ISO standards help businesses practices to ensure their reliability and accuracy. ISO, or the International organization for Standardization (ISO), is an independent organization. It includes a membership of over 160 national standard bodies. ISO helps streamline production in several industries. It ensures the consistency and safety of the related products/services. It also promotes global collaboration and compatibility, thus enabling companies to increase their market share. The ISO standards describe the fundamental quality management concepts and principles enabling organizations to seek success. Experts internationally have agreed upon the ISO standards to answer the fundamental question: “what’s the best way of doing this?”
ISO does not carry out the certification process on its own. A third-party Certification Body or Registrar audits and validates the organization’s management systems to provide them with the ISO certification in the relevant standards. Some of the most popular ISO standards include:
- ISO 9001 belongs to the ISO 9000 family of quality management systems. Within this family, organizations can only certify to ISO 9001:2015. It is customer-focused and emphasizes continuous improvement and risk management.
- ISO 14001: ISO 14000 family includes standards that relate to the environment. ISO 14001 is the standard available for certification, establishing requirements for an Environmental Management System (EMS).
- ISO 27000: The concerned family of information security management standards consists of a series of best practices that helps organizations secure and protect company assets. The two most popular standards within this family are ISO 27001:2013 for management-based systems and 27002:2013, which provides a technical document to establish a code of conduct.
- ISO/TS 16949: It is applicable in the automotive industry. It includes specific requirements for the design/development, production, installation, and servicing of automotive products.
- ISO 22000 identifies requirements to develop and implement a food safety management system. It supports those organizations working in the food chain. The ISO 22000 consists of various standards, such as 22001 for food and drink and 22002 for food manufacturing.
- ISO 50001: It helps design, implement, and maintain an energy management system. It provides practical ways to improve energy use, thus reducing energy consumption and improving energy efficiency. ISO 50001 prompts organizations to evaluate and incorporate new energy-efficient technologies. It was released in 2011 to optimize energy usage and efficiency.
- ISO 13485: It is a stand-alone QMS standard that caters to the design and manufacture of medical devices. ISO 13485 is a medical equipment standard. ISO 13485 is a single document specific to the health industry.
- ISO 31000: It is a family of standards that helps organizations manage risk effectively. It equips organizations to proactively identify threats and effectively allocate and use resources for mediating the risks.
- ISO 26000: It helps organizations commit to operating in a socially responsible manner. It prompts them to assess and address social responsibility. ISO 26000 values accountability, transparency, and ethical behavior as its key principles. Organizations cannot certify this standard, but it provides guidance to operate with a sense of social responsibility.
To Conclude:
These are a few popular ISO standards. The article details what these standards entail and how they impact businesses. The relevant ISO standard can help companies improve their business practices, enhance operational efficiency, and achieve excellence. It will help them efficiently align with customers, regulatory, and environmental requirements.
