I realized that many people are confused about the companies that typically get involved when a factory wants to get its quality management system (QMS) certified to ISO 9001 or ISO 13485. Let's break it down into the logical steps to … [Read more...]
What Causes A Bad QMS/ISO 9001 Implementation (Reason 2)
This is a follow-up on What Causes A Bad Factory QMS Implementation? [Reason 1], as I expose a few common issues that make a factory's work much harder than it should be. If you are starting to work on a program to raise product quality … [Read more...]
ISO 9001 QMS Features, Benefits, & Implementation Tips [Podcast]
In This Episode... Phil Brown, owner of Phil Brown Consultancy, who is an ISO 9001 and 14001 consultant in the UK joins us in this episode of the China manufacturing decoded podcast. Phil talks us through the ISO 9001 QMS, the … [Read more...]
What Causes A Bad Factory QMS Implementation? [Reason 1]
When we look at the root causes of many quality issues in China or Vietnam, we find "there is no quality system at the factory" or "they supposedly have one, but it was a really bad QMS implementation". I thought about it and I can point … [Read more...]
Does ISO 9001 Actually Prevent Process Improvements?
As I wrote before, I believe that a good implementation of ISO 9001 does help a manufacturer quite a bit, while a bad one will only create issues. And the reason is simple. ISO 9001 allows an organization to set any system it wants, as … [Read more...]
Benefits of ISO 9001 for a Chinese manufacturing organization
I wrote recently about ISO 9001: What are the standard and the certification process 10 ways it can get poorly implemented in a factory To summarize my view on this topic: It is a good standard, keeping in mind that it was … [Read more...]
Factory Audit Tips: 10 Signs of a Bad ISO 9001 Implementation
A few days ago, I wrote about the basics of ISO 9001 -- both the standard and the certification/registration process. I got some comments on Linkedin about how useless ISO 9001 is. It is useless indeed in many manufacturing facilities I … [Read more...]
How a Factory Can (and Should) Go Beyond ISO 9001
I wrote a few articles about ISO 9001 recently: The standard itself pushes companies in the right direction, but the auditing & certification process has many flaws: Basics about ISO 9001: The Standard and the Certification … [Read more...]
Basics about ISO 9001: The Standard and the Certification Process
How many of your suppliers claim to be ISO 9001 certified? Is it true? And, to start with, what does it mean? I want to shed some light on this topic. The purpose of the ISO 9001 standard is to "help businesses and organizations to be … [Read more...]
How a Chinese Factory Can Get ISO 9001 Certified
I wrote before about the way certain consultants are routinely hired by manufacturers to “make paperwork look good”. It is the norm in China. However, some factory owners really want to manage their business in accordance with best … [Read more...]