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...]
Are there Many Fake ISO 9001 Certifications in China?
I saw several people mentioning fake certificates recently in the context of Chinese manufacturing. While I know there are many fake product certificates, I don't think there are many fake ISO 9001 certifications, or those for ISO 14001, or … [Read more...]
Are ISO 9001 Certified Suppliers the Best in China?
Here are some interesting or useful articles that I found recently. Quality Management Systems in China Explained Fredrik Grönkvist asked me the following questions about certifications to the ISO 9001 standard (and to other QMS … [Read more...]
ISO/TS 16949: Great Improvements Over ISO 9001
Over the past few days, I have been learning a lot about the ISO/TS 16949 standard. We are working on the development of adequate auditing services to clients in the automotive industry. This "technical specification" (TS) goes much … [Read more...]
Are Technical Auditors Necessary for ISO 9001 Audits?
Many people think the ISO 9001 standard is pretty generic is applicable to all industries (that's mostly correct), so a good auditor can check any type of business when performing ISO 9001 audits (I don't agree with that). And the ISO … [Read more...]
ISO 9001: More Popular in China than in the US or Japan
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) shows how many companies are currently ISO 9001 certified in each country: And the highest number of ISO 9001-registered companies is... China. And that number is on the … [Read more...]
Auditing a small Chinese factory: does it make sense?
I see some well-meaning importers who pay for factory audits based on a checklist inspired by the ISO9001 standard. However, I am really questioning the value of auditing a small factory (below 400-600 workers). Don't get me wrong, I am … [Read more...]