mainly carried out by experts from the industrial, technical and business sectors which have asked for the standards, and which subsequently put them to use.

Consensus ISO standards are based on international consensus among the experts in the field. Consensus, like technology, evolves and ISO takes account both of evolving technology and of evolving interests by requiring a periodic review of its standards at least every five years to decide whether they should be

maintained, updated or withdrawn. In this way, ISO standards retain their position as the state of the art.

Globally relevant ISO standards are technical agreements which provide the framework for compatible technology worldwide. They are designed to be globally relevant useful everywhere in the world. ISO standards are useful everywhere in the world. How ISO decides to develop a standard ISO launches the development of new standards in response to the sectors that express a clearly established need for them. An industry or business sector communicates its requirement for a standard to one of ISO's national members. The latter then proposes the new work item to ISO as a whole. If accepted, the work item is assigned to an existing technical committee. Proposals may also be made to set up technical committees to cover new scopes of activity. At the end of 2006, there were 3 041 technical bodies in the ISO system, including 193 ISO technical committees. The focus of the technical committees is specialized and specific. In addition, ISO has three general policy development committees that provide strategic guidance for the standards' development work on cross-sector aspects. These committees ensure that the specific technical work is aligned with broader market and stakeholder group Who develops ISO standards ISO standards are developed by technical committees comprising experts from the industrial, technical and business sectors which have asked for the standards, and which subsequently put them to use. These experts may be joined by representatives of government agencies, testing laboratories, consumer associations, non-governmental organizations and academic circles. The experts participate as national delegations, chosen by the ISO national member institute for the country concerned. These delegations are required to represent not just the views of the organizations in which their participating experts work, but of other stakeholders too.

According to ISO rules, the member institute is expected to take account of the views of the range of parties interested in the standard under development. This enables them to present a consolidated, national consensus position to the technical committee. How ISO standards are developed The national delegations of experts of a technical committee meet to discuss, debate and argue until they reach consensus on a draft agreement. This is circulated as a Draft International Standard (DIS) to ISO's membership as a whole for comment and balloting. Many members have public review procedures for making draft standards known and available to interested parties and to the general public. The ISO members then take account of any feedback they receive in formulating their position on the draft standard. If the voting is in favour, the document, with eventual modifications, is circulated to the ISO members as a Final Draft International Standard (FDIS). If that vote is positive, the document is then published as an International Standard. Every working day of the year, an average of eight ISO meetings is taking place somewhere in the world. In between meetings, the experts continue the standards' development work by correspondence. Increasingly, their contacts are made by electronic means, some ISO technical bodies have already gone over entirely to working electronically, which speeds up the development of standards, and cuts travel costs. Why standards matter Standards make an enormous and positive contribution to most aspects of our lives. Standards ensure desirable characteristics of products and services such as quality, environmental friendliness, safety, reliability, efficiency and interchangeability - and at an economical cost. When products and services meet our expectations, we tend to take this for granted and be unaware of the role of standards. However, when standards are absent, we soon notice. We soon care when products turn out to be of poor quality, do not fit, are incompatible with equipment that we already have, are unreliable or dangerous.

When products, systems, machinery, and devices work well and safely, it is often because they meet standards. And the organization responsible for many thousands of the standards which benefit the world is ISO. When standards are absent, we soon notice. What standards do ISO standards:

make the development, manufacturing and supply of products and services more efficient, safer and cleaner facilitate trade between countries and make it fairer provide governments with a technical base for health, safety and environmental legislation, and conformity assessment share technological advances and good management practice disseminate innovation safeguard consumers, and users in general, of products and services make life simpler by providing solutions to common problems How the ISO system is financed ISO's national members pay subscriptions that meet the operational cost of ISO's Central Secretariat. The subscription paid by each member is in proportion to the country's Gross National Income and trade figures. Another source of revenue is the sale of standards. However, the operations of ISO Central Secretariat represent only about one fifth of the cost of the system's operation. The main costs are borne by the member bodies that manage the specific standards development projects and the business organizations that provide experts to participate in the technical work. These organizations are, in effect, subsidizing the technical work by paying the travel costs of the experts and allowing them time to work on their ISO assignments. The scope of ISO's work ISO has more than 17500 International Standards and other types of normative documents in its current portfolio. ISO's work programme ranges from standards for traditional activities, such as agriculture and construction, through mechanical engineering, manufacturing and distribution, to transport, medical devices, information and communication technologies, and to standards for good management practice and for services.

