The ISO Electronic Document Control System (EDCS) fills a gap in the software available for small and medium sized businesses that want to become ISO certified or who already are certified but whose current document control system is not performing. Implementing the Electronic Document Control System can be documented as an 'improvement' under the "continuous improvement" philosophy behind the ISO standard.
The ISO EDCS exceeds the requirements of the ISO standard and provides a simple, employee-oriented method of accessing documents and records that are guaranteed to be the most current.
The ISO EDCS is delivered with a Work Instruction that you can tailor to suit your Quality Management System.
When the auditor asks "How do you know your Work Instruction is the most current" the employee can answer simply "I go to the EDCS and check". Auditor's love it.
Here are some of the features of the ISO Electronic Document Control System (EDCS):
- once you purchase a copy of the standard the EDCS can be loaded with the ISO standard clauses for quick reference by your employees and quality management staff alike.
- maintains a copy of the actual ISO standard and provides it with a single click to any user (since it is copyrighted you have to obtain a copy from the appropriate authority and make it available to the EDCS).
- maintains a copy of your company Quality Manual and provides it with a single click to any user.
- maintains a copy of each Procedure and provides it with a single click to any user.
- maintains a copy of each Work Instruction and provides it with a single click to any user.
- maintains a copy of each Form and Log and provides it with a single click to any user. Forms viewed in this manner are watermarked as being "Invalid - Do Not Use" (customizable) so they are not confused with controlled copies of the form.
- Procedures are automatically associated with the ISO clause that requires them.
- Work Instructions, Forms and Logs are automatically associated with the Procedures that reference them.
- revision levels can be either numeric (1, 2, 3, etc.) or alphabetic (A, B, C, etc.)
- forms for use within your company Quality Management System can be 'logged' and are uniquely serialized. Each unique copy is maintained in the database along with records representing various stages of completion of the form.
- maintains a record of each audit and keeps all records associated with the audit.
- maintains a record of each management review meeting and keeps all records associated with such meetings (inputs eg. agendas, outputs eg. minutes, and attendance records eg. signature sheets)
- maintains other ISO-related records that you define as part of your Quality Management System.
- users must sign on with a user id and password.
- all database transactions created by a user are logged with the user id, date and time.
- security is role-based to ensure functionality is reserved for authorized users. Users are assigned to roles so it is easy to add or remove users without modifying the structure of your Quality Management System.
- each document is assigned one approver role and, optionally, any number of alternate approver roles.
- each document may be optionally assigned any number of 'point of use' roles.
- each document may be optionally assigned a series of roles through which it must flow when it is being changed. This flow always ends with the assigned approver.
- approvers (and alternate approvers) receive email notification when the document is checked out in preparation for being changed and is notified again when the change flow is complete.
- each role in the document flow is notified by email when the previous step in the flow is complete.
- 'point of use' roles are notified when the document changes are finally approved.
- document revision levels are displayed on the main page for quick reference by the user.
- a variety of document lists are provided including the Master Document List often requested by auditors.
- each user is provided with a list of pertinent documents which helps when preparing for an audit.
- each user is provided with a list of who is in each role so there is no question about who the Quality Manager or ISO Management Representative is, for example.
- help pages covering frequently-used topics are available in the main menu to assist the user.
- each action is preceded by a help page which the user can disable at any time. Disabled pages are logged as a proof of training record per the ISO standard.
- each new user is automatically designated as a trainee and is provided with a copy of the company ISO document databases as a 'sandbox'. When an ISO quality manager designates the user as 'graduated' the 'sandbox' is removed.
- every text element on every page within the EDCS can be modified on the fly to suit the terminology of any given site. 'Translation', as it is called, is done with a few simple clicks by the ISO system manager.
- allows for storage of and easy access to audit checklists and other documentation such as ISO briefings for new employees.
- And much more.
