ISO Certified, now where to find work?

K

KosmoQA

Hello.
Our company just recently became ISO certified for the first time. We are a small CNC and EDM machine shop registered to the ISO 9001:2008 standard. So, the biggest question in my mind is, now that we are certified, where might one go to locate potential customers looking for ISO certified manufacturing companies to make parts for them? Is there a directory somewhere?
 

Randy

Super Moderator
Well here's the deal...Remember, you're not ISO certified, the ISO doesn't certify anything. Your quality management system is certified to an ISO established management system standard, in this case apparently ISO 9001:2008

What type of machine work do you specialize in, Automotive, Aerospace, Medical, something else?

What do you have to demonstrate quality of product?

Do you have any previous customer references or are you a start up?

What type of capacity do you have?

What's your business plan?

Do you have any marketing or do any advertising?

What do your local business demographics look like?

What do you have available to invest in new or increased business ventures?

There are lots more things that can be asked.
 

Marc

Fully vaccinated are you?
Leader
I know this is :topic: but this may bring up the "Certified" vs. "Registered" debate. I'm old school - A company is registered, not certified.
 
K

KosmoQA

Well here's the deal...Remember, you're not ISO certified, the ISO doesn't certify anything. Your quality management system is certified to an ISO established management system standard, in this case apparently ISO 9001:2008 <snip>

I was just really wondering if there were websites where a company could quote on work only to be performed by an ISO "registered" company.
 

Kales Veggie

People: The Vital Few
Do you have sales reps that call on potential customers? What is your marketing plan and strategy?

Quoting through web-sites is cut throat business, in most cases.
 
T

tomvehoski

Truthfully, ISO 9001 certification is not all that special any more. The standard has been popular since the mid 1990s and most manufacturing companies already have certification. Many customers will require it as a condition of doing business, but ISO is hardly the #1 thing that is going to attract them to your business.

It is back to good old fashioned marketing and advertising. Make sure your customers can find you. Go out and find them. Network with existing customers or suppliers. The ISO 9001 standard itself would somewhat discourage the idea of having a website where you have potential suppliers bid for work. You need to develop a criteria for selecting suppliers. While ISO registration is a start, I typically would not make it my only measure to accept a new supplier. That takes supplier audits, checking of references, capability analysis, sample creation, ....
 
K

KosmoQA

Well, our company doesn't necessarily have sales reps (at least not the type of ones that actively go out looking for work), that's the problem. Unfortunately, I'm not in a position where I can do anything to change that. I am, also, the webmaster and have done all that I know how to to get our website to show up near the top of the results for various searches related to our business. That's kind of why I was hoping there might be somewhere else to look, to maybe help management to understand the importance of looking for the work instead of waiting for it.
 

somashekar

Leader
Admin
I was just really wondering if there were websites where a company could quote on work only to be performed by an ISO "registered" company.
Dear Kosmo.
Pardon me for I could sound a bit harsh. But this is how I would like to say.
Just by now being an ISO 9001:2008 certified (registered) company, does not make you to stand out and be a sourced after supplier to anyone. It is not a crown or an elite group that now starts getting recognized straight away. You have just put in place a QMS in operation and having been audited and found meeting to requirements, you have an ISO 9001:2008 certificate. You need to maintain and improve on this.
Now in places where you bid in tenders, or provide your company profile to prospective customers you state your ISO status and perhaps this adds to your other credentials. Still it does not mean a guarentee of business. There are perhaps several other similar suppliers like you who have the ISO status who are in competition.
Look well into post #2 from Randy. Do you see what you have got to do .......
If you have gone about getting ISO certified with a hope of some automatic business increase then perhaps you need to re think.
I request that you post reply and continue here to get more insight.
 
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T

tomvehoski

Waiting for work to find you is not a good way to stay in business these days. If they can't hire a dedicated sales person, you may want to look at hooking up with a manufacturers representative (or several). They are basically independent sales people who work for multiple businesses. They fill a need for small businesses that can't justify a full time outside sales force. It has been years since I worked with any, so I am not sure of their payment structure, but it is highly commission based.
 
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