Systematic process improvement using ISO 9001:2000 and CMMI

4.1 ISO 9001:2000 67
for understanding other sections of this book and is not intended to be a
comprehensive description of the standard. For more details on the ISO
9000:2000 standard or for detailed explanations and interpretations, please
see the references at the end of this chapter. Hoyle [6] is recommended in
particular because he provides a great deal of information and an extensive
explanation of the standard. Reference [8] provides an excellent overview
of the differences between the 1994 and 2000 versions of ISO 9001.
4.1.3.1 Quality management system (QMS)
ISO defines the QMS as a set of interrelated and interacting processes. Section
4 of ISO 9001:2000 contains the essential requirements for establishing,
documenting, implementing, maintaining, and continually improving the
QMS. These functions are shown in Figure 4.2.
The QMS is documented by these means:
• Publishing a quality manual;
• Specifying a quality policy and quality objectives;
• Developing and documenting the procedures required by the standard;
• Developing and controlling the documentation necessary to plan and
manage the company’s processes;
• Collecting records required by the standard.
The extent of the QMS documentation depends on the size of the organization,
complexity and interactions of the processes, and the competency of
Figure 4.2
QMS requirements.