Who can join ISO Membership of ISO is open to national standards institutes most representative of standardization in their country (one member in each country). Full members, known as member bodies, each have one vote, whatever the size or strength of the economy of the country concerned. Correspondent members pay reduced membership fees. They are entitled to participate in any policy or technical body as observers, with no voting rights. Subscriber members also pay reduced membership fees. They are institutes from countries with very small economies that nevertheless wish to maintain contact with international standardization. Although individuals or enterprises are not eligible for membership, both have a range of opportunities for taking part in ISO's work: Individuals may be selected by national member institutes to serve as experts on national delegations participating in ISO technical committees Individuals and enterprises may provide their input during the process of developing a national consensus for presentation by the delegation. This may done through national mirror committees to the corresponding ISO technical committee International organizations and associations, both non-governmental and representing industry sectors, can apply for liaison status to a technical committee. They do not vote, but can participate in the debates and the development of consensus.

Standards benefit ISO standards provide technological, economic and societal benefits. For businesses, the widespread adoption of International Standards means that suppliers can develop and offer products and services meeting specifications that have wide international acceptance in their sectors. Therefore, businesses using International Standards can compete on many more markets around the world. For innovators of new technologies, International Standards on aspects like terminology, compatibility and safety speed up the dissemination of innovations and their development into manufacturable and marketable products. For customers, the worldwide compatibility of technology which is achieved when products and services are based on International Standards gives them a broad choice of offers. They also benefit from the effects of competition among suppliers. For governments, International Standards provide the technological and scientific bases underpinning health, safety and environmental legislation. For trade officials, International Standards create "a level playing field" for all competitors on those markets. The existence of divergent national or regional standards can create technical barriers to trade. International Standards are the technical means by which political trade agreements can be put into practice. For developing countries, International Standards that represent an international consensus on the state of the art are an important source of technological know-how. By defining the characteristics that products and services will be expected to meet on export markets, International Standards give developing countries a basis for making the right decisions when investing their scarce resources and thus avoid squandering them. For consumers, conformity of products and services to International Standards provides assurance about their quality, safety and reliability. For everyone, International Standards contribute to the quality of life in general by ensuring that the transport, machinery and tools we use are safe. For the planet we inhabit, International Standards on air, water and soil quality, on emissions of gases and radiation and environmental aspects of products can contribute to efforts to preserve the environment.

ISO 9000 In 1987, the international Standard Organization (ISO) published its first standard on Quality system ISO 9001, ISO 9002 and ISO 9002. At the same, time the European version of quality standard EN 2900i, EN 29002. Moreover, EN 29003 were published and British standard BS 5750(part 1, 2, 3) were updated and aligned with their equivalent foreign counterpart. All three standards are identical. They were essentially manufacturing standard are soon came to be applied to services as well as possible misinterpretations of products, but the 1994 standard has resolved some of those difficulties by redefining the products. The structure of the ISO 9000 standard : The family of ISO 9000 standards has been developed by ISO and it is made up of four core standards:

a) ISO 9000:2000 Fundamentals and Vocabulary b) ISO 9001:2000 Quality Management Systems Requirements c) ISO 9004:2000 Quality performance improvements Management Systems Guidelines for

d) ISO 9011: 2002 Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing The ISO 9000 series of Standard consist of two broad categories of standards and supplementary guidance standards Core standard: are standard in meant for internal use by organization and provides guidance in designing and implementing a quality system so that they can meet their market needs and achieve overall success. Supplementary standards:

Element of ISO 9000 1. Management Responsibility. Management sets the company quality policy and implements it by providing resources, personnel and training.

