Demand for transitioning to ISO/ TS 16949 surges as QS-9000 expires

As QS-9000 Third Edition expires on December 14, 2006, many automotive manufacturers and suppliers are now seeking transition to ISO/TS 16949:2002.

According to the ISO Research Institute report issued on September 4, UL Apex became the top registration body that had registered most manufacturers who established management system conforming to ISO/TS 16949 in Japan.

ISO/TS 16949 is the international management system standard developed by IATF (International Automobile Task Force), of which members are major automobile manufacturers including BMW, GM, Ford, Fiat and associated trading bodies.

Based on ISO 9001:2000, ISO/TS 16949 specifies the requirements for quality management system for manufacturers of automobiles and their parts.

The manufacturers of automobiles and parts have stricter demands to their upstream manufacturers in order to establish an enhanced supply chain. In other words, many automobile manufacturers are registered to ISO/TS 16949 and are requiring their suppliers to acquire the same registration.

UL Apex has been providing registration services to automobile manufacturers and their suppliers since 1996.

In fact, most of the UL family of companies serve the automobile industry by providing services including internal training to develop qualified assessors to ISO/TS 16949, private workshops and public seminars.