Further Adventures with ISO 9001 in a Scientific Consulting Firm

Some ISO insight from chemists in their fourth year of ISO 9001 registration. Written by Peter Child, MCIC.

When I last drove down the highway between Hamilton and Toronto, I noticed more and more firms proudly displaying banners announcing that they were registered to the internationally recognized ISO 9001 or 9002 standards. Many of the banners thanked their employees for their assistance. Industries, car dealerships and, in Quebec, even hotels, are becoming registered to these standards.

Why are companies doing it? What's in it for them? Would all organizations benefit? Our company, a scientific consulting firm, became ISO 9001 registered in 1996. We wrote about our experience as novices in the October 1997 issue of the Canadian Chemical News. Now, as seasoned veterans in our fourth year of registration (yes, we have a banner too!), we are in a position to attempt to answer some of the above questions.

What are the ISO 9001 Standards?

The ISO 9000 series of standards define the requirements of a system for managing the quality of your product or service. The standards are focused on the quality of the product or service that you provide your customers and aim to achieve customer satisfaction by preventing system failures (non-conformances, in ISO jargon). As such, they deal with most aspects of your business operations, except perhaps, financial matters such as bookkeeping and taxes.

The version of the standards that most of us are working with was developed in 1994. An update, called ISO 9000/2000, is expected this December.

How it Affects Our Business

We were initially drawn to ISO 9001 because it provides an internationally recognized framework for running a company in an area where there are precious few other rules. It also has a module which covers the design of solutions, a focus of our firm.

While we can't say that a host of new clients has contacted us simply because of our adoption of the standard, it has been good for business. For one thing, no one asks us how big we are or how long have we been in business anymore. I think the reason is that adopting the standard is perceived as being a huge commitment, and suggests size and stability.

It also allows us to more effectively compete with larger firms that are not registered. In two cases that we know of, being an ISO 9001 firm was the difference that got us the job. In one case, a manager at a major U.S. company cited our registration as justification for issuing a sole-source contract to a Canadian consultant. Our U.S. competitors were not yet registered.

These are important benefits for smaller companies. Even single person manufacturers or consultancies can become registered. I know of one 60-ish lady in Britain who is an ISO 9002-registered producer of hand-wired solid state computer parts, which she produces at home, in her rose garden. No one doubts her qualifications.

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