The questions manufacturers ask before the auditor arrives.
Written by the people who host the audits: a certified ISO 9001 lead auditor and the quality engineers who run the internal audit program inside a working manufacturer. Every answer leads with the answer.
Costs on these pages are published market benchmarks with their sources named, not our quote. Ask us for that directly.
A customer is requiring ISO 9001.
Approved-vendor rules, defense and aerospace flowdown, and tender criteria: what the clause in your contract means and what satisfying it takes.
- We signed an NDA for a customer's drawings and data. Does ISO 9001 cover how we protect them?T1 · Owner-GM
- A customer is asking for ISO 9001 and ISO 27001. Can one system cover both?T2 · Owner-GM
- Our defense prime is asking for ISO 9001 or AS9100. Which one do we need?T1 · Defense-supplier Owner
- Our biggest customer says we need ISO 9001 certification. What does that actually involve?T1 · Owner-GM
What it costs and how long it takes.
Consulting benchmarks, the registrar's own arithmetic, and why the figures you found online only hold below about 25 employees.
An audit is on the calendar.
Surveillance, recertification, Stage 2, or a customer audit, and the internal audits you owe before any of them arrive.
- A customer audit flagged our receiving inspection. What does ISO 9001 actually require for incoming material?T1 · Quality Manager
- Our surveillance audit is next month and we haven't done our internal audits. What do we do?T1 · Quality Manager
- What does a registrar actually look at during a Stage 2 audit?T2 · Quality Manager
Something went wrong.
A major nonconformance, a rocky surveillance visit, or a quality manager who left six weeks before the audit.
Deciding who to hire, and whether to.
Template kits, the MEP, remote consultancies, your own registrar: who can legally do what, and what each one actually costs you.
Tell us which audit is on your calendar.
A gap assessment is a flat-fee, on-site project led by a certified ISO 9001 lead auditor. Three founding-client spots are open for the quality practice.
We prepare you for certification. We never issue it. Your registrar's independence is the point.