Our Products
▪ Can I contact you if I have questions about your
   manuals and forms, and how to use them?
▪ How do your products help people like me who don’t
   have a clue where to start?
▪ Are your products designed for small, medium or
   large companies?
▪ I have read the web information but I am unable to
   determine whether your books cover ISO 9002.
   Can you shed some light?
▪ Are your quality manual templates and forms specific to a particular industry?
▪ Can you guarantee that we will achieve certification with your templates for ISO 9001 documents?
▪ Can you give me any references to call?
▪ Are your templates, forms and guides suitable to implement ISO 9001 at a small manufacturing business?
▪ We are a service company. Can we use your products?
▪ Do your documentation templates mirror the actual ISO 9001 requirements?
▪ Does your Implementation Manual or your Streamlining Manual have separate
   sections for the Quality Manual, procedures and work instructions?
▪ Are your manuals and forms ISO 9001:2008 compliant?

Customer Service, Support and Assistance
▪ Can you help me if I am not sure how to make the best use of your products during ISO 9001
   implementation?
▪ Do your customer service representatives have a background in ISO 9001?

ISO 9001 Implementation
▪ Once I order the 9001Simplified Implementation Manual, will it be evident how to start?
▪ We are a small distribution company with only 3 employees and without any manufacturing. Will we need
   thousands of pages of control processes?
▪ Our company is ISO 9001 certified but our system is awkward and bureaucratic; we implemented it only
   for marketing purposes. How can we improve our ISO 9001 system?
▪ How long does it take to get certified?
▪ How much does it cost to get certified?
▪ How do we best prepare for an audit?
▪ Being a start up company, will we need several months of "objective evidence" before we can attempt
   certification?

Product Purchase and Payment Process
▪ How can I purchase your products, and how will I receive them?
▪ Is the payment process secure and how is my personal information protected?
▪ Do you charge any fees (for example, shipping fees) or taxes?

General ISO 9001 Questions
▪ I am very new to ISO 9001. What would you recommend for me to read as a starter so I can brief the
   boss on how and if we should proceed.
▪ What is the difference between ISO 9001, ISO 9000 and ISO 9001:2008?
▪ I am not sure if I should get certified to ISO 9000, ISO 9001 or ISO 9004?
▪ Who wrote the ISO 9001 standard?
▪ What are the benefits of ISO 9001 certification?
▪ What is ISO 9000:2008 and ISO 9001:2008? 
▪ Is ISO 9001:2000 a predecessor of ISO 9001:2008?

Our Products

Question:  Can I contact you if I have questions about your manuals and forms, and how to use them?
Answer: Of course!  We pride ourselves with quick and personalized responses and expert advice, and we will be happy to provide you with our excellent customer service whenever you need us.  Please send an email to info@9001simplified.com and we will be happy to assist you.  We try to respond immediately but if we are out auditing, it may take 1-2 days.


Question:  How do your products help people like me who don’t have a clue where to start?
Answer: The biggest problems of starting a new project like the ISO 9001 implementation is not knowing where to start and not knowing how the finished product should look like.  However, we can help. Our Complete Package is designed for beginners. Just follow the included Guide to ISO 9001 Compliance step by step, and you will not only find it easy to start the ISO 9001 implementation but also reach ISO 9001 certification quite easily.


Question:  Are your products designed for small, medium or large companies?
Answer: All our templates, forms and guides are ideal for small and medium size companies worldwide. We made specific efforts to develop ISO 9001 materials that eliminate bureaucracy and excessive paperwork. Large companies, however, may require a bigger and more intrusive ISO 9001 system.

Many small and medium size companies make the costly mistake and implement an ISO 9001 quality management system that is designed for a large company. This problem can occur when using outside consultants or when purchasing quality manuals that don’t fit the business needs of small and medium size companies. Not with us! Our materials are specifically designed for small and medium size companies.


Question:  I have read the web information but I am unable to determine whether your books cover ISO 9002. Can you shed some light?
Answer: ISO 9002 is obsolete, and, therefore, it is not covered in our materials.

