Imperial Car Supermarkets have 6 used car retail sites across the UK. They sell around 800 cars per month, specialising in nearly-new and late-plate BMWs, Audis, Volkswagens, Mercedes-Benzes, and many more makes and models. The company's vision is to be the supplier of choice for used vehicles by offering the best customer experience and value for money; to help them achieve this, ICS recognised that they needed a winning Quality Management System (QMS) and the help of an ISO 9001 consultant. Through a recommendation, they chose NPT Management Systems.
Working with Imperial Car Supermarkets, we helped the company to develop and implement a tailor-made QMS. Not only does their QMS meet the requirements of ISO 9001, it has also given their staff processes and tools to deliver the same high-quality vehicles and customer experience across all sites. Even more importantly, the achievement of ISO 9001 certification gives customers the confidence that ICS have an independently-audited system in place that's focused on achieving customer satisfaction.
After 4 days of intensive auditing (conducted by a UKAS-accredited certification body), we can now proudly announce that, with the help of NPT Management Systems, Imperial Car Supermarkets have been recommended for ISO 9001 certification. Here is what Neil Smith, Operations Director of Imperial Car Supermarkets, had to say about us:
"NPT Management Systems have worked with us over the past year, preparing us for ISO 9001. I cannot fault Neil Peattie's commitment to this project, and I am confident I can rely on his continued support in a consultancy capacity now that we have achieved the ISO 9001 accreditation."
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If you would like to implement a quality management system and achieve ISO 9001 certification for your own business, please get in touch with NPT Management Systems today.
Founded in 1998 by Adrian Clements, Clemtech is a technical resourcing company specialising in the supply of contract and permanent resource for rolling stock, engineering, infrastructure, and related fields. With their headquarters located just outside Portsmouth, Clemtech operate throughout the UK supporting some of the country's largest train operating companies. Clemtech's staff take great pride in the personal, high-quality resourcing service they provide.
We have recently been working with Clemtech on two different fronts:
ISO 14001 is the globally-recognised standard for environmental management systems, and Clemtech asked us to help them implement a system that would minimise the company's environmental impact and meet the requirements of ISO 14001. We have been working closely with the Clemtech team over the last few months, and we are pleased to announce that their environmental management system achieved ISO 14001 certification by a UKAS certified registration body this past Monday.
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Clemtech also asked us to help them update their current ISO 9001-certified QMS (Quality Management System) in order to better reflect the company's operating processes and to help drive continuous improvement. Here's what Andrew Clements had to say about us and our work:
"NPT Management Systems began working with us a year ago with two clear objectives: to rebuild our dormant but compliant ISO 9001 QMS, and to help us achieve ISO 14001 certification. Neil has managed to build us a system that is not only compliant but helps drive quality through more 'in-line' processes and procedures.
"Neil has always clearly communicated what needs to be done, and has developed a clear understanding of the demands of our sector. We have successfully passed both 9001 and 14001 audits, and thank Neil for his support over the past 12 months. Highly recommended."
If you would like us to help you review and/or update your company's quality management system, or to help you implement an environmental management system, please don't hesitate to get in touch with the NPT Management Systems team.
Anchor Systems wanted a winning quality management system that would support their daily operations and integrate with the business as a whole. Here's how we helped them...
Anchor Systems (International) Ltd supply high-quality ground anchoring systems across the UK and in many countries throughout Europe. They first implemented a QMS (Quality Management System) back in 2007; this system met the requirements of ISO 9001 certification, but the company's management identified that, if the QMS was improved, it could be used to help them achieve their business objectives.
We were initially contacted by Hadley Smith, Operations Director at Anchor Systems. He tasked us with helping to design and implement a new, simpler to use QMS that would be embraced by the whole company and integrated with day-to-day operations.
Now, we're pleased to announce that we successfully achieved Anchor Systems' goal. Here's an excerpt from the five-star review we recently received from Hadley:
"We would 100% recommend NPT Management Systems. Neil's knowledge, enthusiasm, and ability to help implement our new QMS were quite frankly amazing.
"We have successfully been recommended for on-going ISO 9001 registration at our recent recertification audit, but more than that, we now have a QMS on our company server that is used by the whole company on a day-to-day basis.
