The increasing importance of ISO Certification for industries in Asian countries

One of the findings is that accredited certifications like ISO have seen a phenomenal rise in workplace safety. ISO has 10-12 standards listed for entities to get certified with. Out of this, ISO 9001 has been the most popular. In 2019, ISO reported a 3.9 % increase in certification, currently at 1.30 million certificates.

It is not surprising that the largest certification was ISO 4500. This standard, meant for occupational health and safety increased by 223 %. It is now among the top five used management systems, especially in Asian countries. The developing country governments had shown considerable laxity in enforcing safety laws in their industrial workplace, but now moving extensively towards ISO certifications seen by the massive growth.

The benefits of ISO certification

Research has shown clear economic benefits when implementing accredited management systems like the ISO in the manufacturing sectors in countries like Bangladesh, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore, to name a few. The overall perception of accredited suppliers was much better than non-accredited suppliers, according to purchasers.

ISO Certification in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's garment industry employs nearly four million workers and accounts for 80% of the country’s total export income. Between

2010 and 2013, major industrial accidents in garments and sportswear factories resulted in 1100+ people getting killed and injured. To ensure that the garment industry remained competitive in global markets, the government provided incentives to factory owners to improve labour rights or workplace safety.

Industrial accidents due to workplace safety violations have reduced considerably now after the implementation of ISO standards. Apart from safety, the quality of the finished textile product is equally important. Right from sourcing of yarn to the finished goods, the ISO can trace the input and output history of the product.

ISO Certification in Singapore

ISO implementations have helped many SMEs in Singapore. The ISO 9001 for quality management has been crucial in the precision engineering sector, where quality is a critical factor. Standards like ISO 9001 became compulsory for providing mechanical parts to the USA and Japanese Automation MNC's based in Singapore.

In Singapore, medical equipment manufacturers use the ISO 13485 standards for quality management systems mandatory for medical devices.

ISO Certification in Malaysia

The government of Malaysia has mandated the Department of standards to function as National standard body (NSB) and National Accreditation Board (NAB) to implement ISO in Malaysia.

The construction industry in Malaysia focuses on ISO 9001 as a Quality management system that plays an essential role in products and services. The Contractor Industry Development Board (CIDB) oversees the ISO 9001 implementation in the construction industry. The CIDB mandates that even a grade 7 contractor implement the ISO 9001 in their company.

The ISO standards for the construction industry have a role for all the stakeholders such as designers, engineers, architects, product manufacturers, contractors, owners, regulators, policymakers, and consumers.

ISO Certification in the Philippines

In the Philippines, in addition to the ISO certification, it also has to be specific. It advises companies to specify ISO specifics when labelling their product, such as "ISO9001:2008" instead of the general ISO certification. It helps in identifying quality management concerning different norms. For example, implementing a Quality Management System in construction companies in the Philippines would require an ISO 45001 certification for occupational hazard and safety protection.

Conclusion

Workplace safety issues are important public policy debates. Certifications like the ISO have been no doubt beneficial to the industries that have opted for them. The benefits are both tangible and intangible. It has helped improve the quality base of Asian industries and make their presence in the international market. The intangible benefits helped improve environmental performance, waste reduction, pollution prevention, and increased goodwill in the eye of customers.