ISO 9001 Certification of Engineering Consultancies - The Benefits From Different Perspectives

• Main Author: Sveinn Þór Hallgrímsson 1967-
• Other Authors: Háskólinn í Reykjavík
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Verkefnastjórnun; Gæðastjórnun; Project management; Quality management; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1946/19624

ISO 9001 is a very customer based standard and therefore it is interesting to explore the impact of the standard from different angles. The purpose of this study is to explore what engineering consultancies and their clients gain by ISO 9001 certification of the consultancies. In an effort to put things into perspective the study was divided into three sections. Firstly by using in-depth interviews with employees, Quality Managers and executives, of five engineering firms which cover approximately 80% of the private sector of the consulting engineers profession in Iceland. Secondly, by using a survey conducted among all employees in the same engineering firms. Thirdly by taking in-depth interviews with representatives of five major purchasers of engineering services in the country. The most important finding of the study is that while the representatives and employees of the engineering consultancies are rather positive regarding the benefits of their ISO 9001 certification, the purchasers of engineering consultancy cannot find significant difference between certified companies and non-certified.