ISO-9000 AND ITS IMPACT ON THE P M INDUSTRY

Although ISO 9000 has been the quality buzz word for the past few year s, there appears to be mixed awareness within the P/M community as to the purpose, direction, and cost of ISO 9000. A number of North Americ an based industries are adopting ISO 9000 as a basis for their quality management systems. Most crucial to the P/M industry is the complete incorporation of ISO 9000 as the foundation for the forthcoming Big Th ree Automobile Industry Harmonized Quality Standard. The ISO 9000 seri es does not certify products nor does it dictate to a company how or w hat operations should be performed. Simply put, the ISO 9000 series fo rces a company to ''say what you do and do what you say.'' The ISO 900 0 series is comprised of five primary components and three of these mo dels, ISO 9001, 9002, 9003, represent distinct forms of functional or organizational capability suitable for two-party contractual purposes. Registration to ISO 9000 is the act of having an independent third pa rty registrar audit and state that your quality system conforms to one of the three above mentioned models. The process of registration is a commitment, both in terms of time and money. Within the next year or two, the P/M industry as a whole may be ''strongly encouraged'' to emb race ISO 9000, although the ultimate benefit is that North American P/ M producers can gain multi-national recognition as producers of world- class parts. This article assesses the impact of ISO 9000 on the P/M i ndustry.