The ISO stands for – International Organization for Standardization. It is an independent organization that determines standards for assuring the quality, efficiency, and safety of the products and services offered by a business or organization. It also sets the systems for efficiency and quality of products and services.

In India, the government provides MSME registration to those industries that are classified as micro, small, and medium enterprises by the Indian government. The registration aims to help the MSME sector to receive different advantages furnished by the government for their growth andadvancement.

It is not mandatory for MSMEs to obtain this registration, but having the registration is beneficial for an individual’s business under the government tax structure as it provides a huge benefits in terms
of establishing the business, taxation, credit facilities, loans etc.

Having an ISO certification for your products and services provides significant benefits. Some of the important benefits are mentioned here –

• ISO Certification is a vital process that, if effective in increasing the efficiency of your company and takes it from one level of growth to another.
• It helps to minimize environmental threats and work-related issues in your company.
• It emphasizes significantly on balancing the utilization of energy and inspires cost saving in
  the company.
•  It builds trust and helps to fulfill all the expectations and requirements of the customers.
•  It maintains health, environmental, and safety standards in the company.
• It ensures a quality foundation for the impactful and efficient manufacturing of products and
  services.

• ISO 9000: The most common ISO certification is the ISO 9000. This grouping of certification standards relates to quality management systems or QMS that help companies fulfill the
  requirements of customers and other interested groups. It is the most fundamental type of ISO certification that describes its establishment.
• ISO 9001: This is another standard that establishes the product harmony with systematic requirements. In this case, the product indicates hardware, services, materials, and software
  and relates more to the product of a company’s supplies instead of the entity itself.
• ISO 13485: This standard is established to provide a sector-specific certification for the medical device business. It defines the need for a quality management system where a company needs to show its ability to furnish medical devices and relevant services that continuously meet the regulatory requirements of customers.
•  ISO 14001: This standard is established to meet the requirements for an environmental management system. It is important as most customers are concerned about the effect of corporations on the environment. With this certification, businesses can control the effects of their common activities on both plants and animals.

Here is the detailed process for obtaining ISO certification in India. Read it carefully-

• Make an application

When the entrepreneur has confirmed the ISO standard, then the entrepreneur needs to make an application in a prescribed form depending on the ISO registrar. The application should include the rights and responsibilities of the entrepreneur and certification body parties and include liability issues, confidentiality, and access rights.

• Document review by Registrar

The ISO certification agency will check all the quality manuals and documents on different policies and procedures used in the organization. Validation of work done will assist the ISO registrar in determining loopholes in the compliance of the requirements set by the ISO standards.

• Determination of Pre-assessment Needs

It is a starting review of the QMS system in a company to point out any significant fault or omissions in the system. Then, the registrar provides the company with an opportunity to fix the faults before conducting the regular registration assessment.

• Prepare an Action Plan

When the ISO registrar has announced the existing differences in the company, the entrepreneur or applicant needs to prepare an action plan to avoid such differences. The action plan should precisely include the list of the required actions to be carried out to fulfil the standards of the Quality Management System.
Note: The entrepreneur can provide the essential training to employees to work proficiently to achieve the quality management system. Thus, it is important for all the employees in the company to be aware of the ISO standards related to work efficiency and quality standards.

• Onsite Inspection or Audit

A physical onsite inspection will be conducted by the ISO registrar to check the changes made in the company. Meanwhile in the audit, if the registrar ensures anything that does not fulfil the requirements of the ISO standards, then the registrar determines the hardness and issue findings. Audit findings are also called as nonconformities and come into two different categories depending on hardness.

• A Minor Non-conformance deals with minor failures of the system or minor infractions of process in fulfilling the ISO standards.
•  A Major Non-conformance is related to issues where the non-conforming products are difficult to reach the customers or where there is a destroy in the quality system and results in an ineffective system to fulfil the needs of the standards.
• Final audit: At last, the registration requires the submission of non-conformities that should be verified by the Registrar.  This audit, it includes are examination of the affected areas and the related costs.

• Get ISO Certificate

After finishing and fixing all non-conformities and updating all the findings in the ISO audit report, the registrar will issue the ISO certification to the applicant.

•   Surveillance Audits

This audit will be executed mainly to check whether the organisation is maintaining the ISO quality standards. It will be executed from time to time.