Quality Management System application guidelines published

1st November

BSI, the business standards company has published ISO 9002:2016 Quality management systems – Guidelines for the application of ISO 9001:2015. ISO 9001 is the most widely recognized standard in the world, with over a million organizations certified to it.

After the major revision in 2015 there was a clear user demand for guidance, for reassurance of how to meet the common requirements and new clause headings – although in reality many of the requirements are similar to those in earlier editions.

The standard covers all of the requirements in ISO 9001 and follows the structure clause by clause to help users find what they need easily. It applies to all sectors and sizes of organization at any level of maturity, who have or are thinking of putting an ISO 9001 management system in place. ISO 9002 has been written to be inclusive of all types of business, with special emphasis given to newer sectors such as the service industry.

Anne Hayes, Head of Market Development for Governance at BSI said: ”Having clear and easy to understand guidance is essential for anybody wishing to implement a management system standard. Due to the importance of these standards and how they can transform how a business operates, it can at times feel like there is a large amount of pressure to get it right, so we were keen to make implementation of ISO 9001 as simple as possible, and that is where the ISO 9002 standard comes into its own.”

What ISO 9002 does:

• States what the intention of each clause or requirement is and what organizations can do to demonstrate that they are complying. There are practical examples for different types of organization throughout the standard, including service industry examples and ones for small businesses

• Explains further concepts such as risk-based thinking, the role of top management, the importance of organizations taking their own context into account and how they can meet requirements – or often non-requirements – for documented information in a way that is advantageous to them without creating unnecessary burden

• Can help the transition from the 2008 standard to the 2015 for existing users and encourage newer sectors to the ISO 9001 market to implement the standard with confidence. It is also hoped that this will reduce the need for businesses to employ a consultant to help them

The development of ISO 9002 began when ISO 9001 was entering the draft international standard stage – ie quite mature, so people knew more or less what they needed to give guidance on. Contributions were invited from those involved in the drafting of ISO 9001 itself. Before publication, member bodies were invited to comment and these comments were taken into account during final drafting.

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