Certification, or registration, to a standard is the outcome of a successful assessment by an independent third party like DNV. After having decided to certify your product(s) there are certain steps to get you started.

Experience has shown that some simple tips, often seemingly trivial, have proven invaluable to companies seeking certification.

The marketing function, in cooperation with the technical responsible functions, has to identify the characteristics of the product that, once guaranteed, give added value to the product itself. Identify the relevant standard, if available, or contact DNV to define a specific TPS.

The next step is to plan the product and the production process, documenting the results with the product technical folder. The planning process includes:

• Establishing the needed production processes, and providing resources specific to the product
• Identifying the required verification, validation, monitoring, inspection and test activities specific to the product and the criteria for product acceptance
• Defining the records needed to provide evidence that the processes and resulting product meet requirements

Now you might be ready to take a look at the certification process.