The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) reports that it has excelled in a recent audit to achieve certification to the new ISO 9001:2015 quality standard.
Revised in 2015, the redesigned standard aims to ensure that quality management is fully integrated into an organisation’s day-to-day operations, touching on every element of business and stressing continuous improvement.
Kirstie Anwyl-Hughes, Quality Manager at the BSIA, says: “The revised ISO 9001 standard has introduced several new elements, such as a greater emphasis on risk-based thinking to reinforce the use of the management system as a governance tool and an emphasis on a greater involvement by the leadership team. To ensure compliance, the BSIA has undertaken a large-scale review of its entire quality management system, and we are delighted to have passed our first audit under the new scheme.”
According to the British Standards Institution’s website, the changes to ISO 9001 were made because “business has changed radically since the last major revision in 2000… [but] one thing remains constant: to be successful, businesses have to adapt to meet the growing needs of customers. ISO was originally written with the customer in mind and that remains the priority for 9001.”
This customer focus means that adherence to strict quality standards is ingrained into every element of the BSIA’s operations, for the association to better meet the needs of members and industry customers.
Kirstie Anwyl-Hughes adds: “Raising quality standards within the security industry is an important focus of the BSIA, and we require our members to be certified to a range of industry standards – including ISO 9001 with a UKAS accredited certification body. As such, we are pleased to be leading the way in the adoption of the revised standard.”
The BSIA – through its new probationer membership scheme – also provides advice and assistance to security companies wishing to obtain ISO 9001:2015. More details can be found on the association’s website: http://bit.ly/2pl6mev.
