Why We Think Obtaining Our ISO Certification Was Critical

READE is excited to announce that our Quality Management System was re-assessed by National Quality Assurance and re-approved with zero findings and has received its ISO 9001: 2015 certification!

We initially received our certification to ISO 9001: 2015 in 2018. READE ensures the best possible experience for our customers and employees, and it is our commitment to consistency that makes this certification essential to maintain. ISO 9001 works to make sure our processes are structured by delivering on-time order shipments with absolutely no defects within any products.

What is ISO 9001:2015 Certification? This blog post will walk you through a step-by-step overview of what ISO certification is from the depths of what “ISO” and the “9001” mean, to the topics that ISO-9001:2015 covers and how it impacts clients.

We at READE are dedicated to constant improvement and development for achieving and maintaining rigorous ISO 9001:2015 certifications. I would like to thank our incredible Team READE for their continuous commitment to making the Company eligible for such recognition by acclaimed external bodies. This has only been possible with the determination and strong support of every team member, and I strongly believe that we will achieve many more milestones together with the support of our team.”

-Amanda Reade Sturgeon, Controller

WHAT IS ISO CERTIFICATION?

ISO certification certifies that a management system, manufacturing process, service, or documentation procedure has all the requirements for standardization and quality assurance. ISO 9001 helps the process of consistently providing products and services that meet the customers’ requirements.

“ISO”?

“ISO” stands for the International Organization for Standardization, a global network of national standards members. ISO is a non-governmental organization that has one member in each country representing ISO. International agreements or International standards are some of ISO’s work results.

“9001”?

“9001” is the number of the standard in the 9000 series. All standards within the ISO 9000 family refer to quality management which helps businesses and organizations to be more efficient and improve customer satisfaction. The current version of ISO 9001 was released in September 2015. ISO 9001 defines the criteria for meeting a number of quality management principles:

SATISFACTION FOR BOTH OUR COMPANY AND CUSTOMERS

ISO 9001 provides the specifics required for an effective quality management system making it essential for companies like READE to get the certification. Using the ISO 9001 helps us:

• Organize our QMS
• Ensures we maintain satisfied customers, management, and employees
• Continually improve our processes
• Save costs
• ISO 9001 certification ensures our customers get consistent, good-quality products and services.

TOPICS ISO-9001:2015 COVERS

ISO 9001 is based on the plan-do-check-act methodology, a four-step never ending circle repeatedly carrying out change for continuous improvement. The circle provides all the responsibilities and procedures required to achieve effective quality management in our organization. Some topics it includes are: 

• Requirements for a QMS, including documented information, planning, and determining process interactions
• Management responsibilities
• Management of resources, including human resources, and work environment
• Product realization, including the steps from design to delivery
• Measurement, analysis, and improvement of the QMS through activities like internal audits and corrective and preventive action       

RESOURCES:

If you’re a local Rhode Island manufacturer and looking to improve your Quality Management Systems, connect with Polaris MEP.  READE began its road to certification in August of 2017 and worked closely with Polaris MEP to evaluate our existing procedures, improve the Quality Manual, and implement the necessary changes. Polaris MEP has numerous business improvement programs to grow Rhode Island’s manufacturing industry. Read more about READE’s commitment to quality here.

SOURCES:

https://asq.org/quality-resources/iso-9001
https://www.meadmetals.com/blog/what-exactly-is-iso-certified-and-what-does-it-mean
https://www.iso.org/publication/PUB100080.html
https://www.iso.org/members.html