A serious chemical manufacturer should hold ISO 9001 for quality management, and ideally ISO 14001 for environmental management and ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety. Certificates help, but only if they are genuine, current and cover the site and product you buy.
Certification shows that a system exists and was audited. It does not prove that every batch is good.
What each standard covers
- ISO 9001 covers quality management: documented processes, customer requirements, corrective action and continual improvement.
- ISO 14001 covers environmental management: how the plant identifies and controls its impacts, including effluent, emissions and waste.
- ISO 45001 covers occupational health and safety: hazard identification, risk control and worker participation.
Other certifications that may matter
- Responsible Care, the chemical industry's voluntary safety and environmental programme. See Responsible Care in India.
- Food safety certification, such as FSSC 22000, for food-grade chemicals.
- GMP certification for pharma-grade or cosmetic ingredients.
- Kosher and halal certificates, if your customers require them.
- ZDHC conformance or Bluesign approval for textile chemicals.
Checking a certificate
Fake and misleading certificates exist. Check these points for every certificate you are given:
- The certification body is accredited by a national accreditation body that is a member of the International Accreditation Forum. In India that body is NABCB.
- The certificate is current, and the next surveillance audit date has not passed.
- The scope names the products you buy, not only general trading.
- The address is the plant address, not a head office.
- The certificate can be found in the certification body's online register or the IAF CertSearch database.
Certificates are not enough
A plant can hold ISO 9001 and still ship a bad batch. Certificates tell you a system exists. An audit tells you whether it is followed. Look for evidence in the lab, the batch records, the complaint log and the corrective actions. Our guide to what a factory audit should contain explains what that looks like, and auditing a chemical plant adds chemical-specific checks.
Matching certificates to your needs
Ask only for the certificates your customers and regulators actually require, and check those well. A long list of certificates can hide weak practice. Decide in advance which are essential, such as ISO 9001 for any regular supply, and which are useful extras. Write the essential ones into your contract, and require the supplier to tell you if any certificate lapses, is suspended or changes scope. Ask for updated copies after each surveillance audit, and keep them on file with dates.
Remember who is accountable. A certificate is issued by the certification body to the plant, and it covers the plant's system. It does not transfer any of your own legal duties as an importer, such as product safety, classification or registration in your market. Those stay with you whatever the supplier holds.
Next step
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