2. Quality System. A Quality System comprised of a Quality Manual and supporting procedures is created and maintained. 3. Contract Review. Contracts reflect the customers' needs and expectations. Products and services provided must comply with those requirements. 4. Design Control. Engineering drawings and design changes are carefully documented to ensure that changes have been fully coordinated and approved internally, and when appropriate, by the customer. 5. Document Control. The creation and modification of documents supporting the Quality System is strictly controlled by ISO 9001 procedures. 6. Purchasing. Purchasing procedures describe supplier requirements and the system for ensuring compliance to these standards. 7. Handling of Purchaser Supplied Product. Procedures detail methods of handling and safekeeping of product supplied by the customer. 8. Product Identification and Traceability. Methods of tracking date and lot codes of product and raw materials from start to finish guarantee traceability. 9. Process Control. Work instructions, quality plans and workmanship standards verify that each job is being done correctly. 10. Inspection and Testing. Inspection and testing at receiving, in-process and final inspection areas ensures quality. Test and inspection records are preserved as part of the quality system. 11. Inspection, Measuring and Test Equipment. Instruments and measuring tools are calibrated regularly and records maintained. 12. Inspection and Test Status. Only inspected materials may be used or processed further. Inspected product is always identified. 13. Control of Nonconforming Product. Materials or products that fail to meet specifications are rejected and separated from normal production. Only the proper authorities may decide if rejected material will be used as is, reworked or returned to the supplier. 14. Corrective Action. The corrective action system focuses on identifying the root cause of quality concerns and any corrective action required. 15. Handling, Storage, Packaging and Delivery. Procedures outline practices that protect products from damage during manufacturing and shipping. 16. Quality Records. Quality records provide an audit trail for internal and external auditors. 17. Internal Quality Audits. Specially trained teams verify that the Quality System is working by evaluating the same 20 elements required by the external auditors, on an on-going basis. 18. Training. Training records are maintained for every employee showing their levels of expertise. 19. Servicing. Where servicing is specified in the contract, procedures are established to verify that servicing meets the indicated requirements.

20. Statistical Techniques. Control charts, graphs and other methods of analysis determine how well a process is working and facilitate continuous improvement. Steps in ISO 9000 registration 1. select the appropriate standard from ISO 90001, 9002, 9003 using guidelines in 9000 2. prepare quality manual to cover all element of selected model 3. Develop proper procedure and shop floor instruction which may be necessary for the implementation of the quality system. 4. conduct self audit to check compliance of selected model 5. select the register and apply for certification and registration Quality documentation First tier: quality manual Manual may be organized according to ISO standard it is general in nature and moderate in length which summarizes the whole quality system in one document. it is written in policy level and acts as an overview in quality system. It defines the policies, objectives, organization structures and general quality practices of the company. Second tier: procedure Each procedure consists of the objective of the objective and description of the activity. the procedure describes what is to be done and by whom. And how, when, why and where the activity is to be carried out. At the procedure level step by step instruction for performing activities are not included. Third tier: instruction It consists of step by step instruction that must be followed in order to get the particular job done. These direct the worker in a single activity and subordinate document to procedure. Such instruction may be needed for specific tasks processes, operation, Tests and inspection etc. Forth tier: forms and records It includes files, specification, code of practices, checklists, technical and legal document and other form to recode data. All documentation of record which demonstrates compliance of quality system requirement comes under this tier.

Quality assurance models of ISO 9000 1. ISO 9001 model for quality assurance in design, development, production, installation and servicing. When conformance to specified requirement is to be assured by supplier during the various stages. It consist of 20 elements 2. ISO 9002 model for quality and assurance in production, installation and servicing. It is used when conformance to specified requirement is to be assured by supplier during the production and installation it consist of 18 elements. 3. ISO 9003 model for quality assurance in final inspection and test. . It is used when conformance to specified requirement is to be assured by supplier solely at final inspection and test it consist of 12 elements. Advantages of ISO 9000 o o o o o o o o access to world market competitive advantage confident of customer image of company higher productivity customer satisfaction human resource development job satisfaction and work participation and high moral The impact of just-in-time implementation and ISO 9000 certification on total quality management In this paper, we examine the impact of just-in-time (JIT) implementation and International Standards Organization (ISO) 9000 certification (as specified by the original standards of the early 1990s) on quality management efforts of manufacturing firms. Responding firms in the study were grouped into four categories based on their ISO 9000 and JIT orientation: 1) firms that are ISO 9000 certified but have not implemented JIT (ISO firms ); 2) firms that are ISO 9000 certified and have implemented JIT (ISO-JIT firms); 3) firms that have implemented JIT but are not ISO 9000 certified (JIT firms); and 4) firms that have not implemented JIT and are not ISO 9000 certified ( traditional firms).

