Certification – Issuing you certificates according to international standards
Whether you want to ensure quality with a quality management system, or you want to improve your environment with an environmental management system, or you want to ensure a safe and healthy working environment with a health and safety management system, or you want to enhance your food safety and security system, the logical course of action is to obtain certification according to an internationally recognized management system.
At HORAS Cert, we assess and issue certificates for meeting legal requirements and international standards. With a group of experienced auditors, we guarantee the highest level of competence in issuing certificates for management systems. With an impartial certification from HORAS Cert, our clients enjoy a clear benefit and improvement in their business internally and externally.
In addition, we provide permanent support to our corporate and institutional clients in all sectors and advise with our comprehensive knowledge.
Auditing – Enhancing the level of confidence of stakeholders
HORAS Cert specializes in providing auditing / compliance verification services in various fields. Thanks to its long experience, international knowledge, impartial treatment and competent team. HORAS Cert also has the ability to provide clients with audit/inspection services.
HORAS Cert is compatible with your ideas and adapts to the reality of your organization, helping to achieve your improvement goals.
General Conditions for System Certification
- Scope
The General Conditions for System Certification apply to certificates issued by PQS that comply with
the requirements of ISO/IEC17021-1:2015, and the accreditation requirements for certification bodies
for ISO 9001:2015 & ISO/IEC17021-2:2016 (EMS), ISO 14001:2015 & ISO/IEC 17021-10:2018 (OHSMS), ISO 45001:2018 & ISO22000:2018 (FSMS), ISO/TS 22003:2022,
- General
The following General Conditions for System Certification apply to certificates issued by HORAS-Cert
Since the decision to issue a certificate is at the sole discretion of HORAS-Cert regarding the scope of the certification management system.
– The following terms are defined as follows:
– “Company” means the certification body or HORAS-Cert means HORAS-Cert& Certifications Co
– “Client” means any person/organization applying for certification of systems or services.
– “Contract” means the entire agreement between the Company and the Client relating to the subject matter of this Contract.
-In the event of issuing a certificate to the Client, the Company shall perform its services in accordance with the HORAS-Cert approved procedures designated for issuing such certificate and the requirements of the certification body.
– The Client acknowledges that in entering into the Contract, it does not rely on any representation, warranty or other condition except as expressly stated in the Contract. Any terms or conditions included in the Client Standard Form documents that conflict with the terms of the Certificate or are intended to amend or add to them shall have no effect unless expressly accepted in writing by the Company.
- Services
HORAS-Cert Management System Certification Services cover the following:
(a) Management System Certification Services according to international or national standards
(b) Management System Certification Services according to non-mandatory normative documents, specifications or technical regulations
(c) Second-party audits and pre-assessments according to international or national standards, non-mandatory normative documents, specifications or technical regulations;
– HORAS-Cert does not provide any type of management system configuration or consultancy or internal audit
to the clients.
– Issuance, suspension, withdrawal or cancellation of the certificate shall be in accordance with the applicable code of practice.
- Client Obligations
The Client shall ensure that all necessary product samples, access, assistance, information
and facilities are provided to the Company when needed. Including the assistance of the Client’s authorized and properly informed employees. The Client shall also provide the Company with a suitable space free of charge for conducting meetings.
– In order to allow the Company to comply with applicable health and safety laws, the Client shall provide the Company with all available information regarding known or potential hazards that the Company’s employees are likely to encounter during their visits.
The Company shall ensure that its employees, while on the Client’s premises, comply with all of the Client’s health and safety regulations.
– The Client shall not reproduce or publish extracts from any Company report unless the Company’s name does not appear in any way or the Client has obtained the Company’s prior written permission. The Client shall not publish details of the manner in which the Company conducts, manages or implements its operations.
- Fees and Payment
– The fees shown to the Client cover all stages leading to the completion of the assessment programme or operations and the submission of the report and the periodic monitoring
which the Company will undertake to maintain the certificate. As the fees are based on the applicable fee rate at the time of submission of the proposal, the Company reserves the right to increase the fees during the registration period. The Company may also increase its fees if it subsequently becomes apparent that the Client’s instructions do not conform to the initial details provided or used for the purpose of obtaining a fee quotation. Clients will be notified of any increase in fees.
– Additional charges will be made for operations not included in the agreed proposal
and inspections required due to the identification of non-conformities. These include.
Costs resulting from:
– Repeating part or all of the assessment program or operations due to failure to meet registration procedures and rules.
– Additional work due to suspension. Withdrawal and/or reinstatement of the certificate.
– Re-evaluation due to changes in the management system or products.