The ISO 9002 standard (along with ISO 9003) was superseded by ISO 9001 in December 2000 and is no longer valid.  The newest version is ISO 9001:2008; it applies to all companies that previously used the 1994 version of ISO 9001, ISO 9002 and ISO 9003.  All previous ISO 9002 and ISO 9003 certifications have been invalid since December 2003.

Caution: some companies still sell books and materials based on these obsolete standards.


Question:  Are your quality manual templates and forms specific to a particular industry?
Answer: Our templates for ISO 9001 quality manuals and our forms are suitable for any business organization (including non-profit organizations) in any industry worldwide.


Question:  Can you guarantee that we will achieve certification with your templates for ISO 9001 documentation?
Answer: Our unique templates, forms and guides have successfully led numerous offices and production facilities to certification, and we are confident that they will lead you to certification as well. However, there are many factors that influence the outcome of an ISO 9001:2008 certification audit, including the quality manual and procedures, the implementation, the available records, the competence of staff, as well as the background and competence of the auditor and the quality of the registrar. Therefore it would be unethical to promise successful certification based on the documentation alone.


Question:  Can you give me any references to call?
Answer: While we understand that a few of our potential customers would like to contact other customers before making a purchase decision, we strongly believe in the privacy of our customers, and we strictly adhere to our Privacy Policy. Our Privacy Policy is specifically designed to assure our customers that they will not receive unsolicited emails or phone calls – a policy for which our customers are very thankful. We hope that the many customer reviews and feedback (independently verified by RatePoint) provide you with sufficient information on how our customers think about our products.


Question:  Are your templates, forms and guides suitable to implement ISO 9001 at a small manufacturing business?
Answer: Our templates, forms and guides are ideal for small and mid-size companies of any industry, including a small manufacturing business.


Question:  We are a service company. Can we use your products?
Answer: Yes, our products are designed to work very well for service providers, as well as for manufacturing businesses.


Question:  Do your documentation templates mirror the actual ISO 9001 requirements?
Answer: Our documentation templates reflect all the requirements of ISO 9001:2008: they include the required quality manual as well as policy, and procedures. All requirements are covered.

Our documentation templates are uniquely structured according to a typical business process, providing the following benefits to you: the documentation is more user-friendly and more intuitive to use; the ISO 9001 requirements are easier to implement; and the ISO 9001:2008 requirement for process approach is directly reflected in the documentation structure which significantly reduces your audit risk.

The cross reference in the back of the manual allows you (and the auditor) to quickly find where individual ISO 9001:2008 requirements are addressed in the manual.


Question:  Does your Implementation Manual or your Streamlining Manual have separate sections for the Quality Manual, procedures and work instructions?
Answer: Our Implementation Manual and our Streamlining Manual are comprehensive documentation templates that include all documents required by ISO 9001:2008: a complete quality manual, quality policy, procedures and work instructions without explicitly identifying them as such.

We found that employees get confused by trying to distinguish between these technicalities, so we simplified by fully integrating all required documents into a well-structured document that not only meets the ISO 9001:2008 requirements but that can also be used by employees in daily operations.

The cross-reference at the end of the manual allows you to find for each ISO 9001:2008 requirement the pertinent section in the manual.


 Question:  Are your manuals and forms ISO 9001:2008 compliant?
Answer: Yes, all our manuals and forms are regularly reviewed and revised to ensure that they are always up-to-date, that they incorporate the latest interpretations of ISO 9001, and that they remain fully compliant with all requirements of ISO 9001:2008 (the current version of ISO 9001). 

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Customer Service, Support and Assistance

Question:  Can you help me if I am not sure how to make the best use of your products during ISO 9001
implementation?
Answer: We are always happy to help! All our products come with free consulting by experts in ISO 9001.  In case you get stuck, in case you have a question or in case you need some help, please send an email to info@9001simplified.com and we will be happy to assist you.  We try to respond immediately but if all our customer service reps are out auditing, it may take up to 1-2 days.


