The ISO 9000 series of documents was created by the International Organization for Standardization to set international requirements for quality management systems. Now adopted by over 100 countries, use of the series of standards has become commonplace in the business world.

The series itself is generic, and is designed to be applicable to any manufacturing or service process. The series is revised and controlled by Technical Committee (TC) 176, made up of international members from many industries and backgrounds. The series is modified periodically. The original standards were published in 1987, first revised in 1994 and the current versions were issued in 2000.

The previous ISO 9000 family of standards contained some 20 standards and documents. The year 2000 ISO 9000 family of standards consists of four primary standards supported by a number of technical reports. The four primary standards are:

ISO 9000: Quality Management Systems - Concepts and Vocabulary

ISO 9001: Quality Management Systems - Requirements

ISO 9004: Quality Management Systems - Guidelines

ISO 10011: Guidelines for Auditing Quality Systems (watch for ISO 19011, which will ISO 9000

Customers are increasingly becoming quality-conscious shoppers. They want to know up front that your business will meet their needs. A certified Quality Management System demonstrates your commitment to quality and customer satisfaction.

Implementing a Quality Management System will help you enhance customer satisfaction, achieve consistency, and improve internal processes. It can minimise the risk that customer expectations are not met.