Five Key Standards Trends to Watch in 2018

If you are a manufacturing company or a service provider, there is a good chance that you have heard about standards such as ISO 9001. In fact, you may already be certified. But whether you are certified or not, read on for some of the expected trends in the world of standards and certification for 2018.

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ISO 9001 is here to stay

If you have ever been among the naysayers, such as “this is a waste of time” believers, or hard-headed “this does not apply to us” people, your time has come. If you think you are doing just fine without certification to ISO 9001, it is likely that you are losing money through inefficiencies. More to the point, you have probably already lost a contract or two to a competitor that was certified, whether you were aware of it or not. ISO 9001 is the bare-minimum standard that any good company should follow, and for this reason, all companies should adopt it. Although it has gone through various revisions during the past 30 years, ISO 9001 is undoubtedly a mature standard, and its auditors are experienced in certifying to it. So fight it no more; get your team together and invest in getting a good, basic quality management system into your organization.

API Q2 will be required within the energy industry

If your company functions in the oil and gas industry, then you know that across-the-board API Q2 certification was the intent of the American Petroleum Institute (API) when the Q2 standard was created late in 2013. Fast forward five years, and today API and its auditors have learned how to audit and interpret this standard, and requirements for compliance and certification have made their way into many contracts. Yes, it is occasionally a pain in the derriere, but judging by how many energy companies were functioning in the past, boy oh boy did they need that pain. Your company, if it is in the energy industry, should get your team on the same page and stay ahead of the competition by implementing this standard. (Large service companies are already doing it.)

ISO 9001:2008 will be retired

Unless you have been living under a rock, you should be aware that the 2008 version of ISO 9001 is going away, and you must upgrade to the 2015 version by September 2018. Unless you no longer wish to be certified, you will have to migrate to the new version and get certified.

No, you cannot audit your own work

No matter how small of a company you are, you just cannot objectively audit yourself. You do have several options, though: train more of your employees so they can become qualified auditors; outsource your internal audits; or if push comes to shove, rescind your certificate. Yes, if you find this to be too cumbersome or costly, then don’t remain certified. There is a cost and effort to being certified, but that’s why you will be better than your competitor, right?

Auditors have to be properly qualified

You qualify your welders, you qualify your painters, but when it comes to quality management, everyone seems to think it is child’s play. Well, it is not, and registrars are cracking down on companies that appoint internal auditors without proper qualifications. So come up with a combination of the training, skills, experience, and education that your company can agree on and sustain to qualify its auditors. Again, don’t forget you still have two other alternatives to improving your internal auditors: outsource your audits (to a qualified company/auditor), or let go of your certificate.

And speaking of auditors…

Although there is some variation from auditor to auditor, there is no question that registrars and their auditors have matured in terms of their knowledge and how they interpret the standards. This helps preserve the integrity of the certification scheme and elevates trust, while crushing companies that rely on smoke and mirrors. Here are a few general trends expected for 2018:
• Your equipment has to be maintained. Yes, I know the word maintenance is nowhere to be found in ISO 9001, mainly because the standard tries to cater to both manufacturing and service companies. But if you have equipment, please expect maintenance to be an issue during your next audit.
• Risk identification, analysis, and control are part of a good risk assessment program, so do it. Implement a solid program and carry it through. No need for fancy tools, just a good methodology that can be carried out by anybody in your organization, from shop-floor personnel to the top managers.
• Your employees must be trained and have a training plan. Ad-hoc or impromptu training is better than nothing but not as effective as a thought-out plan. Expect requirements for a training plan to be asked about during an audit, along with the proof of completion.

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