Essential Changes to the ISO 9000 Series

In order to reflect modern management approaches and to improve organizational practices, structural changes were necessary. ISO has taken care to maintain the essential requirements of the past ISO 9000 standards.
The ISO 9000 family contained more than 20 standards and documents. This proliferation of standards was a particular concern of ISO 9000 users and customers. To respond to this concern, the ISO 9000:2000 family was narrowed down to four primary standards supported by a considerably reduced number of supporting documents (guidance standards, brochures, technical reports, technical specifications). To the extent possible, the key points in the past documents were integrated into the four primary standards, and sector needs addressed while maintaining the generic nature of the standards. The four primary standards are:

• ISO 9000: Quality management systems - Fundamentals and vocabulary
• ISO 9001: Quality management systems - Requirements
• ISO 9004: Quality management systems - Guidance for performance improvement
• ISO 19011: Guidelines on quality and/or environmental management systems auditing (To be published)