ISO-Certification

They want to make sure that you deliver with high quality. When your customers require this certification, they want to ensure that your company has robust, well-defined and regularly audited processes and procedures to guarantee and maintain high quality. It gives customers the assurance that you can meet their requirements reliably and efficiently.

Customers may require ISO 14001 certification to ensure that your company takes its environmental responsibilities seriously. This standard is a sign that your company is actively working to reduce its environmental impact and improve its environmental performance. It also shows that your company complies with current environmental legislation, which in turn reduces the risk of fines and legal sanctions.

Customers who require ISO 45001 certification want to make sure that you take work environment and safety into account. This standard shows that your company has an effective system for dealing with occupational health and safety issues and that you take good care of the health and safety of your employees. It signals that you are committed to creating a safe and healthy workplace, which can be especially important for customers in industries with high safety requirements.

ISO 27001 certification may be required when your customers want to ensure that you are taking information security seriously. This standard shows that your company has implemented an effective system to protect and manage sensitive and confidential information. It gives your customers the assurance that you can manage and protect their information reliably and securely.

Obtaining an ISO certification is a process that consists of several steps. Here is a general overview of what the process might look like:

1. Understanding the Standard: The first step is to understand what the standard requires. This may involve reading the standard yourself, attending trainings or hiring a consultant. It is important to understand both the specific requirements and the underlying philosophy of the standard.

2. Gap analysis: The next step is to compare current processes and procedures with the requirements of the standard. This is called a gap analysis. The aim is to identify areas where changes need to be made to meet the requirements of the standard.

3. Planning: Once the gap analysis is complete, you should plan how you will meet each requirement. This may involve developing new processes or procedures, or modifying existing ones. You should also plan how you will document your processes to show that you meet the requirements.

4th. Implementation: Now is the time to implement the planned changes. This can be a huge amount of work, depending on how big differences there are between current processes and the requirements of the standard.

5. Internal Audit: Once all changes have been implemented, you should conduct an internal audit to ensure that all processes are working properly and that all requirements are being met.

6. Certification Audit: Finally, once you are sure that you meet all the requirements, you can apply for a certification audit. This is carried out by an independent certification body that confirms that you meet the requirements of the standard.

7. Maintenance and improvement: After obtaining your certification, you must continue to maintain and improve your processes to ensure that you continue to meet the requirements of the standard. This means regular monitoring and review, as well as implementing improvements where necessary.

Remember that this is a comprehensive process and that the details may vary depending on the specific ISO standard in question. But by and large, these are the steps you need to go through to achieve an ISO certification.

The cost of ISO certification can vary greatly and depends on several factors - the size of the company, which ISO standard you are aiming for, which consultant you use, and which certification body you choose for the certification, etc.

Generally, costs can be divided into three main categories:

Consultancy costs: If you hire an external consultant to help with the preparation for certification, this can incur significant costs.

Certification Fees: These fees are paid to the certification body to conduct the audit and issue the certificate. In Sweden, the certification fee normally covers a three-year period, including annual follow-up audits. After three years, you will need to undergo a recertification audit to renew your certificate.

Internal costs: These include the time and resources your company needs to spend preparing for certification, implementing necessary changes to your processes and systems, and maintaining certification requirements over time. These costs can vary greatly depending on your current business and what changes need to be made.