ISO 9000 is a series of quality standards providing requirements and guidelines for both Quality Assurance and a Quality Management System. All customers, domestic and foreign, are looking for assurance that there is a monitored quality system in place, and that the results will be the delivery of products and services in a repeatable and consistent manner.

Throughout the United States and abroad, many companies are seeing new business Request For Proposals (RFPs), as well as active contracts adding requirements specifically mandating compliance or registration to one of the three ISO 9000 specifications. In an effort to reduce the cost of defense systems, the Department of Defense (DoD) is looking to take greater advantage of the nation’s commercial technology base as a part of Defense Secretary Perry's blueprint for change, as the Government is looking for a replacement to MIL-Q-9858A and an answer to the Commercial-Off-The Shelf (COTS) transition.

Companies that have targeted the European Community (EC) for potential new business opportunities are discovering that registration to ISO 9000 has become a virtual necessity for competing at the international level and is a critical component of any business unit intending to pursue Foreign Military Sales (FMS).

With the sudden interest in rapidly achieving ISO 9000 registration, consultants have appeared attempting to assume the role of "facilitator." One reason for this is the lack of data available to the public which documents efforts taken to become a registered company.

This document is the result of a 12 month study detailing the effort to become registered to the ANSI/ASQC Q9001 - 1994 criteria. The implementation process, tools developed, and lessons learned through this study are contained in this document to assist any type of company in pursuit of quality system compliance or registration to one of the three ISO 9000 standards.