Client Submits Application
Auva Contract Review
Auva Sends Quotation
Client Accepts Quote
Auva Contacts Client to Agree Stage 1 Audit
Stage One Audit Performed
Stage Two Audit Performed
Certification Review Conducted
Certificate(s) Issued
Annual Surveillance Visits. After Three Years a Reassessment of the Management System is Conducted.
Client Submits Application
Obtaining a quotation couldn’t be easier, all you need to do is complete the application which you can find at the top of our website by hitting the “Get a Quote” button. The application will take no more than 60 seconds to complete. If you would like to learn more about the process you can check out our quick video.
Auva Reviews Application
As soon as you hit the submit button on the application, a notification is received in our sales inbox which prompts us to review the application.
We will review your application in line with IAF guidelines stipulated upon us, you can read more about the IAF requirements within our blog page.
We have a target of turning around your quote within 5 days but our average is less than 24 hours. For most applications we will return the quote within the same day but if it is more complex it may take longer, we will keep you updated on our progress and any possible delays.
Auva Sends Quotation
Your quotation will be emailed to you from our Business Developments team and will reference all pertinent information and most importantly the days required and the fees for completing your assessments.
We aim to make our quotations as clear as possible and there are no hidden costs. What you will notice is that our quotations are fixed unlike any of our competitors. Many of our competitors will give you a price within the quotation but will have a statement that highlights the annual increase in their standard day rate. Just be careful when doing a comparison as it is not always quoting like for like.
We also do not charge an annual management fee or certificate fee which some of our competitors will also charge.
One question we get asked often is when are the fees due. Each fee line item is invoiced at the time of the respective assessment. The quotation is set out for a three year period but you do not pay it all at once.
You can check out our FAQ Page if you have any questions as most have been answered here but as always, you can contact us directly.
We will follow up with you but are not pushy, you can let us know when is suitable for you to be contacted and our system will remind you at the appropriate time.
Client Accepts Quotation
To accept our quotation all you need to do is sign the last page and return to us by post, email or carrier pigeon and this will create a client within our system and instruct our operations team of the great news.
Some organisations use a Purchase Order system, this is fine to use, as long as your purchase order references our quotation our system will allow us to accept this instead of a signed quotation.
Ensure you have read our terms and conditions, there is nothing complicated or hidden but you are agreeing to these so ensure you are aware of the requirements. You can find these on our documents page.
Auva Contacts Client to arrange Stage 1 Assessment
Our operations team will contact you within 24 hours of signing the quotation to discuss your stage 1 assessment requirements.
Our auditors are selected carefully, we put quality of the assessor over price and will select the most competent for your business, not just the person who is closest although that is a factor due to our environmental commitment. We work very hard to ensure our assessors are competent and give regular training over and above industry standards.
We will work around your needs and source a suitable assessor and mutually beneficial timeframe for the assessment to take place.
We have been known to book stage 1 assessments for the next day if required, we will bend over backwards to ensure you receive the dates you require not the other way around.
Once happy with the date, we shall send you confirmation letters and also an audit plan. Your assessor will generally touch base beforehand.
Stage 1 Audit
A Stage 1 assessment is almost like a pre-assessment or sometimes called a gap analysis. The idea of the stage 1 assessment is to review your current status to see if you are ready for the main assessment, it also helps the auditor prepare for the stage 2 main assessment in case they need to go off and research sometime, or even they may deem they are not technically competent to perform the main assessment.
Stage 1 Objectives
- Determination of the extent of conformity of the Clients management system and evaluation of the capability of the management system to ensure compliance with statutory, regulatory and contractual requirements. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the management system in meeting its specified objectives and the identification of areas of potential improvement of the management system.
Stage 1 Audit Criteria
- To give confidence that the management system and client is prepared for a stage 2 assessment and shall include a review of the client’s management system documentation, an evaluation of the client’s location and site-specific conditions and undertake discussions with the client’s personnel to determine the preparedness for the stage 2 audit. A review of the client’s status and understanding regarding the requirements of the standard. To collect necessary information regarding the scope, processes, locations, statutory and regulatory aspects and compliance. Review the allocation of resources for stage 2 audit, provide a focus for planning stage 2 audit and evaluate if the internal audits and management review are being planned and performed and that the level of implementation of the management system substantiates that the client is ready for the stage 2 audit.
The stage 1 audit shall be performed:
- To audit the client’s management system documentation (this can be done off-site, Contract review will specify);
- To evaluated the client’s location and site-specific conditions and to undertake discussions with the clients personnel to determine the preparedness for stage 2 audit;
- To evaluate the client’s processes and equipment, applicable statutory / regulatory requirements and to undertake discussions with the client’s personnel to determine the preparedness for stage 2 audit, including the levels of controls established)
- To review the client’s status and understanding regarding requirements to the standard, in particular with respect to the identification of key performance or significant aspects, processes, objectives and operation of the management system;
- To collect necessary information regarding the scope of the management systems, processes and location(s) of the client, and related statutory and regulatory aspects and compliance (e.g. quality, environmental, legal aspects of the client’s operation, associated risks, etc.);
- To review the allocation of resources for stage 2 and agree with the client on the details of the stage 2 audit;
- To provide a focus for planning the stage 2 audit by gaining a sufficient understanding of the client’s management system and site operations in the context of possible significant aspects;To evaluate if the internal audits and management review are being planned and performance, and that the level of implementation of the management system substantiates that the client is ready for the stage 2 audit
Stage 2 Audit
The stage 2 ISO audit is your main assessment that will give you certification (assuming you pass).