These groups were compared along 13 plant-level total quality management (TQM) implementation elements and five TQM outcome measures using MANCOVA procedure. Analyses resulted in distinct sets of firms reflecting the impact of the ISO-JIT orientation on its TQM implementation and TQM outcomes. Results support the contingency view that a firm's ability to implement effective TQM practices is enhanced: 1) marginally by ISO 9000 efforts; 2) significantly by JIT implementation; and 3) most by conjoint ISO-JIT efforts (though not much more significantly than JIT implementation alone). These insights have significant practical implications for firms investing in JIT implementation, ISO 9000 certification, and TQM implementation. Interestingly, our study conducted in mid1990s and its empirical findings lend a strong support for the recent transformation of the original ISO 9000 requirements into the current ISO 9001:2000 framework.

Quality vs. Certification A common criticism of ISO 9001 is the amount of money, time and paperwork required for registration. Many claim that it is only for documentation. Proponents believe that if a company has documented its quality systems, then most of the paperwork has already been completed. Many believe that, ISO 9001 promotes specification, control, and procedures rather than understanding and improvement. Few argue that ISO 9000 is effective as a guideline, but that promoting it as a standard "helps to mislead companies into thinking that certification means better quality, [undermining] the need for an organization to set its own quality standards." Paraphrased, Wade's argument is that reliance on the specifications of ISO 9001 does not guarantee a successful quality system. The standard is seen as especially prone to failure when a company is interested in certification before quality. Certifications are in fact often based on customer contractual requirements rather than a desire to actually improve quality. "If you just want the certificate on the wall, chances are, you will create a paper system that doesn't have much to do with the way you actually run your business," said ISO's Roger Frost. Certification by an independent auditor is often seen as the problem area, and according to Barnes, "has become a vehicle to increase consulting services." In fact, ISO itself advises that ISO 9001 can be implemented without certification, simply for the quality benefits that can be achieved.

Another problem reported is the competition among the numerous certifying bodies, leading to a softer approach to the defects noticed in the operation of the Quality System of a firm. Abrahamson argued that fashionable management discourse such as Quality Circles tends to follow a lifecycle in the form of a bell curve, possibly indicating a management fad.

ISO 14000 History of Development The ISO 14000 series emerged primarily as a result of the Uruguay round of the GATT negotiations and the Rio Summit on the Environment held in 1992. While GATT concentrates on the need to reduce non-tariff barriers to trade, the Rio Summit generated a commitment to protection of the environment across the world. The environmental field has seen a steady growth of national and regional standards. The British Standards Institution has BS 7750, the Canadian Standards Association has environmental management, auditing, eco-labeling and other standards, the European Union has all of these plus the ecomanagement and audit regulations, and many other countries (e.g. USA, Germany and Japan) have introduced eco-labeling programs. After the rapid acceptance of ISO 9000, and the increase of environmental standards around the world, ISO assessed the need for international environmental management standards. They formed the Strategic Advisory Group on the Environment (SAGE) in 1991, to consider whether such standards could serve to: o Promote a common approach to environmental management similar to quality management; o Enhance organizations' ability to attain and measure improvements in environmental performance; and o Facilitate trade and remove trade barriers. In 1992, SAGE's recommendations created a new committee, TC 207, for international environmental management standards. The committee, and its sub-committees include representatives from industry, standards organizations, government and environmental organizations from many countries. The new series of ISO14000 standards are designed to cover: environmental management systems environmental auditing environmental performance evaluation environmental labeling life-cycle assessment environmental aspects in product standards

EVOLUTION: What does the ISO 14000 Series cover? The best way to answer this question is to provide a list of the proposed standards: Standard Title / Description Guide to Environmental Management Principles, Systems and Supporting Techniques Environmental Management Systems - Specification with Guidance for Use Guidelines for Environmental Auditing - General Principles of Environmental Auditing Guidelines for Environmental Procedures-Part 1: Auditing Management Systems Auditing - Audit of Environmental

14000

14001

14010

14011

14012

Guidelines for Environmental Auditing - Qualification Criteria for Environmental Auditors Guidelines for Environmental Auditing Programmes, Reviews & Assessments Environmental Labeling Environmental Labeling - Practitioner Programs Guiding Principles, Practices and Certification Procedures of Multiple Criteria Programs Guidelines on Environmental Performance Evaluation Audit

