Registration upgrade ISO9001 to QS9000

[Luc Schepers]

We are a rather small company (± 40 employees) conduction conversion activities for FORD. We are not a mainstream supplier. We are currently ISO9001 certified sinde december 1993 but we want to be QS 9000 by the end of this year. We have a discussion with our registar about the number of mandays for upgrade to QS 9000. They say it have to be 5 mandays, but to my opinion this is to much since we are already ISO9001. Can someone help me with this?

 

[Laura M]

Appendix H of QS9000 states for a 40 person company 5 auditor days for initial audit. Note #4 specifies that the table does not address "upgrades from ISO-9001 to QS9000."

I would suggest further conversation. Ask what they are basing the 5-days on. If its the table, point out note number 4. Should open the door for negotiation at least.

 

[Christian Lupo]

Laura is right, if your ISO audits have gone well the registrar can justify using less than the required number of days. I would definatly discuss this with your registrar.

 

[Luc]

Is it so that there is a difference in audit mandays if you are ISO 9001 before or after 1996? Our registar says the reason why we need 5 mandays is that we are certified before 1996.

 

[Christian Lupo]

that dosent sound right, maybe its an "internal" policy of your registrar.

 

[ALM]

Originally posted by Luc:
Is it so that there is a difference in audit mandays if you are ISO 9001 before or after 1996? Our registar says the reason why we need 5 mandays is that we are certified before 1996.

I cannot specifically say it is an accommodation of the Standards, however, BSI (my registrar) will knock a 1.5 days off (100+ personnel) if the auditors who originally certified you to ISO9001 where qualified at the time of that audit to do QS9000 audits. What bearing that has on today, I have no clue, but it is something to evaluate.