ISO certification, protected by Scan and See© - Using digital countermark technology, all ISO Accelerator certificates can be globally authenticated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

A quality manual is a document that describes the intent of an organisation's quality management system and how it operates.

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There is a certain amount of debate surrounding quality manuals, what exactly they are, and whether a quality manual is required for ISO 9001 certification.

Many people confuse the term 'quality manual' with a quality management system (QMS). This is understandable, because in the past...

  • The ISO 9001 standard talked about a quality manual

  • Companies would often keep a large folder containing master copies of their quality procedures, policies, forms, etc. This was sometimes known as the 'quality manual'.

Today, some in the certification industry see quality manuals as unnecessary.

 

Does ISO 9001 require a quality manual?

The answer to this question varies on a case-to-case basis. If you are interested in obtaining ISO 9001 certification, whether or not you need a quality manual depends on the format and structure of your QMS.

Here at ISO Accelerator, we regularly help businesses to implement effective quality management systems. As part of each QMS, we do also provide clients with a digital quality manual.

However, this quality manual does not itself contain copies of quality procedures, policies, forms, and so on - instead, these are supplied as part of the complete quality management system. The quality manual is simply a document that describes the intent of the QMS and how it operates.

 

Developing a quality management system

ISO Accelerator offers a comprehensive ISO 9001 certification service. We will work with you remotely, helping you to develop a quality management system and put it into practice.

Once your QMS has been properly implemented, a remote audit will be conducted to confirm that you are meeting the requirements of your quality management system. You will then be awarded your ISO 9001 certificate.

As a bonus, you will be able to send clients and customers a digital copy of your quality manual to reassure them that you have processes in place to ensure a quality service.

How to Get Certified with ISO Accelerator >

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Global accreditation

Globalisation has forever changed the way the world does business. Yes, the COVID-19 pandemic has made cross-border movement more difficult in recent months, but people are being vaccinated, the tide is beginning to turn, and in the meantime, the Internet allows us to continue collaborating with people all over the world.

With more and more businesses working with clients and suppliers in other countries, there is a real and pressing need for solutions that transcend international borders. That's why independent global accreditation for SMEs is a key goal for us here at ISO Accelerator - we want to make it easy for quality businesses to:

  • Obtain independent ISO management system certification
  • Maintain certifications online with remote audits
  • Quickly and easily confirm the status of a company’s independent ISO management system certification

Our Scan and See© authentication system (launched last month) is just one of several initiatives that will bring us closer to our goal of independent global accreditation. We already offer online certification to businesses all over the world - see How Does It Work? to find out how you can get certified remotely with ISO Accelerator.

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As we move towards global accreditation, ISO Accelerator is proud to announce the launch of its global real-time ISO certificate authentication system Scan and See©.

Countermark

Download the Countermark app and scan the code above to receive a copy of our USAS accreditation certificate!

The problem with traditional paper ISO certificates is that, once printed, they are static and hard to authenticate. You can always try to make contact with the certification company that issued the certificate - but in a global marketplace, this can be problematic, especially if you're trying to make a quick decision and there are time differences and/or language barriers in play.

To overcome this problem, ISO Accelerator has launched a global real-time ISO certificate authentication system called Scan and See©. This technology allocates a unique digital 'countermark' to an ISO certificate of registration. When the countermark is scanned using the Countermark app, the user is:

  1. Immediately informed of the validity of the certificate, and
  2. Automatically emailed a copy of the ISO certificate (if valid) from the certification body.

When presented with an ISO certificate, this system allows you to validate it against the most recent authorised certificate issued by the certification body - instantly!

 

What does this mean for ISO Accelerator customers?

Scan and See© allows for 100% real-time global authentication of ISO certificates or registration at any time, wherever you are, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

As this new system is rolled out, we will continue to temporarily issue certificate numbers; however, we are planning to phase these out on new certificates over the coming months. All existing ISO Accelerator customers will be issued with a certificate bearing a countermark after their next surveillance / recertification audit. There is no need for existing customers to contact us unless you would like to be issued with a replacement certificate bearing the countermark ahead of time.

We at ISO Accelerator are world leaders in using technology to simplify and perfect the process for independent ISO management system certification. If you would like to make savings on the cost of your ISO certification and join us on our journey to enable independent ISO certification in a safe, secure and environmentally friendly manner, please contact us today.

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More excitingly, if you would like to see how the countermark works, simply download the Countermark app from the App Store or Google Play and scan the countermark above.

Running to keep up

Keeping a close eye on ISO standards can eat up a lot of your time - which isn't ideal when you're trying to focus on growing your business. Here at ISO Accelerator, we work hard to ensure that we're constantly up to date with the latest version of each standard, giving you one less thing to worry about.

Our customers occasionally ask us how we're able to stay on top of all the latest ISO changes. We'd like to shed some light on that subject today.

 

How do we keep up with developments and changes in ISO standards?

In order to demonstrate our commitment to being at the forefront of the development of international standards, we decided it was important for ISO Accelerator to become a member of one of ISO's in-country representatives.

Since ISO Accelerator is a global company, we then had to determine which national standards body we wanted to join. We came to the conclusion that, because our international headquarters are located in the United Kingdom, BSI - ISO's member body in the UK - would be the best fit for us.

 

How does BSI membership benefit our customers?

ISO Accelerator's BSI membership demonstrates that we are:

  • Committed to high standards
  • Committed to performing better
  • Committed to delivering excellence

But beyond that, our BSI membership also ensures that whenever standards like ISO 9001 are updated, we are among the first to hear about it.

Learn more about BSI membership >

 

Why don't we just become an ISO member?

ISO is a global network of national standards bodies. There is only one member per country and each member represents ISO in its home country. It is important to understand that individuals and companies cannot become ISO members.

If you would like to benefit from our BSI membership and join one of the world's leading online certification companies, please contact ISO Accelerator to find out more about our remote ISO certification services.

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UK-US relations

At 11pm on 31 December 2020, the Brexit transition period ended and the UK officially completed its departure from the European Union.

It remains to be seen what opportunities and challenges this new era will bring our way, but here's one fairly safe prediction: now that Britain has distanced itself from the European single market, a closer trading relationship with the USA is all but guaranteed.

The UK and the USA have been firm allies for many years (much has been made of the 'special relationship' between the two countries), and while a new UK-US trade deal has yet to be agreed upon, British businesses should be prepared to work more closely with our friends on the other side of the Atlantic.

Get certified with a USA-accredited company

ISO Accelerator is a UK-based company that offers online ISO certification to businesses in virtually all industry sectors. We are accredited by USAS, who are headquartered in Florida, so getting certified through us will help to reassure your American clients that your business is reliable and trustworthy.

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UK / USA flag photo courtesy of Pixabay