14013/15

14020/23

14024

14031/32

14040/43

Life Cycle Assessment Practices Glossary

General

Principles

and

14050

14060

Guide for the Inclusion of Environmental Aspects in Product Standards

Steps in certification process Application: All certification bodies require a completed application. The application will contain the rights and obligation of both the certification body and the client. it will contain such rights of certification body as access to facilities and necessary information well as liability issues. It twill contain such rights of clients as confidentiality. The right to appeal and complain and instruction for the use of the certification. Clients should check the conditions for terminating the application. Most applications can be terminated with in 30 days written notice. Document: once the application is completed and basic information on the organization size, scope of operation and desired time frame for certification have been determined the certification body will ask the company to submit documentation on its environmental management system some certification bodies perform this document review at the site itself. However, most perform the review at their own offices, saving travel costs and expenses as well as the time required to host the auditor. Pre assessment: which most certification bodies recommend that a pre assessment review be conducted, some require it. Some bodies use the term pre assessment to mean complete statues of an operation. Other use the term to refer to a broad overview of companys operations to determine its initial preparedness for a full assessment and to help in audit planning. Assessment: after pre assessment, or after it has been determined that the companys documentation EMS conforms to the requirements of the ISO 14001 standard, a full assessment is conduct. A typical assessment in values two or three auditors who spend two to four days at a site.

Certification: there are three possible results of an assessment: Approval a company will probably be certified if it has implement all the element of ISO 14001 with only minor non conformity detected during an assessment. Conditional or provisional approval: A company will probably be conditionally or provisionally approve if: It has addressed all the element of the standard and has documented but perhaps not fully implemented systems or Considerable non conformity is detected in a particular area, showing negative trends.

Conditional approval requires the company to respect to any instance of non conformity notes during the time defined by the certification body. The certification body, choose the perform a re-evaluation of accept the corrective action in writing and review the implementation in conjunction with subsequent surveillance visits. Disapproval: it usually occurs when companys system is either very well documented but has not been implemented or when basic elements of the standard such as auditing, corrective action, or process control have not been addressed at all. Why ISO Certification? Regulatory concerns some company are implementing iso 14001 because this might be regulatory requirement in certain product sectors for entering a particular market such as European Union. Contractual requirement customer is beginning to realize that suppliers should be certified as a contractual requirement. Internal improvement: another reason to seek iso 14001 Implementation is due to a belief in the process itself. Companies that have implemented the standard or a similar EMS have often discovered an improvement in productivity, reduction of waste, pre emptor regulatory conflict, reduced paper work and other deficiencies. Legal cancers: legal concerns also are likely to encourage certification some companies may register and EMS. At least in part for the role, certification may play in environmental liability defense.

The marketplace: one of the greatest drives for ISO 14001 certifications market pressure. Companies already are implementing iso Auditing Quality system The ISO 9000 and 14000 have auditing sections, giving detailed requirements for audit of quality and environment standards. There is also ISO 10,000 series of standards for auditing quality management systems to audit ISO 9000 which ISO 14000 has audit series to audit 14000 systems. General Description of ISO14001 ISO14001 requires an Environmental Policy to be in existence within the organisation, fully supported by senior management, and outlining the policies of the company, not only to the staff but to the public. The policy needs to clarify compliance with Environmental Legislation that may effect the organization and stress a commitment to continuous improvement. Emphasis has been placed on policy as this provides the direction for the remainder of the Management System. Those companies who have witnessed ISO9000 Assessments will know that the policy is frequently discussed during the assessment, many staff are asked if they understand or are aware of the policy, and any problems associated with the policy are seldom serious. The Environmental Policy is different, this provides the initial foundation and direction for the Management System and will be more stringently reviewed than a similar ISO9000 policy. The statement must be publicised in non-technical language so that it can be understood by the majority of readers. It should relate to the sites within the organisation encompassed by the Management System, it should provide an overview of the companys activities on the site and a description of those activities. A clear picture of the companys operations. The preparatory review and definition of the organization's environmental effects is not part of a ISO14001 Assessment, however examination of this data will provide an external audit with a wealth of information on the methods adopted by the company. The preparatory review itself should be comprehensive in consideration of input processes and output at the site. This review should be designed to identify all relevant environmental aspects that may arise from existence on the site. These may relate to current operations, they may relate to future, perhaps even unplanned future activities, and they will certainly relate to the activities performed on site in the past (i.e. contamination of land).

