In recent years there has been growing pressure for consistent product quality, and a need for companies to demonstrate sound quality management practices in order to meet 'Due Diligence' requirements of both legislation and the quality assurance practices of customers. It has become accepted that operating to the requirements of the international standard for quality management - BS EN ISO 900- goes a long way towards meeting these needs. The objective of this book is to explain the requirements of the standard, to offer advice about achieving those requirements and to indicate what the assessors will look for at assessment time. It is important that certification to the standard is sought to support achievement of company objectives and not the reverse, and of course the standard can apply to organizations and services, just as much as to companies. Thus the word' company' in the text should be treated accordingly. lllustrative material has been presented under the logo of a fictiti­ ous company 'Quality Food Services' - in this context QFS does not bear any relationship whatsoever to any identically or similarly named business that may exist. Readers will find it helpful to read the book with a copy of the standard to hand, and are strongly encouraged to read the complete text before taking any steps to prepare for certification to the standard.