– Compliance with any recall or certification documents related to the performance of the work.
- Storage and retention of information
– The company shall keep in its archives for the period required by the accreditation body or by law all materials relating to the assessment program and the monitoring program related to this certificate.
- Termination
– Contracts are generally assumed to continue for specific periods of time and are directly linked
to the validity of the relevant certificates issued or to the type of services to be provided, and may be renewed thereafter.
-The company shall have the right, at any time, to terminate the contract due to serious default by the client in its obligations by notifying the client in writing at least thirty days in advance after the client fails to remedy the notified default within 30 days of the notification.
- Limitation of Liability and Indemnity
– The company undertakes to exercise due care and skill in performing its services and accepts liability only in cases of proven negligence.
-The Company shall have no liability to the Customer arising out of or in connection with the Contract and its performance by reason of any representation or breach of any express or implied term, warranty or other condition of any duty at common law or under any law for any indirect, special or consequential loss to the Customer (including loss of profits), and the Company’s aggregate liability to the Customer in respect of any other loss shall, in respect of any event or series of connected events, be limited to all amounts equal to the fees paid to the Company under the Contract: (excluding VAT thereon).
– The Company is neither an insurer nor a guarantor and disclaims any liability as such. Customers seeking to obtain insurance against loss or damage must obtain appropriate insurance.
- Disputes
– All disputes arising out of the provision of services under this Contract by the Company to the Customer having registered offices in the same country shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of that country, and all disputes shall be submitted to the competent courts of that country.
Accreditation Principles for System Certification
- Introduction
Accreditation principles that comply with the requirements of ISO/IEC17021-1:2015, and
Accreditation requirements for management system certification bodies in
ISO 9001:2015 (QMS), ISO 17021-2:2016 (EMS), ISO 14001:2015, ISO 17021-10:2018 (OHSMS), ISO 45001:2018, ISO 22000:2018 (FSMS), ISO/TS 22003:2022 certification
- Scope
– HORAS-Cert provides its services to organizations or companies (each referred to as the “Client”)
– HORAS-Cert may provide its services directly through its employees or freelancers, where part of the work is subcontracted to others; HORAS-Cert retains full responsibility for granting, maintaining, extending, suspending or withdrawing certification and for ensuring that properly documented agreements are in place.
– HORAS-Cert will notify its clients of any changes to certification requirements within a specified time frame.
- Confidentiality
– HORAS-Cert maintains confidentiality at all levels of its organization with respect to information
obtained in the course of its work.
-No information will be disclosed to any third party unless in response to legal process or
required by an accreditation body
– HORAS-Cert maintains its own directory of accredited clients, which is publicly available on the website
This directory will be useful in requesting the status of any valid, suspended, revoked or withdrawn certifications.
- Organizational Structure
– A copy of the HORAS-Cert organization chart, which shows the organization’s responsibility and reporting structure, and documents defining the legal status are available.
- Application for Certification
– Upon receipt of the Application Form (provided by HORAS-Cert upon request), the application is reviewed and a (quotation) is sent to the client specifying the scope and costs of the services. Once the quote is accepted, the project will be assigned to a lead auditor who will be responsible for ensuring that the services are carried out in accordance with HORAS-Cert’s procedures.
- Client Obligations
In order to obtain and maintain certification, the client must comply with the following procedures and rules:
– The client must provide all documents, product samples, drawings, specifications and other information required by HORAS-Cert to complete the evaluation program, and must appoint a designated person authorized to maintain contact with HORAS-Cert
– If HORAS-Cert is not satisfied that all certification requirements have been met, it must inform the client
– Clients must, upon request, accommodate the presence of observers during evaluations. For example, certification auditors or trainee auditors.
- Issuance of the certificate
When HORAS-Cert is satisfied that the Client meets all the requirements of the certificate, it will
notify the Client and issue a certificate. The certificate remains the property of HORAS-Cert and may not be copied or reproduced except for the benefit of a third party if the word “copy” is placed on it. The certificate will remain valid until its expiry, unless monitoring reveals that the management system and/or the Client’s products no longer meet the standards, rules or regulations.
The Company reserves the right to decide, on a case-by-case basis, at its sole discretion and after taking into account the various local requirements. That the issuance of the certificate will be conditional upon the full payment of the Company’s fees and costs related to the said certificate or any previous services provided to the Client.
- Certification Marks
– When issuing a certificate, HORAS-Cert may also authorize the client to use a particular certification mark.
