10 Reasons to become ISO 9001 Certified

Introduction

In this article, we look at the benefits of becoming ISO 9001 certified and how this can help your business. We also explore why it’s important to get your business certified before the upcoming changes to ISO 9001 legislation come into play, and how you can develop a robust quality system.

What is ISO 9001 Certification?

ISO 9001 Certification is defined by AQS as ‘an international management system standard that specifies requirements for a quality management system (QMS). Organisations use the standard to demonstrate their ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements, as well as the organisation’s own requirements.’

ISO 9001 is essential to your business if you want to demonstrate that you have a robust and recognisable quality system in place that helps you to create a culture of continuous improvement, mitigate risk, and enable sustainable business growth.  It’s also a prerequisite for an increasing number of tenders, meaning that having the correct certification in place will help you to win more business.

Moreover, the Whitepaper published by EtQ and Hexagon in March 2025 highlights the importance of creating a culture of quality, with research demonstrating that ‘…the cost of poor quality can be 10 to 20 percent of total revenue, with the hidden costs as much as four times greater than the visible costs’.

Reasons you should become ISO 9001 certified:

1. Increased Profitability: The ability to streamline production and have a quality system in place that mitigates risk will enable you to improve your products and services and prevent costly product recalls. It will also enable you to be more innovative and quickly place new products on the market. 
2. Improved Customer Satisfaction: By focusing on meeting customer requirements and minimising errors, ISO 9001 helps deliver high-quality products and services, leading to increased customer loyalty and positive feedback.
3. Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement: The standard encourages a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging businesses to actively seek ways to optimise operations and adapt to changing market conditions. This aids staff and customer retention.
4. Better Employee Engagement: By involving employees in the quality management process, ISO 9001 can boost morale and foster a sense of ownership over quality standards. Opportunities for training and development will also help you recruit and retain the best people.
5. More Informed and Strategic Choices: The ISO 9001 framework encourages regular reviews of your data, and data-driven decision-making. Leading to more informed strategic choices and decisions to move your business forward.
6. Enhanced Operational Efficiency: Streamlining processes and identifying areas for improvement through a structured quality management system leads to reduced waste, better resource allocation, and increased productivity. 
7. Stronger Supply Chain Relationships: Demonstrating commitment to quality through ISO 9001 builds trust and improves collaboration with suppliers. By helping customers in your supply chain meet their environmental and sustainability targets, you can improve satisfaction and reputation.
8. Higher Value Contracts: ISO 9001 certification is often a requirement of higher-value contracts. By having the certification in place, you can speed up the tender process and increase your chances of winning the contract.
9. A Higher Level of Compliance: As part of your ISO 9001 certification, you need to regularly review your quality systems and undertake an annual surveillance audit. Regular reviews ensure you remain compliant with current legislation and prove you can maintain the highest level of quality.
10. Future Proofing your Business:  All of this will help you to future-proof your business by establishing a robust quality system that enables you to manage risk, be consistent and focus on growth.

Of course, to achieve ISO 9001 certification, you will need to have a robust quality system in place that sets you apart from your competitors and enables you to reach the highest level of compliance. It’s also important to note that an update to the current ISO 9001 Certification is coming in late 2026, if you are thinking about becoming ISO 9001 certified now, we would advise you not to leave it until the new legislation comes into effect, because:

1. You’ll already have a Certification body in place to support you with the transition, ensuring it is as smooth as possible and there are no delays.
2. All the work you put towards becoming compliant with the ISO 9001: 2015 framework will stand you in good stead for the transition to ISO 2026.
3. Having ISO 9001 certification in place highlights your commitment to quality, helping you to future-proof your business and pitch for high-value contracts that enable your business to grow.

How to Develop Robust Quality Systems 

Of course, to become ISO 9001 certified, you’ll need to develop a robust quality system that is compliant with current legislation, meets customer requirements and drives a culture of continuous improvement. To develop a robust quality system, you will need to do the following:

1. Analyse your current quality systems: Assess what you already have in place, including your documentation, your current processes and your facilities. This will enable you to identify any gaps and look at how you can improve things. 
2. Define your objectives: What do you want to achieve with your quality system? Remember, this is about more than compliance. Think about the positive impact it will have on your business, staff and customers. This will help you to develop quality objectives and understand who will be responsible for what.
3. Develop and document Standard Operating Procedures (SOPS): You will need to document these for all aspects of your business, make sure they are clear, concise and easy to access. You’ll also need to ensure that someone is responsible for monitoring and updating them. We would also recommend documenting what happens when you deviate from this to keep you on track.
4. Implement Staff Training: All of your staff will need to be aware of your quality systems, understand their importance and know what they need to do. Regular training and updates will help keep them on track, ensure effective communication, and prevent deviation from the quality system.
5. Monitor and Review: Monitoring your quality systems and conducting regular reviews, including internal audits and change control processes, will help you stay on track, implement change when needed, and strive for continuous improvement.

If you have any questions about the quality systems you need to have in place or would like to start an application for ISO 9001 certification or any of the other certifications we offer for your weighing and measuring instruments, then we would love to hear from you. You can reach us at 01727 582023 or email us at info@ukmb.org

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