Plastic Extrusion Profile
ISO Certified Profile Extruders using ISO 9001:2008
Many buyers of custom profile extrusions will ask about ISO but some will admit they aren’t well versed in what it really means. In simple terms, ISO 9000 standards are designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the needs of customers while meeting statutory and regulatory requirements related to the products they produce and sell. The standards are published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Each country has a recognized national standards body that makes the 30 pages of ISO 9001:2008 requirements available to companies who seek certification. ISO itself doesn’t certify companies; there are certification bodies that handle the auditing of organizations and issue the compliance certificates.
When a custom profile extrusion company is audited for this certification, the auditor examines extensive samples of the functions, products, services, and extrusion processes of the company. The custom extruder is required to maintain documented procedures in the control of documents and records, internal audits, control of nonconforming products/services, corrective action, and preventive action. The company also has to supply documentation on any other procedures required to effectively operate, as well as a quality policy and a Quality Manual. As you can imagine, Hundreds of hours are required by the extrusion company seeking certification to develop all of this material, and hundreds more to implement these procedures. It is not an endeavor that can be taken lightly. It requires a significant commitment by the custom extrusion firm; resources – dollars and labor — to obtain certification.
The audit of a profile extrusion facility can take weeks or months depending on the size of the organization. Upon completion, the auditor will notify management of findings. In ISO terms these are referred to as observations and nonconformities. The auditor provides a report that states the finding, whether it was minor or major and what section of the ISO document the finding is violating. Your response must be submitted within 30 days and include the root cause, proposed corrective action and implementation timeline.
You may still be thinking, “What does this really mean for my customers? How does my business’ certification impact the quality of product I ship?” The big picture answer is that quality management should help drive operations. You should regularly audit your quality system for conformance and effectiveness based on all the data you record. When you develop new products for clients, test at each stage and document if the product is meeting design requirements, regulatory requirements, and customer needs. All of these efforts are designed to ensure delivering a quality product to customers. If there ever is a problem with a product, however, have a system in place for addressing the problem. For example, document where your resin comes from and where it gets used. If there ever were a problem with a finished product you can trace it to the source.
The combination of external audits by the national standards body and internal audits by your staff (who have been trained to administer the audits) is how to ensure you maintain your ISO 9001:2008 certification.
Typical questions from an extrusion facility auditor:
• Tell me what you do – that is, describe a particular business process
• Show me where it says that you do this (we’d show you our procedure manuals)
• Prove that you did what you claim to have done (provide evidence in our documentation).
The extruder must continually test to ensure the quality system is working to the approved standards, and incorporate continuous improvements. There is always room for improvement.
