At present, there is a great deal of activity in the ISO/IEC 17021 series of International Standards, which I am reporting as an update for the benefit of anyone interested in the application of accreditation, whether as a certification body or one of their clients.
It is worth recalling that ISO/IEC 17021 provides the requirements for the accreditation of certification / registration bodies providing audit and certification of management systems. This International Standard has already been though an initial development phase with the publication of ISO/IEC 17021:2006 and a recent revision to the current version: ISO/IEC 17021:2011.
Other International Standards published in the ISO/IEC 17021 series are:
- ISO/IEC TS 17022:2012 Conformity assessment — Requirements and recommendations for content of a third-party audit report on management systems
- ISO/IEC TS 17021-2:2012 Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 2: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of environmental management systems
The requirements from each of these International Standards are required by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) through IAF MD 10:2013 and the IAF Resolution 2012–12 with a transition deadline of 15 August 2014 respectively.
Now, ISO/IEC 17021:2011, itself, is about to enter a further revision cycle with the development of: ISO/IEC NP 17021-1 Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems.
Further International Standards are being developed to reinforce the competency requirements of ISO/IEC 17021. These International Standards are:
- ISO/IEC PRF TS 17021-3
Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 3: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of quality management systems - ISO/IEC DTS 17021-4
Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 4: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of event sustainability management - ISO/IEC NP TS 17021-5
Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 5: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of asset management systems
All this activity adds up to interesting and vital time for the certification body sector as there are periodic concerns raised by clients and suppliers regarding the competence of the certification body auditors.
These International Standards will go some way to addressing these concerns and will need to be implemented with real vigor by the National Accreditation Bodies, which oversee the certification bodies and by the certification bodies themselves.