ASR News & Press Releases

Several ISO Standards have been Amended (including ISO 9001)

On February 23, 2024, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) released amendments to several common ISO standards, including.

• ISO 9001
• ISO 14001
• ISO 45001

The amendments cover two additions regarding climate change. In section 4.1 of these three standards, the amendment requires the organization to determine whether climate change is a relevant issue impacting their management system.

Further, in section 4.2, a new note has been added stating that relevant interested parties may have requirements related to climate change.

Below are some Frequently Asked Questions covering the amendments:

Why were these requirements added?

ISO amended these standards consistent with the London Declaration on Climate Change to clarify the need for organizations to consider the impact. These requirements were always part of analyzing external issues and relevant interested parties. The amendment calls out this specific topic as having a potential impact.

What does this mean for a certified organization?

If organizations have considered environmental impacts, then they need to do nothing. , if they still need to do it, they must review and consider whether climate change impacts their management system. There are multiple ways to accomplish this, and while some organizations will see no impact or change in their system, others may see a significant impact and change as a result.

Here are three important steps to improve management system training for internal auditors:

1. Develop a Comprehensive Training Curriculum:
   • Assess Training Needs: Conduct a needs assessment to understand the specific skills and knowledge gaps among your internal auditors. This should be based on the requirements of your management system.
   • Develop the Curriculum: Find a training curriculum that addresses the relevant standards (like ISO 9001, ISO 27001, etc.), risk assessment techniques, audit planning, report writing, and effective communication skills.
   • Blend Learning Methods: Use a blend of learning methods such as in-person, online courses, webinars, and hands-on workshops. This accommodates different learning styles and allows flexibility for staff.
2. Implement Continuous Learning:

Known unknowns in quality control refer to the aspects or factors that are recognized as potential sources of uncertainty or variability in the quality control process, but their precise impact or nature is not fully understood or quantified. These known unknowns are acknowledged and recognized as areas where further investigation, analysis, or research is required to gain a deeper understanding.

Here are a few examples of known unknowns in quality control:

• Employees
• Company Culture
• Automation
• Intellectual Property
• Capacity

• Customers
• The Market
• Competition
• Regulations
• Utilities
• Contracts & Deadlines

Click to go to the Alabama Automotive Manufacturer's Website

When a problem occurs, you’ll need to begin the process of documentation and resolution.  The Problem Statement is very important and defines the effectiveness of your actions.  The nonconformity is typically a symptom and not the problem.  It is important to get to the true problem, or the problem solving efforts will not be effective.  Fixing symptoms will not stop the issue from recurring.

If you express the problem in terms of a person or incident, you are still at the symptom stage.  Here are two statements:

1. Calipers X25-A were out of calibration
2. The gage calibration process is not effective

Which statement focuses on a process; and which focuses on an incident?  While the first specifies a symptom, it can still be used later as Objective Evidence.

The Problem Statement should contain information on Who, What, Where, When and How Many.

WHO

• Identify individuals associated with the problem
• Describe the customer complaints
• List operators that may be having difficulty

Remote Audits

ASR has been conducting remote audits since April 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.   Organizations all over the world have worked hard to make sure employees remain healthy while trying to maintain business operations.  

Most of the remote auditing methods were not new, but were governed by pre-existing rules and procedures. The pandemic caused a major shift to remote audits in 2020 and this continues today. 

Here are some findings so far:

From our post audit surveys we found no difference in customer satisfaction; only a 0.5% difference between Remote/On-Site/Hybrid.

Additional data from these audits show a decreased frequency of non-conformances.

Remote Audits                                  852

On-Site Audits                                   1,922

The percentages show a more balanced picture:

The International Accreditation Forum (IAF ) sought feedback from 4,350 individuals, including both those subject to remote audits, assessments and evaluations.

Here are some customer satisfaction results from the survey:

Summary

• Survey of 4350 beneficiaries and deliverers of remote audits, assessments and evaluations
• 79% of respondents would prefer to see blended (remote and on-site) or remote used in the future
• 80% agreed or strongly agreed that remote audits provide as much confidence as on-site audits
• 91.5% felt that increased use of remote techniques will provide stimulus to the use of new processes
• 97.5% agree/somewhat agree that new technologies and alternative techniques should be used

To read the complete IAF report, go to:  https://iaf.news/2021/12/07/iaf-ilac-iso-survey-shows-significant-benefits-of-remote-techniques-and-tangible-desire-for-the-adoption-of-remote-and-new-technologies/