Stage 2 Audit objectives
- Determination of the extent of conformity of the Clients management system and evaluation of the capability of the management system to ensure compliance with statutory, regulatory and contractual requirements. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the management system in meeting its specified objectives and the identification of areas of potential improvement of the management system.
Stage 2 Audit Criteria
- To evaluate the implementation, including effectiveness, of the client’s management system and shall include information and evidence about conformity to all requirements of the applicable standard. Performance monitoring, measuring, reporting and review against key performance objectives and targets. Details on the client’s management system and performance with regards to legal compliance. Operation control of the clients processes. Internal audits and management review. Management responsibility for the client’s policies. Links between the normative requirements, policy, performance objectives and targets, any applicable legal requirements, responsibilities, competence of personnel, operations, procedures, performance data and intern audit findings and conclusions.
The purpose of the stage 2 audit is to evaluate the implementation, including effectiveness, of the client’s management system. The stage 2 audit shall take place the site(s) of the client. It shall include at least the following:
- Information and evidence about conformity to all requirements of the applicable management system standard or normative document;
- Performance monitoring, measuring, reporting and reviewing against key performance objectives and targets (consistent with the expectations in the applicable management system standard or other normative document);
- The client’s management system and performance as regards legal compliance;
- The client’s management system ability and its performance regarding meeting of applicable statutory, regulatory and contractual requirements;
- Operational control of the client’s processes;
- Internal auditing and management review;
- Management responsibility for the client’s policies;
- Links between the normative requirements, policy, performance objectives and targets (consistent with the expectations in the applicable management system standard or other normative document), any applicable legal requirements, responsibilities, competence of personnel, operations, procedures, performance data and internal audit findings and conclusions.
Certification Review Conducted
The certification review is sometimes called a technical review, it takes place once your report has been completed and any findings addressed. The entire report pack is issued to someone independent of the entire process to ensure their decision is impartial.
The certification officer will review the report, any findings and recommendations made my the assessor. The assessor can not grant certification, the certification officer is responsible for this element so until they are satisfied with the report they will not release the certificate.
The process generally takes a few hours to complete depending on the length of the assessment and the complexity.
Our internal KPI is to turn this around within 14 days of the completed assessment and closed out findings but typically this happens within a few days. We track the data internally to ensure we are meeting our KPI. If you have a particular urgent requirement for your certificate, let us know and we will endeavour to make this a priority.
You can read more about the certification decision process by visiting our FAQ page.
Certificate Issued
This is the moment you have been waiting for, the arrival of your certificate.
Once the certification officer has completed their review and are happy, they will sign off and authorise your certificate to be issued.
Your certificate will be issued within 24 hours of this date but again, like most other processes we are exceeding our KPI and can get this out in the same day. The certificate will be issued for a period of 3 years but will only be valid if you maintain your certification cycle.
Our certificate will be emailed to you along with the logos that you can use on your literature. You can read about how to use the logos on our documents page.
We also issue you with a link to our customer feedback survey, please complete the survey as feedback is very important to improving our process and amongst all, ensuring we exceed our client expectations. It’s a very quick survey so wont take up much of your time.
Within the confirmation letter, you will have an indication of when your next assessment will be performed.
Auva are very transparent and will add your certificate information to our website and also to the IAF database (link to iaf cert search database). Not all certification bodies do this but we like to remain transparent and help our clients promote their business. If you get asked for copies of your certificates from your customers you can direct them to either one of these sites where they can verify the validity of your certificate at any time.
Annual Surveillance Visits
As part of your certification requirements we undertake annual assessments of your management systems to ensure you remain compliant.
Your assessments will consist of:
1st surveillance visit (typically 9-12 months after your stage 2 assessment date)
2nd Surveillance visit (12 months after your 1st surveillance visit)
Reassessment (12 months after your 2nd surveillance visit)
Over the 3 year cycle of your certificate you should receive the above assessments, they may vary slightly depending on your business needs but will always consist of those three assessments. You can read more about what each assessment constitutes by visiting our FAQ Page.
After the reassessment has been completed, you will receive a new certificate and the cycle carries on again as above.
Client submits questionnaire
Auva Review
Auva sends quote
Client accepts
Auva contacts client to agree stage 1 audit
Stage one audit
The stage one audit is conducted to determine the client’s preparedness for stage two. The recommendation at stage one will be whether to proceed to stage two and will highlight any issues or potential non-conformances that will require action by the client.
Stage two audit
The stage two audit is a full audit of the client’s management system(s) against the applicable standard(s), following which the auditor makes a recommendation to AUVA regarding certification. Findings of non-conformance against requirements of the standard(s) will require the client to submit corrective actions and supporting objective evidence within an agreed timeframe.
