ISO Offers Free ISO 9001:2000 Auditing Kit

Published: Monday, April 5, 2004 - 22:00

Twenty guidance modules on specific aspects of auditing ISO 9001:2000 quality management systems are now available from the International Organization for Standardization, and another three are being developed.

The guidance modules that compose the auditing kit adopt a practical approach toward examining quality management systems. They have been developed mainly for certification body personnel carrying out quality system audits for organizations seeking ISO 9001:2000 registration as independent confirmation of their implementation of the standard.

The kit may also be useful to staff carrying out in-house audits to provide assurance to managers about their quality management system’s performance, as well as to consultants, trainers and anyone interested in quality.

The modules are being developed by the ISO 9001:2000 Auditing Practices Group established by ISO and the International Accreditation Forum, the grouping of national accreditation bodies that verify the competence of certification bodies. The documents are available by clicking here.

The guidance modules aren’t endorsed by ISO and aren’t a product of its standards-development processes. They’re intended to provide additional assistance to ISO 9001:2000 users without modifying any of the requirements of the standard.

The 20 documents already developed by the APG address the following issues in ISO 9001:2000 auditing:

• The need for a two-stage approach to auditing
• Measuring QMS effectiveness and improvements
• Process identification
• Understanding the process approach
• Determination of "where appropriate" processes
• Auditing the "where appropriate" requirements
• Demonstrating conformity to the standard
• Linking an audit of a particular task, activity or process to the overall system
• Auditing continual improvement
• Auditing a QMS that has minimum documentation
• How to audit top management processes
• The role and value of the audit checklist
• Scope of ISO 9001:2000, scope of QMS and defining scope of certification
• Value-added auditing
• Auditing competence and the effectiveness of actions taken
• Effective use of ISO 19011:2002, Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing
• Auditing statutory and regulatory requirements
• Auditing quality policy and quality objectives
• Auditing the control of monitoring and measuring devices.

For more information about the International Organization for Standardization, click here.

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