GUIDELINES FOR
CERTIFICATION OF MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
SQAS/MSC/DOC/01-03 Page 1 of 7
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TABLE OF CONTENT
No. Content Page
1.0 INTRODUCTION 3
2.0 CERTIFICATION PROCESS 4
3.0 CERTIFICATION COST 5
4.0 CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
4.1 Eligibility Criteria for Certification 5
4.2 Site of Audit 5
4.3 Scope of Certification 5
4.4 Audit Criteria 6
5.0 SCOPE OF ACCREDITATION 6
6.0 APPEALS PROCEDURE 6
7.0 COMPLAINT PROCEDURE 6
8.0 WITHDRAWAL/ SUSPENSION 6
INFORMATION ON CERTIFICATION MADE AVAILABLE TO THE
9.0 7
PUBLIC
10.0 CHANGES TO THE INFORMATION IN THE CERTIFICATE 7
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1.0 INTRODUCTION
This document provides guidance to any organization that is interested in obtaining certification of its
management system from SIRIM QAS International Sdn Bhd to the requirements of the following
standards:
Quality Management System Certification
- ISO 9001
- ISO/TS 16949
- ISO 13485
- MS 1900
Environmental Management System Certification
- ISO 14001
Occupational Health and Safety Management System Certification
- OHSAS 18001
- MS 1722
Information Security Management System Certification
- ISO/IEC 27001
Energy Management System Certification
- ISO 50001
Supply Chain Security Management System Certification
- ISO 28000
Business Continuity Management System Certification
- ISO 22301
Road Traffic Safety Management System Certification
- ISO 39001
Asset Management System Certification
- ISO 55001
Good Distribution Practice for Medical Devices Certification
- MDA/RR No. 1
Specific certification guidelines have been issued for the following certification schemes:
IT Service Management System Certification
- ISO/IEC 20000
Food Safety Management System Certification
- ISO 22000
- FSSC 22000
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Certification
- MS 1480
Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Certification for Food Sector
- MS 1514
Forest Management Certification
- Malaysian Criteria and Indicators (Natural Forest)
- Malaysian Criteria and Indicators (Forest Plantations)
Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products Certification
- PEFC ST 2002
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Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) P&C Certification
- RSPO Principles and Criteria for the Production of Sustainable Palm Oil
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) Supply Chain Certification
- RSPO Supply Chain Certification Standard
Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil Certification
- MS 2530-2
- MS 2530-3
- MS 2530-4
Product Carbon Footprint Certification
- ISO/TS 14067
The National Mark of Malaysian Brand Certification
- Malaysian Brand Assessment Criteria
2.0 CERTIFICATION PROCESS
The management system certification services provided by SIRIM QAS International are carried out in
accordance to the policies and procedures established by SIRIM QAS International based on the
requirements of the various accreditation standards. The generic certification process is as follows :
Submit Fill Questionnaire in the Application Package and submit to SIRIM QAS
Questionnaire International Sdn. Bhd. Based on the information in the Questionnaire, a
quotation will be prepared. The quotation provides an estimate for the
total cost for certification.
Upon acceptance of the quotation, the applicant is required to submit the
Application Application Form (SQAS/MSC/FOR/01-02) together with the application
fee. An audit team leader responsible for the client file will be appointed.
Stage 1 audit is carried out to determine the adequacy of the client’s
Stage 1 Audit management system documentation and readiness to proceed to the
Stage 2 audit.
After the findings from the Stage 1 audit have been resolved, the client is
Stage 2 Audit to notify the Audit Team Leader on the readiness to proceed to the Stage
2 audit. The purpose of the Stage 2 audit is to evaluate the
implementation, including effectiveness, of the client’s management
system.
On satisfactory completion of the Stage 2 audit and verification of any
Recommendation nonconformity(ies) raised, the Audit Team Leader will prepare a
recommendation report to the Certification Panel for approval.
Approval of The Certification Panel reviews and approves the recommendation for
certification certification under the authority of the Certification Advisory Committee.
The certificate will be issued upon payment of all fees due and the
Issue of certificate signing of the Certification Agreement. The certificate is valid for 3 years
from the date of approval.
Surveillance Audit/ All certified organizations will be subjected to one annual surveillance
Recertification audit. In exceptional cases, two surveillance audits may be carried out
annually. The first surveillance audit will be carried out within 12 months
from the date of certification. Renewal of certification is subject to a
satisfactory Recertification audit carry out before the expiry of the
certificate.
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3.0 CERTIFICATION COST
The cost of certification will vary depending on various factors such as the complexity of the
management system, the number of staff involved (directly and indirectly), and the number of
sites to be certified.
* The schedule of fees (i.e. the rate per auditor day for each certification scheme) is available
upon request.
4.0 CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
4.1 Eligibility criteria for certification
Organizations intending to seek certification to standards such as ISO/TS 16949 and
MS 1900 have to ensure that they meet eligibility criteria for certification specific to each of
the schemes. Details of the criteria may be obtained from SIRIM QAS International.