The initial or preparatory review will also include a wide-ranging consideration of the legislation which may effect the site, whether it is currently being complied with, and perhaps even whether copies of the legislation are available. Many of the environmental assessments undertaken already have highlighted that companies are often unaware of ALL of the legislation that affects them, and being unaware, are often not meeting the requirements of that legislation. The company will declare its primary environmental objectives, those that can have most environmental impact. In order to gain most benefit these will become the primary areas of consideration within the improvement process, and the companys environmental program. The program will be the plan to achieve specific goals or targets along the route to a specific goal and describe the means to reach those objectives such that they are real and achievable. The Environmental Management System provides further detail on the environmental program. The EMS establishes procedures, work instructions and controls to ensure that implementation of the policy and achievement of the targets can become a reality. Communication is a vital factor, enabling people in the organisation to be aware of their responsibilities, aware of the objectives of the scheme, and able to contribute to its success. As with ISO9000 the Environmental Management System requires a planned comprehensive periodic audit of the Environmental Management System to ensure that it is effective in operation, is meeting specified goals, and the system continues to perform in accordance with relevant regulations and standards. The audits are designed to provide additional information in order to exercise effective management of the system, providing information on practices which differ to the current procedures or offer an opportunity for improvement. In addition to audit, there is a requirement for Management Review of the system to ensure that it is suitable (for the organization and the objectives) and effective in operation. The management review is the ideal forum to make decisions on how to improve for the future. How can one prepare for ISO 14001 Subscribe to voluntary initiatives on environmental management. Focus on current environmental management systems and work to improve them. Because there are many parallels between the two series, companies interested in preparing for the release of ISO 14001 should be familiar with ISO 9000. Design an environmental management system to conform to the ISO 14001 draft and integrate the system to your ISO 9000 framework as much as possible. One

may need to perform an audit assessment of the current EMS. This should help you to avoid having to revise and rework your EMS. Develop an environmental auditing program or revise EA program. Then follow internal process to evaluate environmental performance and communicate that outside and inside the company. Review the environmental standard definition. Decide how one will integrate life cycle thinking into management system. Keep an eye on publication that is current and credible. Benefit could be incalculable. Some important issue: How much does certification cost? The cost of certification varies according to the size of the company and the environmental system, it has in place. There are many costs with associated with certification, the first of which is related to actually developing and implementing the environmental management system. A company may elect to use only use internal resources to implement the system the, rely completely on services of an outside consultant, or to combine the two approaches. Can one self-audit or third party auditing necessary? Both third party certification and self declaration or acceptable for ISO 14001, depending on the need of the company Are there any certified ISO 14001 courses? There is environmental auditor registration association (EARA) a UK organization has established accreditation criteria for five EMS courses level. 1. Introduction to EMS 2. Foundation course in environmental auditing 3. Advanced EMS auditing course (Generic ) syllabus 4. Advanced EMS auditing course for quality professional, And 5. Advanced EMS auditing course for Environmental professionals.

Are there any certified ISO 140001 courses.

Certification bodies are accredited usually by quasi governmental organization. Two examples are the read voor De Certificate (the Dutch council for certification) in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom accreditation Service (UKS), formerly the National Accreditation Council for certification bodies (NACCB) .As of September 1995, RVC had accredited 6 companies to offer BS 7750 certification. UKAS has accredited 12 companies. They both have indicated once that standard becomes final. As of that date, no US accreditation board environment auditing round table and American national standards institute.(ANSI). The certifiers are evaluated according to standard. Each national unit establishes criteria for accrediting certification bodies and appoints an accreditation body and that the named certification bodies and appoints and accreditation body for ensuring that he accrediting process is followed and that the named certification bodies meet the criteria adopted. In the United State, for example, and ad hoc group called the Standards Conformance and Registration Advisory Group(SCRAG) developed criteria for qualifying a US ISO 14000 accreditor, company certification bodies auditor certifiers and approvers. However SRAD has since been disbanded and its work is being taken up by ANSI. Relationship between ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 are known as generic management system standards because they are not specific to a particular product, resource, or process. They refer to families of standards consisting of management systems and related supporting tools that can be applied equally to private industry and public sector organizations of any size, that offer any product, activity, or service. The standards provide an organization with a model for setting up and operating a management system Some of the concept iso 14001 is similar to iso 9001 including requirement for policy statement, top management commitment, document control, training, corrective actions management review and continual improvement. ISO 9000 is concerned with quality management and meeting customer quality requirements, achieving control of processes, and encouraging continuous improvement while ISO 14000 is concerned with environmental management. Both standards outline a solid, traditional management approach. The ISO 14001 standard uses the same fundamental systems as ISO 9000 such as document control, management system auditing, operational controls, recordkeeping controls, management policies, audits, training, and corrective and preventive actions. ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 require senior management support and