Question:  Do your customer service representatives have a background in ISO 9001?
Answer: Absolutely! Our team has many years of practical experience in quality management, development of ISO 9001 systems, ISO 9001 auditing, management consulting, training and technical writing.

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ISO 9001 Implementation

Question:  Once I order the 9001Simplified Implementation Manual, will it be evident how to start?
Answer: Yes, our Implementation Manual (as well as our Streamlining Manual) comes with detailed customization instructions that walk you through the entire customization process step-by-step.  For the bigger picture of ISO 9001:2008 implementation, please review our 5-Step Approach. 


Question:  We are a small distribution company with only 3 employees and without any manufacturing.  Will we need thousands of pages of instructions?
Answer: As your company is a small distribution company, your business processes are few, and, therefore, your ISO 9001 documentation will be limited. You will still be required to have a quality manual, a quality policy and all quality procedures (you can exclude the design section) but you will likely need only a few work instructions.  This will make your ISO 9001 implementation rather easy and quick if you have a good template for your ISO 9001 documentation (we recommend our Implementation Manual).


Question:  Our company is ISO 9001 certified but our system is awkward and bureaucratic; we implemented it only for marketing purposes. How can we improve our ISO 9001 system?
Answer: Your situation is not unusual. Many companies have used consultants to implement ISO 9001 solely for marketing reasons; these companies often got their ISO 9001 certificate but at the price of hurting their operational performance due to ill-fitting procedures and extensive bureaucracy.

I recommend that you consider our Streamlining Manual: it is designed to improve existing ISO 9001 quality management systems. You will be able to redefine and streamline your existing ISO 9001 system while keeping those parts that have worked well for you.


Question:  How long does it take to get certified?
Answer: It depends on you and your company. The fastest is 2-3 months because most registrars require at least 2 months track record of operating you ISO 9001 quality management system before the certification audit. If you have a relatively small company (say, less than 20 employees), if your employees are motivated and don’t oppose change, if you have the backing of all senior executives, if you and other managers are ready to put some time and efforts into this endeavor, and if you follow the step-by-step instructions included with our Complete Package, you may be able to achieve ISO 9001 certification in as little as 3-4 months.


Question: How much does it cost to get certified?
Answer: It depends on the approach you are taking. Small companies that implement ISO 9001 in house without the help of expensive consultants, and that use our Complete Package may be able to get certified for as little as USD $2,000 - 3,000, not counting the time spent by you and your employees.


Question:  How do we best prepare for an audit?
Answer: Our Audit Preparation Tips (part of the Complete Package) contain numerous tips and typical auditor questions. We strongly recommend that you use the Audit Preparation Tips to prepare for your certification audit.


Question:  Being a start up company, will we need several months of "objective evidence" before we can attempt certification?
Answer: Registrars usually require 2-3 months worth of records in order to verify that the ISO 9001 system is implemented. As you are completing various implementation tasks, you are already generating those records. Your auditor may be satisfied seeing a 2-3 months history of most records, while other records have a shorter history. However, all registrars are different, so please discuss your circumstances with your registrar first.

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Product Purchase and Payment Process

Question:  How can I purchase your products, and how will I receive them?
Answer: All our products are available through the Internet for immediate download. After making your credit card payment on our SECURE payment page, you will automatically receive an email with the download instructions. As additional payment options, you may chose PayPal or wire transfer (please contact us and we will provide you with the instructions).


Question:  Is the payment process secure and how is my personal information protected?
Answer: The payment process is completely secure. Credit card transactions are securely processed by VoicePay and PayPal, two of the most well-known and reputable Internet payment processors; all transactions are 256 bit encrypted. 9001Simplified and our payment processors are certified PCI compliant. Not only is our payment system completely secure, our certified strict Privacy Policy also ensures that your contact information remains private.