4.2 Site of audit
The organization shall identify the site(s) to be covered under scope of certification. This
site(s) shall generally be permanent location(s) at which the organization carries out its
operations.
For certain types of activities such as construction, the organization shall also identify the
temporary sites at which activities are carried out. These sites will be subjected to audit on
sampling basis. However, the sites will not be included in the certificate.
A multiple site organization is an organization having an identified central function (normally
referred as central office) at which certain activities are planned, controlled or managed and
a network of local offices or branches (sites) at which such activities are fully or partially
carried out. The organization shall identify in advance the sites that it wants to include in the
certificate. These sites will be subjected to audit on a sampling basis.
ISO/TS 16949 certification requirement for remote support functions
For ISO/TS 16949 certification, it is a requirement that all remote functions supporting the
certified site shall be audited. However, if the remote functions have been audited by
another IATF approved certification body, SIRIM QAS International may waive the audit of
those functions. This is conditional upon:
a) the organization ensuring that the certification body that undertakes the audit of the
remote support function is aware of the support provided by that function to the site to be
certified by SIRIM QAS International;
b) making available relevant records of the audit of the remote support functions to SIRIM
QAS International at the time of the Stage 1 audit and prior to every audit;
c) SIRIM QAS International’s auditor being satisfied that the audit of the remote support
function by the other certification body has adequately covered the support activities
provided by the support function to the site to be certified or which has been certified by
SIRIM QAS International.
The records shall include, as a minimum, the audit plan, audit report, audit findings,
corrective actions and verification action by the other certification body. The records shall
be in English.
4.3 Scope of certification
The organization shall clearly define the activities to be included under the scope of
certification. The organization should ensure that it does not omit important elements of its
operations from the scope of certification.
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4.4 Audit criteria
In order to be certified, an organization has to demonstrate that the relevant management
system is functioning and the various control mechanisms are properly implemented. In
practice, this means in particular that:
a) The management system has been operational for a sufficient period of time to be able
to demonstrate adequately the effective implementation of the entire system.
b) The Internal Audit and Management Review have been conducted before the Stage 1
audit. For multiple site organizations, the internal audit shall cover all sites to be included
in the certificate.
5.0 SCOPE OF ACCREDITATION
The management system certification services of SIRIM QAS International have been
accredited by various accreditation bodies. The list of accredited scopes for each accreditation is
available upon request.
6.0 APPEALS PROCEDURE
The applicant may file an appeal when he does not agree with the decision of the Certification
Panel. The appeal shall be in writing and addressed to the Senior General Manager of the
Management System Department within 2 weeks of notification of the decision.
The letter of appeal shall be forwarded to the Appeals Panel appointed by the Certification
Advisory Committee. The appellant shall be notified of the composition of the panel and the date
of its proposed hearing. The appellant shall have the right to object the composition of the panel
and to appear before the panel to present his case. Decisions made by the Appeals Panel
including the grounds of their decision shall be recorded and the appellant shall be notified in
writing.
7.0 COMPLAINT PROCEDURE
Any complaint about SIRIM QAS International’s certification services or about organizations
certified by SIRIM QAS International shall be directed to QOSHE Section Head.
Complaints may be in writing or verbal. All complaints received will be verified and validated by
the QOSHE Section Head. The complainant shall be informed of the receipt of the complaint
and will be provided progress report(s) and a report on the outcome of the investigation.
8.0 WITHDRAWAL/ SUSPENSION
a) Withdrawal
An organization that wishes to withdraw from the any certification scheme is required to write
to the Section Head informing of its intention. The organization shall within a reasonable
timeframe ensure that all advertising matters that contain any reference to the certificate are
discontinued.
b) Suspension
SIRIM QAS International Sdn Bhd shall suspend the certification of the organization under
the following circumstances;
i) The certified organization’s management system has persistently or seriously failed to
meet certification requirements, including requirements for the effectiveness of the
management systems;
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ii) The certified organization does not allow Surveillance or Recertification audits to be
conducted at the required frequencies;
iii) The certified organization has voluntarily requested suspension of its certification;
iv) The certified organization fails to take corrective actions for nonconformity(ies) raised
within the specified timeframe;
v) The certified organization has incorrectly making references to its certification status or
misleading use of certificate, marks or audit reports;
vi) The certified organization infringed the requirements of the certification contract.
The organization whose certification is suspended is required to take the necessary
corrective action before the end of the suspension period. Failure to resolve the issues
satisfactorily will result in withdrawal of certification. The organization may appeal if it is
dissatisfied with the decision to suspend or withdraw the certificate.
9.0 INFORMATION ON CERTIFICATION MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC
Upon certification the organization’s name, geographical location (city, state and country),
approval and expiry date, certification number and scope of certification will be published in the
following website maintained by SIRIM QAS International: http://www.malaysiancertified.com.my.
Any change in the status of the certification, e.g. suspension of certificate will also be published in
the web site.
10.0 CHANGES TO THE INFORMATION IN THE CERTIFICATE
The organization may seek to make changes to details in the certificate. This may include, name
of organization, change of address or scope of certification. Request for such changes shall be
made in writing.
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