"Our staff now have the system, tools, and training necessary to help us deliver the right products on time to our customers. Great job NPT."
Click here for more reviews from our previous clients, or contact us if you need help with your own quality management system.
For less experienced individuals, implementing an ISO-compliant quality management system and applying for ISO 9001 certification can be a complex and involved process. It can often be time-consuming, requiring numerous changes to behaviours and processes with an organisation, and the best approach is usually to collaborate with an experienced ISO consultant. A chartered quality professional will be able to make sure that your QMS is set up efficiently, supporting the strategic direction of your company; they will also ensure that your application for ISO certification is properly submitted and provide additional support during your ISO 9001 certification audit.
However, if all you need for now is a general idea of the ISO 9001 requirements, here's a rough list of what's needed:
- A Quality Policy. A well-written Quality Policy, in alignment with strategic direction of the company, helps to set the scene for interested stakeholders and communicates a strong message of intent.
- Although it is not a requirement of ISO 9001:2015, we still recommend the use of a Quality Manual. The Quality Manual (or equivalent document) should set out the aims and scope of your quality management system and provide general guidance on the structure of the QMS.
- Documented quality management procedures. To quality for ISO 9001 certification, you must be able to demonstrate that you not only have a quality management system in place, but that it also supports the business. This is quite often done via careful documentation, which must meet the requirements of the ISO 9001 standard. Documented procedures also make great training documents, which brings us to the next requirement...
- Staff training. Part of implementing a successful quality management system is identifying and delivering any training that may be required by the people involved. This can mean anything from an informal training session that brings all staff up to date with the company's quality management processes to accredited ISO training that helps employees to take active involvement in the procedures of the QMS.
If you would like to achieve ISO 9001 certification for your business, please contact NPT Management Systems now - our experienced ISO 9001 consultants will help you to meet all the necessary requirements and get certified first time.
The family of standards known as ISO 9001 was recently revised for the first time since 2008 (read our blog about it here). The new version, dubbed ISO 9001:2015, is now in effect, meaning that your quality management system will need to meet the updated standards for your business to retain its ISO 9001 certification.
As of ISO 9001:2015's introduction three weeks ago, ISO 9001-certified businesses have three years to update their practices and migrate their quality management systems to ensure that they are in full compliance with the new set of standards. Failure to do this within the allotted time period will result in the expiration of your business's ISO-certified status, so it's a good idea to make any necessary changes and get re-certified sooner rather than later (just to be on the safe side!)
If you're ready to review your quality management system and bring it into line with ISO 9001:2015 standards, we at NPT Management Systems are the people to call. Our qualified ISO 9001 consultants will help you to identify and implement any necessary changes; we will also assist with the re-certification process, ensuring that your business retains its ISO certification for the forseeable future.
Click here to get in touch with NPT Management Systems, or visit our ISO 9001:2015 page to learn more about the new set of standards.
Following on from last week's big news (the ISO 14001 standard receiving its first update in over a decade), we're excited to announce that the latest edition of ISO 9001, the international standard for quality management systems, has now been published as well. This new revision, dubbed ISO 9001:2015, was released earlier today, and standards experts the world over are already poring over the changes that have been made.
What's new in ISO 9001:2015?
Here are some of the differences between ISO 9001:2015 and the previous version of this standard:
- Enhanced compatibility with other management systems. One of the main aims of this revision is to make ISO 9001 more compatible with ISO 14001 and other management systems such as ISO 27001. The new version of ISO 9001 has a higher-level structure than its predecessor, making it easier for businesses to use multiple ISO management systems in conjunction with one another.
- Stronger emphasis on "risk-based thinking". Official ISO literature highlights this as one of ISO 9001:2015's core concepts. A risk-conscious approach, the organisation has suggested, will help businesses to prevent "undesirable outcomes".
- Less prescriptive, more performance-based. ISO 9001 has been growing less prescriptive with each new update; over the years, focus has gradually shifted away from rigorous documentation and towards the management process itself. ISO 9001:2015 continues in this tradition, with the revision touted as being less prescriptive than ever.
If you would like to learn more about the ISO 9001 update and what it might mean for your business, please get in touch with NPT Management Systems - we can help you to make sure that your management systems remain fully certified in the wake of this revision.
Image Credit: Isaac Bowen
