Impressive growth in ISO certification in Oman

STEADY GROWTH: SMEs standardisation demand up as high as 60 per cent

There has been impressive rise in number of companies applying for various ISO standards in Oman even as many of them are losing it for annual auditing requirements. Year on year there has been steady growth in ISO certified companies as global oil scenario is putting pressure on the markets.

According to a senior official of TOPCertifier, a major ISO certifier in Oman, more and more companies are vying for various ISO certifications to remain competitive and meet the work requirements of the market.

In an interview with Observer, Anoop RS, (pictured) TOPCertifier’s Assistant Manager in Oman, said “There is increasing awareness across companies in general and they have been contacting us for ISO certifications. On an average we have seen over 35 per cent increase in new companies signing up for ISO Certifications every year. However, the growth is higher, almost up to 60 per cent, in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) sector only.”

Anoop cited some data suggesting overall growth in ISO certification and said: “Various sources point that over 3,000 companies in Oman hold various ISO certifications. As ISO certification need annual audits to be kept active, there is an average 23 per cent companies losing their certifications each year. As the global oil scenario putting pressure on the markets, there is a rush by companies to get their businesses ISO certified to be better prepared to take on the challenges of the market.”

Commenting on Salalah scenario, Anoop said the rising number of industries, supported by the Port of Salalah, resulted in increased number of organisations applying for ISO certifications. “Year on year we have been observing a steady growth of over 35 per cent increase in the clients in the Salalah region being certified for various ISO standards.”

TOPCertifier claims to have worked with over 120 companies in Oman. It has assisted over 4,500 clients globally and over 1,200 clients in the GCC, in achieving ISO certifications.

As a consulting firm the TOPCertifier works with clients to get them ready for their audits and certification. It understands their business through a series of discussions and arrive at a gap analysis report.

The companies seeking ISO certifications need to understand the system gaps which are addressed through training and documentation and implementation of industry best practices.

“We help them conduct an internal audit to check the preparedness. If any non-conformity is identified then we assist them to find the root cause, correct them and then get a certification body involved to audit and issue the certification. We oversee the entire audit to make sure any non-conformities identified by the certification body are immediately corrected to achieve certification,” Anoop said.

“Similar to ISO, there are various certifications available. IT service companies can get their processes assessed for CMMi standards etc. Product manufacturing companies can avail CE marking for their products. TOPCertifier specialises in over 30 standards across industries and functions,” said Anoop when asked if there were any parallel certification bodies offering same services and added that organisations of any size and nature of business could get their companies ISO certified.