Volume 7 · Issue 8 · August 2002

Contents

Page 14…

Stepping Up to ISO 9004:2000: Focus on Benchmarking

Russell T. Westcott writes that benchmarking is a valuable quality tool that can be used to achieve continual improvement of your QMS and overall performance improvements. In the tenth entry in a series on stepping up to ISO 9004:2000 to go beyond a baseline QMS, Westcott identifies mentions of benchmarking in ISO 9004:2000, defines what it is and is not and examines what it can do, how to use it and what to avoid when conducting benchmarking activities. Examples of processes that can be benchmarked, potential partners and sources of information are cited.