ISO Certification
ISO Certification is a conferred status when an organization’s products, services, or management systems comply with standards that are generally recognized worldwide and established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The major purpose of these norms is to guarantee that quality, safety, efficiency, reliability, and consistency are preserved in all sectors globally.
International standards certification is crucial in the improvement of the internal processes of companies, meeting the expectations of regulators, increasing the loyalty of customers, and hence, obtaining a good reputation both in the local and foreign markets.
ISO stands for “ISOS,” which is a Greek word that means “equal.”
The name signifies the main objective of the organization, which was to come up with standard measures that are applicable equally to all countries, industries, and languages.
The story of ISO is very much connected to the year 1920 when the International Federation of National Standardizing Associations (ISA) was established in Geneva, Switzerland. Unfortunately, because of the Second World War, the ISA was forced to shut down its office in 1942. In fact, there was a meeting between the representatives of the former ISA and the United Nations Standards Coordinating Committee (UNSCC) in London in October 1946 to discuss the establishment of a new worldwide standards organization.
Their meeting was so productive that it became the direct cause of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) creation, which started its official activities in February 1947.
The reason why the short name ISO was chosen instead of an acronym is that the full name would be different in various languages. The word “ISO” served as a global and consistent name for all countries.
ISO is a global NGO and is comprised of the standardization bodies of over 150 nations. The Organization has published over 16,500 standards that regulate a wide range of areas such as quality management, environmental protection, information security, food safety, medical devices, and occupational health and safety. The member countries’ delegates meet frequently to develop, revise, and update standards based on worldwide practices that are changing.
ISO certification is evidence that a firm implements best practices that are globally accepted in its operations. Even though ISO is responsible for the creation of standards, it is not the one that provides certificates. The accredited certification bodies that review the companies for specific ISO standards are the ones that provide the certificates.
ISO/IEC 17025
Testing and calibration laboratories
ISO 13485
Medical devices quality management
ISO 9001:2015
Quality Management System
ISO 14001:2015
Environmental Management System
ISO 45001
Occupational Health and Safety Management
ISO 22000
Food Safety Management System
ISO 27001
Information Security Management
ISO 31000
Risk Management (guidelines)
ISO 50001
Energy Management System
ISO 20121
Event Sustainability Management
ISO 37001
Anti-bribery Management System
ISO 26000
Social Responsibility (guidelines)
ISO 10002
Customer Complaint Handling
ISO 28000
Supply Chain Security
SA 8000
Social Accountability Standard
(Note: Standards such as ISO 639, ISO 3166, ISO 4217, and ISO 8601 are reference standards and are not certifiable.)