commitment for success, and require organizations to have a system for establishing and reviewing objectives and targets, whether they be quality or environmentally related. Both require organizations to provide on-going management review of the management system and its objectives. Some ISO 9000 quality management processes can be referenced for an ISO 14001 EMS to avoid duplication of efforts. In fact, the ISO technical committee (TC 207) purposely developed the newer ISO 14000 standards to be in conformance with the basic philosophy and structure of the previously issued ISO 9000 standards. For those implementing an ISO 14001 EMS, previous experience with ISO 9000 will be of great value. The many similarities between ISO 9000 and ISO 14001 philosophies suggest that one fully integrated management system for all business and operational activities is most effective. An ISO 14001 EMS can be developed separately and integrated with ISO 9000 in the future, or can be overlaid within the existing ISO 9001 quality management system. Integrating ISO 14001 with ISO 9000 will increase the efficiency and reduce the time and costs necessary for full implementation. Differences Between ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 While there are some overlaps and similarities in the requirements for the two standards, there are also differences. The ISO 9000 standards have been developed specifically to address customer requirements and expectations regarding product quality. ISO 9001 sets out the requirements for organizations whose business processes range from design and development, to production, installation and servicing. ISO 9002 is applicable for organizations that are not involved with design and development. ISO 9003 is the appropriate standard for organizations whose business processes do not include design control, process control, purchasing or servicing, but rather use inspection and testing to ensure that final products and services meet specified requirements. With ISO 14000, organizations respond to much more than just customer requirements. Multiple external stakeholders who influence the environmental aspects of an organization often must be satisfied. Examples of external stakeholders under ISO 14000 include: Federal, State and local regulators; the surrounding community; and special interest groups. ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 Compatibility Because of the close relationship between ISO 9000 and ISO 14000, ISO commissioned a year-long study to investigate the compatibility between the two standards. Technical advisory group 12 (TAG 12) was established to investigate how a better interface can be achieved for users who wish to implement both standards

TAG 12 recommended the following actions to enhance standards compatibility: Relevant terms and definitions should be identical, and there should be consistent use of terminology in both families of standards; Management system standards in the two families should be compatible and, as far as possible, aligned; and Auditing standards in the two families should be integrated to consist of a common core document with separate modules on quality and the environment. The TAG 12 recommendations highlight the importance ISO places on coordinated development among the standards. Results of ISO implementation of the recommendations should be visible when the next revisions to the standards are published; a deadline has been set for 2000/2001. TAG 12 also suggested that ISO work closely with accreditors and certifiers to ensure transition to the revised documents is as smooth as possible. Implementing of ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 Standards: A single approach can be implemented for both of them. It can be split into two parts, the initial steps and implementation program. Initial steps Familiarization with the standards: procure the standards national standard agencies which are member of ISO and these should be studied by quality manger and the environment manager. Appraising the situation: it is advisable to consult be carried on four arrears: Legal requirement understanding of the organization operational effect on the environment the review of audit of existing practice a review of history the floor worker /

enquiry to get some feel of the various quality issues, initial review should

1. The proposal: a propel paper with outline plans of ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 will be needed to be put up to the top management. 2. Obtaining commitment of the top management: what is needed at this stage is commitment to perform and an IER as rest is likely to follow. There is also requirement of preliminary audit/review. The proposal can be made covering the following aspects. Background What it means for the company Relationship with ISO 9000 What are environmental issues How good or bad company appears to be The need for a preparatory review and auditory review Action plan: An action plan of either standard could read as follows: Explanation List of initial steps to be taken Outline of all steps to certification Approximate time and resources

Implementation program 1. policy and commitment 2. detailed plan 3. organization 4. initial review 5. Implementation phase.