What ISO 9000 is REALLY All About

[R2 Innovations <R2innovations -at- MYNA -dot- COM>]

I have been reading with interest the recent musings about the value
- or lack of value - of ISO 9000 registration.  They have certainly
been enlightening, and have pointed out just how misunderstood the ISO
9000 series of standards really are. especially amongst tech writers.

First, and foremost, ISO 9000 is all about delivering to the customer
exactly what the customer wants;  the second element of  ISO 9001/2/3
(the three standards) is Contract Review.  This element requires a company to
have in place documented processes and procedures that ensure the
requirements of the customer are flowed down to all functions
that impact the products creation and delivery to the them (the customer).
If the customer has specified a level of quality that is not the very best, then
you are obliged to supply that customer products to that level of quality.

It should be noted that quality means different things to different
people.  Take paper towels for example.  If you are operating a
daycare centre with pre-school children making up your customer base,
would you use a brand name paper towel costing $1.99 for 100 sheets
when you can get no-name paper towels for 2x 200-sheet rolls for $.99?
Remember, you are only wiping up spills and and cleaning up craft materials,
not cleaning an expensive microscope lens or other such things!!

I totally agree that the implementation of ISO 9000 in a company
_does not guarantee_ products will be made of high quality IF they
are not designed to do so.  The purpose of having documented
processes and procedures is to ensure repeatability - you produce the
same level of quality everytime.

The other thing to remember about ISO 9000 is that many companies
go through all the trouble of implementing the system, only to "go
back to work and produce product" after the auditors leave.  They
usually shift into panic mode again a couple of months before the
auditors come back again for a maintenance audit.  Generally
speaking, any company that claims they have not realized measurable
benefits from ISO 9000 implementation, have either done a poor job of
implementing the standard, or they don't follow the processes and
procedures they have written. There is a book available dealing with
the value of ISO 9000 that is worth a read.  The name is
"Understanding the Value of ISO 9000" and is available for about
US$20 from:
 SPC Press, Inc.
5908 Toole Drive, Suite C
Knoxville, Tennessee  37919.
Tel:  ( 615) 584-5005.
The ISBN number of the book is 0-945320-44-2.

I was involved with the implementation of ISO 9001 at a major
aerospace electronics manufacturer in 1993-1994, and have been
responsible for maintaining all the documentation supporting this
registration since then.  I can assure you that ISO 9000 does improve
quality by ensuring processes are followed.  I can also assure you
that where they are not followed, quality suffers markedly.  Both
these scenarios exist in this facility.  By looking at the rework/repair
statistics from our plant, I can identify where, and often when, the
procedures are being followed and where/when they aren't.

If any of you would like to converse further on this subject, feel
free to contact me directly at the address shown in my signature.  I
also encourage interested people to join the ISO 9000 list.  You just
send a message to LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- NODAK -dot- EDU, putting the following
in the body of the message -
susbscribe iso900 (your name)

Have a quality day
Ralph E. Robinson
Author of the book "Documenting ISO 9000:  Guidelines for
Compliant Documentation" available through R2 Innovations
in Mississuaga, Ontario.

Email address = r2innovations -at- myna -dot- com
Website = http://www.myna.com/~r2innovn/main.htm


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