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Certification:
Certification refers to the issuing of a written assurance (the
Certificate) by an independent External Body (Certification Body)
that has audited your management system and verified that it
conforms to the requirements specified by the standard. |
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Accreditation:
is the formal recognition by a specialist Accreditation Body that a
Certification Body is competent to carry out ISO 9001 or ISO 14001
Certification in specified business sectors. |
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When is Certification
Required?: There is never any formal obligation for a company to
obtain ISO 9000 certification, although if a company claims to have
gained certification then evidence must be available to substantiate
that claim. |
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Benefits of Certification:
Certification ensures that appropriate systems are in place to
ensure that the ISO 9000 standard is met, and thus that consistent
standards are achieved. Consequentially, an ISO 9000 certified
company may have a competitive advantage over a non-certified
competitor. It is also true to say that certain contracts may only
be open to companies holding ISO 9000 certification due simply to
policy decisions within the company that is seeking tenders. |
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Government: Whilst the government endorses ISO 9000
as a useful business tool, it does not force its own suppliers to be ISO 9000 certified.
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