How much it costs and how long it takes to certify your company

ISO 9001 step by step

1. Gap analysis and scopeCompare what the company already does with the requirements (gap analysis) and define the scope: the products, services and sites to be certified, and whether any requirement is not applicable (usually 8.3, when the company does not do design). Understand the requirement.
2. Context, risks, policy and objectivesIdentify the internal and external issues, interested parties, risks and opportunities, and write the quality policy and quality objectives with measurable targets. Understand the requirement.
3. Processes and documentationMap the processes, assign owners and indicators, and document only what is needed: what the standard requires and where there is a risk of error. Understand the requirement.
4. Run the system and generate recordsPut the system to work: supplier evaluation, training, calibration, production control, indicators. The certification body will want to see records, not intentions; two to three months of operation is usually the minimum to have evidence.
5. Complete internal auditAudit the whole system with auditors who do not assess their own work, and address the nonconformities found. Understand the requirement.
6. Management reviewTop management reviews the results and decides on improvements and resources, with minutes. Understand the requirement.
7. Choose the certification bodyRequest quotes from certification bodies accredited by the national accreditation body (an IAF member). The number of days comes from the IAF table: that is what this calculator estimates.
8. Stage 1 and Stage 2In Stage 1 the certification body assesses readiness (documents, scope, internal audit and management review). In Stage 2 it checks whether the system works in practice. Nonconformities become an action plan.
9. Certificate and surveillanceOnce the nonconformities are addressed, the certification body decides and issues the certificate, valid for three years, with annual surveillance audits and recertification in the third year.

IATF 16949 step by step

1. Confirm eligibilityIATF 16949 is for manufacturing sites in the automotive supply chain that supply parts, materials or components to vehicle manufacturers or other automotive suppliers. The standard is applied together with ISO 9001.
2. Customer requirements and core toolsIdentify each automotive customer's specific requirements (CSR) and implement the core tools: APQP, PPAP, FMEA, MSA and SPC.
3. Complete quality systemBeyond ISO 9001, it adds requirements such as a contingency plan, total productive maintenance, process and product audits, and management of product-safety-related products.
4. 12 months of dataBefore Stage 1, the certification body requires 12 months of performance data, a complete internal audit cycle (system, process and product) and a management review.
5. Stage 1 and Stage 2Stage 1 is a readiness review of at least 1.5 days at the manufacturing site. Stage 2 follows the audit day table in the Rules, for each manufacturing site, without sampling.
6. Certification cycleTwo surveillance audits in three years, at 12-month intervals, and recertification in the third year.

Where companies stumble most

ISO 9001

• Absent top management. When quality becomes "the coordinator's job", the system gets neither resources nor priority, and the certification body notices it in the interview with management.
• Too much documentation. Long procedures that nobody reads take effort to maintain and control nothing. Document what is needed.
• Indicators without analysis. Measuring without analyzing is the most common nonconformity in clause 9.1.
• Correction instead of corrective action. Reworking the part does not remove the cause; the certification body expects root cause analysis and verification of effectiveness.
• Superficial internal audit. An internal audit with no findings year after year does not convince the external auditor.

IATF 16949

• The 12-month timeline. Without a data history, there is no way to certify in less than a year.
• Each customer's specific requirements. Every vehicle manufacturer has its own manuals; missing a customer requirement is a nonconformity.
• Core tools properly applied. FMEAs and control plans made just to tick a box show up in the process audit.
• Process and product audits. Beyond the system, the company must audit manufacturing processes and products at a defined frequency.

Frequently asked questions

Rules used in the calculation: IAF MD 5:2023 (ISO 9001, table QMS 1), IAF MD 1 (site sampling), IATF Rules 6th edition, table 5.2, as in the official IAOB calculator. The ISO 9001 adjustment weights, the daily rate and the implementation timeline are PrismaBiz estimates.