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Standards may help you ensure that your products, services, or business operations meet stringent requirements or industry standards for quality. Despite being optional, utilizing them might benefit companies in several ways.
1. Overview
Customer satisfaction is the priority for every business. Following defined quality management guidelines will help you meet customer expectations and maintain a standard for your product or service.
You may benefit from standards in the following ways:
• growing the market for the products and services you provide
• Verify that your goods function properly with one another and with similar products.
•Build a stronger reputation among customers and suppliers.
• Manage your business better.
• Utilize your ideas to the fullest.
Standards are explained in this tutorial along with potential benefits for your company. It also covers management system standards, which might improve the efficiency with which your business runs.
2. What exactly is a norm?
Numerous business, industrial, and technical fields are covered by standards.
The two main types of standards are technical and management system standards.
Technical standards ensure that products, manufacturing processes, and services meet specified quality standards. They might be used to:
• ensure that products and services adhere to safety and quality criteria
• Promote interoperability and compatibility of services and products
• Provide information about the products and services.
• make the most of your innovations' advantages
An organization may organize and oversee its activities with the use of standards for management systems. By providing businesses with an example of excellent practices to emulate, they might help companies become more efficient.
A standard might be a few pages long or several hundred pages long.
Do laws compel standards?
No—standards are voluntary. Nonetheless, you may need to meet several conditions to comply with certain legal obligations. For example, motorcycle helmets need to fulfill certain safety standards before they can be marketed in India.
While there are alternative methods to fulfill your legal obligations, the best course of action is often to attain a standard.
Gaining the favor of larger corporations or government organizations, many of which have strict guidelines or standards that suppliers must adhere to, may also be facilitated by demonstrating that your company, products, or services meet a certain standard. Sometimes, before a customer feels comfortable buying a firm's products or services, they may demand that the company meet specific requirements.
The standards are set by whom?
Numerous national standards bodies exist worldwide. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the nation's national standards body, is responsible for issuing the Indian standardization mark. To ensure that these groups get the standards they need, the BIS works closely with the government, business community, and other stakeholders.
3. How may using standards help my company?
When standards are followed, consumers' perceptions of the worth of products and services may improve. A large number of buyers are aware of the worth of products that fit certain requirements.
Furthermore, if a new customer is unclear about exactly what they want from you, it's a fantastic idea to quote them an acceptable benchmark and work to that. These steps will also help to create consumer trust right away.
Successful business
In some markets, buyers employ standards to confirm that suppliers are providing the correct products and services. They could establish benchmarks that businesses are encouraged to compete against. In these regions, you may need to bring your items up to par before you can attract customers.
Time and cost savings
By employing the knowledge available in standards, time and money may be saved during the research and development of a product. You could also reduce the likelihood of creating a mediocre or unacceptable final result. If you, your suppliers, and your customers follow established guidelines, there won't be as many misunderstandings, saving you time and money.
Adherence to the law
By following standards, you may satisfy several legal obligations in domains such as environmental management and product safety.
Security and well-being
Using standards in areas like quality and health and safety management may help you operate your company more profitably and with fewer mistakes and problems.
Exporting products
International and national standards are the source of an increasing number of standards, which makes it easier to access export markets where the same standards are used.
4. Best practices for company operations guidelines
Optimized business and organizational processes are supported by several commonly used standards. Many businesses use certain management strategies to maintain their competitiveness.
Controlling the quality
ISO 9001:2008 is a well-recognized standard for managing a business's system quality. Businesses benefit from it by seeing increases in employee engagement, internal productivity, and customer satisfaction.
Governance of the environment
An environmental management system can assist you in monitoring your legal compliance and effectively managing your environmental responsibilities.
An organization's environmental performance may be managed and improved according to the international standard ISO 14001.
Businesses wishing to implement environmental management systems progressively might benefit from using the BS 8555 standard.
Administration of Energy
Using an energy management system may help your business save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and comply with laws.
BS EN 16001 is the name of the standard that describes the requirements for an energy management system.
Controlling health and safety
All businesses must abide by several rules about health and safety at work, and senior managers may also be held legally responsible for this.
Following occupational health and safety laws is one way to ensure that you meet these responsibilities. OHSAS 18001 provides generally recognized best practices and principles in these areas.
Data management
Information is required by any business, regardless of whether it is physically stored or kept on IT equipment. You must thus safeguard your data.
A system for managing information security may assist in the systematic handling of information security and management. BS 7799 is a significant standard in this subject.
Controlling business continuity
Companies face various risks to the continuation of their operations, some of which are deliberate and others that result from uncontrollable external events. It is becoming more and more important for businesses to be able to ensure regulators, investors, and stakeholders that their continuity plans would minimize any disruption.
The BS 25999-2:2007 standard may provide businesses guidance on how to lessen the impact of both frequent and severe catastrophes, including supply chain interruptions and IT infections, as well as acts of terrorism and flash floods.
5. Your products and Indian norms
How does ISI Mark work? The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) uses the mark as a standardized mark to attest to the items' compliance with the minimal quality requirements. The goal of the BIS Product Certification Scheme is to provide customers with third-party assurance on the dependability, safety, and quality of goods.
Many things need to meet several requirements stated in Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) rules to be sold in India or anywhere else in the world. According to the Supply of Machinery (Safety) standardized mark given by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), for example, certain machinery, equipment, and safety components to be provided in India and India must fulfill the relevant standards and carry the ISI mark. The rules are designed to protect consumer's health and safety from harmful products while removing trade barriers related to technology.
Is the information relevant to my products?
Standards can help you comply with BIS directives covering a wide range of products, including:
• appliances burning gaseous fuels
• construction products
• electrical and electronic apparatus in terms of their electromagnetic compatibility
• equipment and protective systems in potentially explosive atmospheres
• gas appliances
• household appliances in terms of the noise they emit
• lifts
• low voltage equipment
• machinery, mechanical equipment, and safety products
• medical devices
• new hot water boilers fired with liquid or gaseous fluids
• non-automatic weighing instruments
• outdoor construction and gardening equipment in terms of the noise they produce
• personal protective equipment such as gloves, helmets, and protective clothing
• pressure equipment such as industrial pipework and pressurized storage containers
• radio and telecommunications terminal equipment
• recreational craft
• toys
6. How to prove that your products comply with the law
Products often need to have the ISI label, which certifies that they adhere to rules stated in Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) instructions, to be marketed in India and throughout the world.
By affixing the ISI mark to your products, you attest to their compliance with all relevant legal requirements.
There are many ways to get and implement the ISI certification for your product, depending upon the nature of the product and the relevant Indian law.
Testing and certification
Each directive's fundamental rules specify how you must prove that your product meets the required criteria. You may need to do one of the following:
• draft a self-declaration that your product complies, often backed up by your observations or the results of independent tests; or
• Arrange for an independent testing agency to test or examine your goods.
See our guide on developing new products and services.