Quality management
The ISO 9000 family is among ISO's most widely known standards. ISO 9000 standards are concerned with "quality management". This means what the organization does to fulfil:
- the customer's quality requirements, and
- applicable regulatory requirements, while aiming to
- enhance customer satisfaction, and
- achieve continual improvement of its performance in pursuit of these objectives.
ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 (Environmental management) standards are implemented by more than 760 000 organizations in 154 countries. ISO 9000 has become an international reference for quality management requirements in business-to-business dealings, and ISO 14000 is well on the way to achieving as much, if not more, in enabling organizations to meet their environmental challenges.
Measurement processes
All the quality processes in the world won't
help a company whose measuring equipment and measurement processes are out of control. Especially in
manufacturing, maintaining accuracy in measurement equipment is essential to ensuring a quality end
product.
ISO 10012 specifies the requirements for a measurement management system that can be used by an organization performing measurements as part of the overall quality management system, and for ensuring that metrological requirements are met. To help users get the best out of the standard, the requirement clauses are followed by text boxes containing relevant guidance.
ISO 10012, Measurement management systems - Requirements for measurement processes and measuring equipment, can be used by organizations to meet the requirements for measurement and measurement process control in ISO 9001:2000 (Quality management systems) and ISO 14001:2004 (Environmental management systems) - although its use is not a requirement of either - or it can be implemented independently of these standards.
The standard will prove useful when customers and their suppliers need to specify product characteristics, as a technical reference underpinning legislation and regulations, and as a tool in assessment and auditing of management systems. However, its use in third-party certification is not a requirement, but a matter of agreement between the interested parties.
By merging the scopes of application of these earlier standards - equipment and processes - in a unique document and integrating the process-based approach of the ISO 9000:2000 series, ISO 10012 constitutes a comprehensive "measurement management system".
Quality management for the education sector
ISO has published specific guidelines for organizations in the education sector wishing to benefit from the implementation of ISO 9001:2000, the improved version of ISO's quality management system standards.
ISO/IWA 2: Quality management systems - Guidelines for the application of ISO 9001:2000 in education, contains the full text of ISO 9001:2000, followed by specific text making the standard easier to understand and implement in the education sector.
While ISO 9000 users already include educational establishments of all types, the guidelines are aimed for organizations at all levels, providing all types of education, including: elementary, medium and higher; special and adult education; distance and e-learning.