ISO Certified, Tender Ready: How Accreditation Opens Doors to Bigger Contracts

The power of ISO certification and accredited standards

It's important to recognise that certifications aren't all the same. Understanding the role of accredited certification, such as those recognised by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), is key to maximising the value of your certification.

NQA is currently accredited for its services by the following Accreditation Bodies and industry regulators. These regulators regularly and rigorously assess us against international standards to ensure our competence, impartiality and performance capability.

• UKAS – the United Kingdom Accreditation Service for which we have one of the widest scopes of accreditation covering most economic sectors.

• ANAB – the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board is the largest multi-disciplinary accreditation body in North America.

• IATF – the International Automotive Task Force for the provision of certification against IATF 16949 (Automotive Quality Management)

The Benefits of ISO Certification

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) certification provides businesses with a structured framework to improve internal systems, boost efficiency, and meet customer expectations. Some of the key benefits include:

• Enhanced quality control and consistency

• Increased customer satisfaction

• Better risk management

• Improved internal communication and efficiency

• Stronger competitive edge in local and global markets

Whether it's ISO 9001 (Quality Management), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management), ISO 45001 (Health and Safety Management) or ISO 27001 (Information Security), these standards help organisations align with global best practices.

What is the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS)?

The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) is the UK’s sole government-recognised national accreditation body. Its role is to assess and accredit organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection, and calibration services.

When a certification body is UKAS-accredited, it means they have been independently evaluated to ensure they operate to the highest standards of competence, impartiality, and performance. In essence, UKAS guarantees that the certification process is robust and reliable.

Why accredited certification matters

While anyone can offer certification services, not all certificates are created equal. Choosing a UKAS accredited certification body ensures that your business meets recognised standards that are trusted by regulators, suppliers, and procurement bodies worldwide.

Key benefits of accredited certification:

• Greater credibility and trust in your business

• Improved standing with regulators and industry partners

• Easier acceptance in global markets

• Preferred status in supplier and tender evaluations

It’s a powerful indicator that your business upholds the highest standards of quality, compliance, and integrity.

ISO certification: Enabling access to public tenders and frameworks

One of the most tangible commercial advantages of ISO certification is its ability to open doors to new business opportunities. Many public sector tenders, framework agreements, and private sector contracts require or strongly favour ISO certification, especially from a UKAS-accredited body.

By obtaining ISO certification, you position your business to:

• Qualify for more government contracts and public tenders

• Gain access to preferred supplier lists and framework agreements

• Meet pre-qualification criteria 

• Stand out in competitive bidding environments

Without ISO certification, and particularly without accredited certification, many of these opportunities may simply be out of reach.

Final thoughts

Investing in ISO certification, especially from a UKAS-accredited body, is more than a compliance exercise, it’s a strategic decision that strengthens your reputation, improves efficiency, and unlocks new opportunities.

Ready to take your business to the next level? ISO certification could be the key to unlocking a world of opportunities.

How NQA can help 

NQA provides accredited certification, training and support services to help you improve processes, performance and products and services. We have issued over 60,000 certificates to clients in over 90 countries. We help organisations of all sizes perform better in quality, environment, energy, sustainability and health and safety management. Moreover, we make sure that these improvements continue year in, year out.

We are passionate about helping our clients to improve their products, processes and people so they can deliver excellent customer satisfaction. Our approach is pragmatic and supportive whilst meeting the rigorous technical demands and integrity of accredited certification.  

What can you expect from NQA?

⇒ EXCELLENT VALUE: Enjoy competitive rates with no hidden fees and access to world-class technical support.

⇒ FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENT: We not only assess your compliance with your chosen standard, but we also support clients to continually improve through the auditing process.

⇒ PRACTICAL ADVICE: We help you understand the technical requirements and stages of the certification process in plain English.

⇒ COMPREHENSIVCE SERVICE: We provide access to a complete range of certification services with global coverage, enabling you to integrate certification for greater efficiency.

⇒ LATEST TECHNICAL INSIGHTS: Benefit from our worldwide network of experts who participate in technical committees and standards writing, supporting you in keeping up with developments.

⇒ FLEXIBLE LEARNING OPTIONS: Choose from online, classroom, and in-house courses; we believe in the importance of being able to gain new technical skills in the way that suits you best.

Discover how to get started by speaking to a friendly sales team member today!