Certified Once Accepted Everywhere Why use an accredited certification body? Third party management systems certification is a frequenty specified requirement to operate in the goba market pace. It can demonstrate compiance to a standard, a code of practice or reguatory requirements. It can aso deiver interna business improvement.
Why use an accredited certification body? Seecting the right organisation to carry out your certification can be fraught with unknowns. Choosing a certification body that has been accredited by an accreditation body that is a signatory to the IAF Mutiatera Recognition Arrangement (MLA) has proved that it compies with best practice. It is competent to deiver a consistenty reiabe and impartia service which meets the appropriate, internationay-recognised standard. What shoud I consider when seecting a Certification Body? When seecting an organisation to certify your management system, there are a number of factors to consider: Quaifications, training and ongoing competence monitoring of staff Technicay competent peope that have the reevant experience and sector expertise. The certification is recognised by procurers in domestic and overseas markets. The certification independenty and impartiay verifies compiance to a standard Accreditation is the independent evauation of certification bodies against the standard ISO/IEC 17021: (Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems) to ensure their impartiaity, competence and consistency. The standard sets out the principes and requirements for the competence, consistency and impartiaity of bodies providing audit and certification of management systems services. In many countries, accreditation is not mandatory. It shoud be noted that the fact that a certification body is not accredited does not, by itsef, mean that it is not a reputabe organization. However, many certification bodies choose to seek accreditation in order to be abe to demonstrate an independent confirmation of their competence and independence. 2
What are the benefits of using an accredited certification body? There are many reasons why you shoud use the services of an accredited certification body: de-risk your procurement by taking the guesswork out of choosing acertification body by giving you confidence that you wi get the service that cosey meets your requirements; win new business particuary since the use of accredited conformity assessment services is increasingy a stipuation of specifiers in both the pubic and private sector; gain access to overseas markets since certificates issued by bodies that are accredited by an IAF MLA signatory are recognised and accepted throughout the word; contro costs with the hep of knowedge transfer since accredited certification bodies can be a good source of impartia advice; offer market differentiation and eadership by showing to others credibe evidence of good practice; demonstrate due diigence in the event of ega action; reduce paperwork and increase efficiency by reducing the necessity to re-audit your business. hep to identify best practice since the certification body is required to have appropriate knowedge of your business sector; 3
Areas of management systems certification Whie Quaity Management System certification (to ISO 9001) accounts for a arge proportion of work undertaken by certification bodies, there are other equay important areas of work, namey: Information Security Management Systems certification (ISO/IEC 27001) Environmenta Management Systems certification (ISO14001) IT Service Management Systems certification (ISO 20000) Food Safety Management Systems certification (ISO 22000) Suppy Chain Security Management Systems certification (ISO 28000) 4
How do I find an Accredited Certification Body? To find out if your country has an accreditation body, visit the Internationa Accreditation Forum (IAF) website at www.iaf.nu and use the IAF MLA signatories ist to identify an accreditation body in your country or region. Accreditation bodies in most countries pubish ists or directories of the certification bodies they have accredited, which often incude contact detais and scope. Accreditation is the independent evauation of certification bodies against recognised standards to ensure their impartiaity, competence and consistency. The purpose of the IAF Mutiatera Recognition Arrangement (MLA), is to ensure mutua recognition of accredited certification between signatories to the MLA, and subsequenty acceptance of accredited certification in many markets based on one accreditation. Accreditation and the IAF MLA hep reguators meet their own egisated responsibiities by providing a gobay recognised system to accept accredited certification. 5
Certified Once Accepted Everywhere More information about IAF and accreditation The Internationa Accreditation Forum(IAF) is a goba association of Accreditation Bodies, Certification Body Associations and other organisations invoved in conformity assessment activities in a variety of fieds incuding management systems, products and personne. IAF Members work together on a wordwide basis to achieve common trade faciitation objectives by deveoping the principes and practices for the conduct of conformity assessment that wi deiver the confidence needed for market acceptance. IAF promotes the wordwide acceptance, of certificates of conformity issued by certification bodies accredited by an IAF MLA signatory and seeks to add vaue for a stakehoders through its activities and programs. For more information contact: IAF Secretariat Eva Nisen 28 Chemin Od Chesea Box 1811 Chesea, Quebec CANADA J9B 1A0 Phone: +1 (613) 454 8159 Emai: iaf@iaf.nu www.iaf.nu Copyright IAF 2011 IAF encourages the authorised reproduction of its pubications, or parts thereof, by organisations wishing to use such materia for areas reated to education, standardisation, accreditation, good aboratory practice or other purposes reevant to IAF s area of expertise or endeavour. Organisations seeking permission to reproduce materia from IAF pubications must contact the Chair or Secretariat in writing or via eectronic means such as emai. IAF s permission to reproduce its materia ony extends as far as detaied in the origina request. Any variation to the stated use of the IAF materia must be notified in advance in writing to IAF for additiona permission. IAF B3 1/2012