ISO standards are internationally recognised standards aimed at increasing effectiveness and efficiencies throughout organisations.

The International Standards Organisation produce thousands of standards with specific focus on areas such as quality, energy, health & safety, environmental and information security amongst many others.

Each standard is created by a group of experts in the respective field from all over the world to bring guidance and structure to best practices.

The standards are reviewed for relevance taking into consideration updates to technology and changing business practices periodically.

Once the standard is adopted by your organisation, you may choose to have this independently verified by a Certification Body, providing you with a certificate to show potential customers, suppliers and regulators.

Whether independently certified or not, the benefits of adopting a recognised way to go about your business has many benefits. These may include increased assurance to customers that your organisation is doing the right thing at the right time making you stand out from your competitors, increased productivity and efficiencies resulting in cost benefits, increased protection and development of your employees alongside reduced insurance premiums amongst so many more. Certification from a UKAS accredited Certification Body can also increase the volume of new work. With increased awareness around supply chains, many organisations are now seeking ISO certification as part of their procurement processes due to the increased level of assurance of delivery, compliance and suitability from independent verification.

Firstly, think about the customer base and future plans for the company; are you being asked for certification during tendering processes? What does the future of the business look like? What do you want to achieve through ISO? How are your competitors fairing?

You can choose to buy the standards and start to map out your own journey. Or, particularly if this is your first experience of ISO, you can engage with a professional consultancy organisation. Maple Management Systems Ltd can provide you with guidance, support, gap analysis, implementation, internal audit and training for employees with defined project timelines to achieve a comprehensive management system tailored to your organisation. This normally takes a number of weeks in the initial stages with continued support and guidance to maintain and continually improve your management system.

We work with a consultancy who specialise in ISO standards, BRC and associated schemes. The company is formed from a network of auditors with experience and expertise in many fields including medical devices, chemical industries, engineering, construction, plastics, retail and general manufacturing. Previously employed by the Certification Bodies mentioned above and still working within this field as qualified Lead Auditors, we believe this puts us in a prime position to assist you with any management system needs you may have.