Does a Quality Manual have to be in the format of ISO 9001:2000?

T

tomjess

Does a Quality Manual have to be in the format of ISO 9001:2000? by that I mean sections 4 to 8.

My new company has their manual in the old ISO 9002:1994 format and have referenced the new sections to the old sections.

And, I am unsure what the ruling was for companies to change from the old versions to the new version.

Thanking you advance
 

Marc

Fully vaccinated are you?
Leader
No - It does not. What they did is acceptable. There is no required format.
 

Randy

Super Moderator
Marc is absolutely correct. If someone wants to create their Quality Manual to look and read like a Dr. Seuss book or a Nostradamous quatrain nothing prevents it...in fact either format would be a refreshing break from the monotony and blah-blah-blah that is normally found.
 
A

alekra

I had the same

Hello!
I had the same last year when I got in my new job. I decided to change the manual format and the procedures (that were also named like ISO 94 style) to the format of version 2000, otherwise any change that was needed we would have to check what was the related topic in the 94 version before put it into the manual... Too much mess just for revisions, I thought...
 

Randy

Super Moderator
You know Alekra the only issue is whether or not the format works for you (also meaning your organization). So if what you did works and the requirements are met you can't be wrong.
 

Helmut Jilling

Auditor / Consultant
tomjess said:
Does a Quality Manual have to be in the format of ISO 9001:2000? by that I mean sections 4 to 8.

My new company has their manual in the old ISO 9002:1994 format and have referenced the new sections to the old sections.

And, I am unsure what the ruling was for companies to change from the old versions to the new version.

Thanking you advance



I agree with the other replies that this can be "compliant." However, I am not sure it is the best approach. You have to decide that. You can also chnage it later, rather than now.
 

Wes Bucey

Prophet of Profit
Let me echo part of Randy's refrain - almost anything would be a welcome change from the dreary stuff I've seen.

If the auditor is a bright and alert guy like Randy, he knows all the "shalls" from ISO 9001:2000 and can tick them off in his head, regardless of the order they may be covered in the manual.

If the auditor is not bright and alert, he might not be able to assimilate the information unless it is presented in the same dreary format he is used to seeing.

I don't get confused by different formats for Quality Manuals and I have become a strong fan of some of the ideas presented in the thread
QMS (Quality Management System) Manual - The Boss Wants a 4 Page Manual - What to Do?

The one thing I plead for is an elimination of stilted writing in the third person and the use of nothing but passive verbs.

I have noted some organizations have picked up boiler plate Quality software with generic Procedures. These Procedures from a "consultant" are notable because they are ALL IN CAPITAL LETTERS (apparently to make them seem more important) and suffer the same problem for a reader as FLAMING in emails - they are insulting to the reader and hard to read for folks used to normal text with mixed capital and lower case letters.

I look at the task of creating Quality Manuals as one of making a document which can be easily read and understood by the target market (employees and customers.) Thus said, give it to some low level employees and ask if they can paraphrase a part that pertains to their function in the organization - if they scratch their heads and are unable to do that, you probably need to modify it so the folks most affected by the Q Manual can easily understand it.
 

Randy

Super Moderator
Somebody submitted a "1 page" manual a bit back and I use a copy of it in my 9K training courses as an example. Occasionally you can hear an @ss hit the floor or a jaw smack a table when they see it. The 15 page manual that was submitted is also anothe example I use.

I can see the light switch flip "on" with many of my students when they realize that the manual doesn't have to look like an encyclopedia.
 

al40

Quite Involved in Discussions
Randy said:
Somebody submitted a "1 page" manual a bit back and I use a copy of it in my 9K training courses as an example. Occasionally you can hear an @ss hit the floor or a jaw smack a table when they see it. The 15 page manual that was submitted is also anothe example I use.

I can see the light switch flip "on" with many of my students when they realize that the manual doesn't have to look like an encyclopedia.


I have to agree with Randy, I always thought you had to follow the ISO format until recently.

I had an "eye opening experience" concenring how to write quality manuals it came about when I wrote the initial draft of our new quality manual it was in the standard QM form you see everywhere else and presented it to my President for review and comments.

He came back with the following questions:

1. Why is the manual so long? (I thought to myself to meet ISO requirements the manual was over 60 pages).

2. Why is it so full of fluff (The manual contained all of the ISO sections repeated and rhetoric ISO jargon, etc. about this time the old phrase "KISS' hit me).

3. Why does it track with the standard? Can't we format this as we see fit? ( My thoughts were we can it's our document and it is intended to help our business not impede it).

4. Why can't we drive down the specifics into our tier two documents and work instructions? (I thought we can and it would make better sense since these are the documents that are used on a daily basis).

Today our QM is 40 pages and is very easy to read and understand. We drove the specifics to our QP's and work instructions with flowcharts. During our recent pre-assessment audit our auditor commented that the manual was a refreshing read and had only a couple of minor suggestions for improvement.

So keep in mind that your quality manual should reflect your orgainzation's current quality culture and not be a reread of ISO9001.

Kind regards,
Al
 

Helmut Jilling

Auditor / Consultant
Randy said:
Somebody submitted a "1 page" manual a bit back and I use a copy of it in my 9K training courses as an example. Occasionally you can hear an @ss hit the floor or a jaw smack a table when they see it. The 15 page manual that was submitted is also anothe example I use.

I can see the light switch flip "on" with many of my students when they realize that the manual doesn't have to look like an encyclopedia.


Randy, could you post that 1 page manual? I'd like to see a copy. I agree with the principle, but I'd like to see what it looks like. I'd like to see hw they packaged it.

Thanks.
 
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