Larkin Industries is pleased to announce they have been re-certified as an ISO 9001 company. They now hold the ISO 9001:2015 certification. In order to receive this certification, companies must demonstrate the ability to produce products and services that meet their customers’ requirements, as well as applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.
Previously, Larkin Industries was ISO 9001:2008 certified. The 2015 standardization is the newest version. We’d like to share more about what this means as a company and what it means for our customers.
What is ISO 9001 certification?
ISO 9001 is the world’s most commonly used standard for quality managements systems. A standard is an agreement or best practice that an organization can apply for voluntarily. It reflects a good level of professionalism. A quality management system is a tool an organization can use to determine how it can meet the requirements of its customers and other interested parties that are involved in its activities.
What does the ISO 9001 standard specify?
The most recent ISO 9001:2015 standard is constructed around seven quality management principles:
Customer focus- Leadership
- Engagement of people
- Process approach
- Improvement
- Evidence-based decision making
- Relationship management
Who determines, checks and manages ISO 9001?
ISO 9001 is managed by the International Organization for Standardization in Geneva, Switzerland. ISO is an independent membership organization and the world’s largest developer of voluntary international standards. Certification is performed by accredited certification bodies, which evaluate an organization’s management system and certify them with respect to the published standards. Each organization is then annually reviewed in order to keep their certification status. QAS International is the certification company that awarded Larkin’s registration.
How often are the standards updated?
A new version of ISO 9001 appears about every seven years. The last version was 2008 and the newest version is from 2015. There is a transitional period of three years after the publication of each new version for organizations to adapt their quality management to keep the ISO 9001 certification.
What is different from ISO 9001:2008 to ISO 9001:2015?
ISO 9001:2015 has ten clauses instead of the previous eight. The updates include more emphasis on the PDCA cycle (Plan, Do, Check, Act). With the new arrangement, the new ISO 9001:2015 strives to give additional momentum to the continuous and systematic improvement of processes within organizations. There is also more emphasis on properly measuring input and output of processes. Risk-based thinking is of added importance as well as leadership and management commitment.
Why does Larkin follow ISO 9001 standards?
At Larkin Industries, our mission is to be a leader in the finishing and converting industry through quality workmanship, innovative processes and technology, teamwork and responsiveness to customer needs. Our philosophy is to treat all members of the Larkin Industries community with fairness and respect. We value our employees and customers and strive to better their lives and their businesses. By complying with the ISO 9001:2015 standards, Larkin is showing our commitment to quality standards that will benefit everyone involved with our company.
If you would like more information on how we incorporate a quality management system at our print finishing company, call Larkin Industries at 651-645-6000 or contact us.