General Policies

DISCLOSURE

ISOP Solutions Inc is not operating as a certification body and only performs compliance audits for specific ISO Standards, ISOP Solutions Inc does not issue any ISO Certification Certificates.

LOGO USE

ISOP Solutions Inc understands the importance for companies to display their compliance certificate and the ISOP Compliance logo. Please read our Compliance Logo Use Policy for guidelines on proper logo use.

GENERAL

ISOP Solutions Inc ensure that the persons or committees that make the decisions for granting or refusing certification, expanding or reducing the scope of certification, suspending or restoring certification, withdrawing certification or renewing certification are different from those who carried out the audits. The individual(s) appointed to conduct the certification decision have appropriate competence.

The person(s) [excluding members of committees] assigned by ISOP Solutions Inc to make a certification decision is employed by, or under legally enforceable arrangement with either the ISOP Solutions Inc or an entity under the organizational control of ISOP Solutions Inc. A ISOP Solutions Inc’s organizational control are one of the following:

Whole or majority ownership of another entity by ISOP Solutions Inc;
Majority participation by ISOP Solutions Inc on the board of directors of another entity;
A documented authority by ISOP Solutions Inc over another entity in a network of legal entities (in which the certification body resides), linked by ownership or board of director control.

The persons employed by, or under contract with, entities under organizational control fulfill the same requirements of this part of ISO/IEC 17021 as persons employed by, or under contract with, ISOP Solutions Inc.

ISOP Solutions Inc records each certification decision including any additional information or clarification sought from the audit team or other sources.

INFORMATION FOR GRANTING INITIAL CERTIFICATION

The information provided by the audit team to ISOP Solutions Inc for the certification decision includes following, as a minimum:

The audit report;
Comments on the nonconformities and, where applicable, the correction and corrective actions taken by the client;
Confirmation of the information provided to ISOP Solutions Inc used in the application review;
Confirmation that the audit objectives have been achieved;
A recommendation whether or not to grant certification, together with any conditions or observations.

If ISOP Solutions Inc is not able to verify the implementation of corrections and corrective actions of any major nonconformity within 6 months after the last day of stage 2, ISOP Solutions Inc conduct another stage 2 prior to recommending certification.

When a transfer of certification is envisaged from one certification body to another, the accepting ISOP Solutions Inc have a process for obtaining sufficient information in order to take a decision on certification. Certification schemes of ISOP Solutions Inc have specific rules regarding the transfer of certification.

INFORMATION FOR GRANTING RE–CERTIFICATION

ISOP Solutions Inc makes decisions on renewing certification based on the results of the recertification audit, as well as the results of the review of the system over the period of certification and complaints received from users of certification.

SUSPENDING, WITHDRAWING OR REDUCING THE SCOPE OF CERTIFICATION

ISOP Solutions Inc has a policy and procedure for suspension, withdrawal or reduction of the scope of certification, and has specified the subsequent actions to be taken.

ISOP Solutions Inc suspends certification in cases when, for example:

The client’s certified management system has persistently or seriously failed to meet the certification requirements, including requirements for the effectiveness of the management system.
The certified client does not allow surveillance or recertification audits to be conducted at the required frequency, or has failed to pay the due fees.
The certified client has voluntarily requested a suspension
In order to comply with regulations, including regulations applicable to specific industry sectors.

Under suspension, the client’s management system certification is temporarily invalid. ISOP Solutions Inc has enforceable arrangements with its clients to ensure that in case of suspension the client refrains from further promotion of its certification. ISOP Solutions Inc will make the suspended status of the certification publicly accessible and shall take any other measures deemed necessary. In most of the cases the suspension will not normally exceed 6 months. The client will be notified in writing of the decision.

ISOP Solutions Inc restores the suspended certification if the issue that has resulted in the suspension has been resolved. Failure to resolve the issues that have resulted in the suspension in the time established by ISOP Solutions Inc results in withdrawal (deregistration) or reduction of the scope of certification.

A certification decision maker / competent person will review clients under suspension and where withdrawal or reduction in the scope of certification is being considered.

ISOP Solutions Inc reduces the client’s scope of certification to exclude the parts not meeting the requirements, when the client has persistently or seriously failed to meet the requirements of the standard used for certification. At the client’s request or following recommendations by the auditor, the scope of certification may be reduced to reflect the change of circumstances or activities. Any such reduction shall be in line with the requirements of the standard used for certification.

APPEALS

ISOP Solutions Inc has a documented process to receive evaluates and makes decisions on appeals. The appeals handling process will be publicly available.

Appeal committee of ISOP Solutions Inc is responsible for all decisions at all levels of the appeals handling process. ISOP Solutions Inc ensures that the persons engaged in the appeals handling process are different from those who carried out the audits and made the certification decisions.

ISOP Solutions Inc ensures that any submission, investigations and decisions on appeals shall not result in any discriminatory actions against the organization or person making the appeal (appellant).

The appeals handling process includes at least the following elements and methods;

The process for receiving, validating and investigating the appeal, and for deciding what actions are to be taken in response to it, taking into account the results of any similar appeals
Tracking and recording appeals, including actions undertaken to resolve them.
Ensuring that any appropriate correction and corrective action are taken.

ISOP Solutions Inc is responsible for gathering and verifying all necessary information to validate the appeal.

ISOP Solutions Inc ensures that receipt of the appeal is acknowledged and will provide the appellant with progress reports and the outcome.

The decision to be communicated to the appellant shall be made by, or reviewed and approved by, individual(s) not previously involved in the subject of the appeal.

ISOP Solutions Inc gives formal notice to the appellant of the end of the appeals handling process.

COMPLAINTS

ISOP Solutions Inc ensures that the complaints handling process is publicly available and ISOP Solutions Inc is responsible for all decisions at all levels of the complaints handling process.

ISOP Solutions Inc ensures the submission; investigation and decision on complaints should not result in any discriminatory actions against the complainant.

On receipt of a complaint ISOP Solutions Inc establish and confirm whether the complaint relates to certification activities that it is responsible for and, if so, dealt with it. If the complaint relates to a certified client, then the examination of the complaint considers the effectiveness of the certified management system.

Any complaint about a certified client shall also be referred by ISOP Solutions Inc to the certified client in question at an appropriate time.

ISOP Solutions Inc has a documented process to receive, evaluate and make decisions on complaints. The process is subject to requirements for confidentiality, as it relates to the complainant and to the subject of the complaint.

The complaints handling process includes at least the following elements and methods:

The process for receiving, validating, investigating the complaint, and for deciding what actions are to be taken in response to it,
Tracking and recording complaints, including actions undertaken in response to them,
Ensuring that any appropriate correction and corrective actions are taken,

ISOP Solutions Inc will ensure that it gathers and verifies all necessary information to validate and process the complaint.

ISOP Solutions Inc will wherever possible acknowledge receipt of the complaint, and provides the complainant with progress reports on the outcome as a result of complain.

The decision regarding the complaint is made, reviewed, approved and communicated by individuals not previously involved in the subject of the complaint.

Wherever possible, ISOP Solutions Inc will give formal notice of the end of the complaints handling process to the complainant.

ISOP Solutions Inc will determine, together with the client and the complainant, whether and, if so to what extent, the subject of the complaint and its resolution is made to public.