Are Work Instructions a Mandated Part of ISO?

Unfortunately, for many reasons, the answer is "No."  Work instructions are an optional part of an ISO9001:2000 quality management system. That’s right, they are not required.  However, well-run companies swear by them and there are a lot of really good reasons that you should have them. Work instructions are the most basic tool to help an employee follow a “sequence” of steps. According to the ISO standards, work instructions should be developed and maintained for all work that would be adversely affected by lack of such an instruction. Another great litmus test is to ask yourself what is the risk to my customer if I don't have a work instruction for a specific task?   By writing work instructions you can ensure that everyone is performing the task the same way resulting in consistent and predictable product. The flip side of that coin is that inadequate work instructions can result in returned product, excess rework and scrap, customer dissatisfaction, and liability issues all of which result in fewer dollars reaching the bottom line. 

What most often keeps businesses from having great work instructions is not intent, it is practicality. When the costs of creating, managing and deploying instructions outweigh the costs of not having them, companies give in.  The costs of poor quality, rework and scrap just become a fixed part of the cost of doing business.  However, there is a better way.  LockStep and Sequence have been shown to reduce the amount of time required for authoring work instructions, in some instances, from hours to minutes.  Let us show you, or better yet, let some of our current customers tell you, how LockStep or Sequence has made an impact on their bottom line.  You and your customers will be glad you did.