Question:  Do you charge any fees (for example, shipping fees) or taxes?
Answer: No, there are no fees or taxes. You only pay the clearly displayed price of the product you purchase – nothing else.

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General ISO 9001 Questions

Question:  I am very new to ISO 9001. What would you recommend for me to read as a starter so I can brief the boss on how and if we should proceed.
Answer: I would start my research on ISO's website. This will give you a good understanding of the standard and its benefits without the attempt of selling you consulting services.


Question:  What is the difference between ISO 9001, ISO 9000 and ISO 9001:2008?
Answer: The quick answer is “none”. These terms are all often used to describe the ISO 9001 standard.

Prior to December 2000, there used to be an ISO 9001, an ISO 9002 and an ISO 9003 standard; without focusing on the technical differences between them, people would just simply refer to each as ISO 9001. In December 2000, ISO 9001, ISO 9002, and ISO 9003 all were merged into the ISO 9001 standard; the new ISO 9001 standard was then called ISO 9001:2000 (indicating the year 2000 revision).  The most current revision of ISO 9001 is the year 2008 revision, which is called ISO 9001:2008.  However, many people don’t know about all the other standards that the International Organization for Standardization published, and they simply refer to the most famous standard (ISO 9001) as ISO.


Question:  I am not sure if I should get certified to ISO 9000, ISO 9001 or ISO 9004?
Answer: The ISO 9000 family of standards includes the following (by the way, people often say ISO 9000 when they actually mean ISO 9001, or when they mean any standard (ISO 9000, ISO 9001, ISO 9004) within the "ISO 9000 family"):

• ISO 9000 Quality Management Systems - Fundamentals and Vocabulary: this covers the basics of what quality management systems are; it includes definitions. You cannot get certified to this standard.

• ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems - Requirements: this is the only standard in the ISO 9000 family that provides the requirements for a quality management system. It is also the only standard in the ISO 9000 family to which you can get certified. The latest version is appended with ":2008".

• ISO 9004 Quality Management Systems - Guidelines for Performance Improvements: these are guidelines that help you improve your quality management system above and beyond the requirements of ISO 9001.
  

I would expect that you want to implement ISO 9001, and then get certified by an independent certification body (referred to as ISO 9001 registrar). Companies usually don't pay much attention to ISO 9000 and ISO 9004 as one cannot get a certificate for applying them.

Question:  Who wrote the ISO 9001 standard?
Answer: The ISO 9001 standard was created by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), a Switzerland based organization consisting of representatives of about 175 nations worldwide. For more information, visit www.iso.ch.


Question:  What are the benefits of ISO 9001 certification?
Answer: The benefits of ISO 9001 certification are:

1) Operational Improvement: ISO 9001 is an excellent tool to develop a strong foundation of good processes and systems. Processes and systems are essential for the performance and expansion of any business. Quality improvements come along with this. Remember, ISO 9001 was developed as a real tool to improve companies.

2) Marketing: The ISO 9001 certification can effectively used in marketing as it is a well-recognized certification of quality; it shows your customers that you take quality seriously, that you are proactive and that you put your customers’ satisfaction first.

3) Customer requirements: if your company provides products or services to other companies or to the government, you may be required to be ISO 9001 certified; without ISO 9001 certification, these customers may not want to be in business with you.


Question:  What is ISO 9000:2008 and ISO 9001:2008?
Answer: ISO 9001:2008 is the newest version of ISO 9001.  ISO 9001:2008 was released on November 14, 2008 (thus the ":2008") as replacement for ISO 9001:2000.  The ":2008" indicates the year 2008 revision; both ISO 9000 and ISO 9001 mean basically the same, though to be absolutely precise, the correct name is ISO 9001.  For more information, click here.


Question:  Is ISO 9001:2000 a predecessor of ISO 9001:2008?
Answer: Yes.  ISO 9001:2000 is the old year 2000 version.  ISO 9001 was revised on November 14, 2008 and the current version is called ISO 9001:2008.  For more information, click here.

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