ISO 9000 (Quality Management System) and ISO 14000 (Environmental Management System) are among ISO’s best known standards. ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 have been implemented by 887,770 organizations in 161 countries.
For an organization to function effectively, it must identify and manage numerous linked activities. An activity that uses resources and is managed in order to enable the transformation of inputs into outputs, is referred to as a process. The output from one process forms the input to the next.
ISO 9000 and 14000 (QMS and EMS) describe the system, organizational structure, procedures and resources that companies use to control processes and variables in order to produce a product or service of consistent quality. Products and services meet defined specifications and minimize harmful effects on the environment.
ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 (QMS and EMS) define effective management systems which ensure:
- measurements are valid
- testing equipment is calibrated
- appropriate statistical techniques are used
- product identification and traceability system is maintained
- preventive maintenance is practised
- environmental impacts are identified and minimized
- continual improvement is achieved and measured