– The client’s right to use any of these marks is conditional on maintaining a valid certificate regarding the certified management system and complying with the regulations governing the use of the mark issued by HORAS-Cert
The client who has been authorized to use the mark of the certification body must also comply with the rules governing the mark of this body.
– Improper use of this mark is a non-compliance with the requirements of accreditation and may lead to the suspension or withdrawal of accreditation.
- Monitoring
– Monitoring shall be carried out periodically and shall cover aspects of the management system, documentation, manufacturing and distribution processes and products, depending on the type of certification services provided, at the discretion of the nominated auditor.
– The client shall grant access to all sites or products for monitoring purposes whenever it deems it necessary and HORAS-Cert reserves the right to conduct unannounced visits as needed.
– The client shall maintain a register recording all customer complaints and safety incidents reported by an enforcement authority or users in relation to those covered by the certification and make it available to HORAS-Cert upon request.
– The client shall be informed of the results of each monitoring visit.
- Re-certification
– Clients wishing to have certificates nearing the end of their cycles re-validated shall apply under the agreed procedure.
– Clients are generally informed of the requirement for re-certification during the pre-re-certification visit, which is the last monitoring visit for each period, but the sole responsibility for submitting the re-certification application in a timely manner lies with the client.
- Modification of the System
– The Customer shall notify HORAS-Cert in writing of any intended modification to the management system, products or manufacturing process, which may affect compliance with standards, rules or regulations.
- Advertising
– In compliance with applicable regulations governing the relevant mark(s), the Customer may
publicly announce that its relevant management system has been certified and obtained certification.
– The Customer shall ensure that its advertisements and advertising materials do not cause confusion or may mislead third parties as to which systems, products or locations are certified and which are not.
– Management System Certification, therefore the Customer is not permitted to place certification marks inside its products.
- Misuse of the Certificate and Certification Mark
– HORAS-Cert shall take appropriate action, at the Customer’s expense, to deal with incorrect or misleading references to the certificate or the use of certificates and certification marks. Such action may include suspension or withdrawal of the certificate, taking legal action and/or publishing the violation.
- 14. Suspension of Certification
HORAS-Cert may suspend the certification for a limited period in cases such as the following:
– If the request for corrective action is not completed satisfactorily within the specified time limit.
– If the case of misuse is not corrected as demonstrated by appropriate retractions or
other appropriate corrective measures by the customer.
– If there is any violation of the proposal or registration application or the general conditions for the certification of the system, product and service or these Codes of Practice or the regulations governing the use of the certification mark.
– If the products are placed on the market in an unsafe or non-conforming condition.
HORAS-Cert will confirm in writing to the customer the suspension of the certification. At the same time, HORAS-Cert will indicate the conditions under which the suspension will be lifted. At the end of the suspension period, an investigation will be conducted to determine whether the conditions indicated for the reactivation of the certification have been met. When these conditions are met, the suspension will be lifted and the customer will be notified of the reactivation of the certification. If the conditions are not met, the certification will be withdrawn.
The Client shall bear all costs incurred by HORAS-Cert in suspending and reactivating the certificate.
- 15. Withdrawal of the certificate
The certificate may be withdrawn if:
– The Client has taken insufficient measures in the event of suspension.
– HORAS-Cert has terminated its contract with the Client. In any of these cases, HORAS-Cert has the right
to withdraw the certificate by notifying the Client in writing.
– The Client may submit a notice of appeal.
– In cases of withdrawal, no evaluation fees will be refunded and the withdrawal of the certificate will be published by HORAS-Cert and the appropriate accreditation body, if any, will be notified.
- 16. Cancellation of the certificate
The certificate will be cancelled if:
– The Client has informed HORAS-Cert in writing that it does not wish to renew the certificate or has gone out of business.
– The Client has not initiated the renewal application in a timely manner.
– In cases of cancellation due to a reason on the part of the Client, no evaluation fees will be refunded and the appropriate accreditation body, if any, will be notified.
- 17. Recognition of Accredited Organizations
– HORAS-Cert, at its sole discretion, generally recognizes certificates issued by other accredited organizations where this does not affect the integrity of the scheme.
- 18. Appeals
– The Client has the right to appeal any decisions made by HORAS-Cert.
– Notice of intent to appeal must be given in writing and received by HORAS-Cert
within 10 business days of receipt.
– HORAS-Cert must provide evidence to support its decision. Any decision made by HORAS-Cert
remains valid until the outcome of the appeal.
The decision of the relevant committee is final and binding on both the Client and HORAS-Cert. Once a decision has been made on an appeal, no counterclaim can be made by either party
to the dispute to modify or change that decision.
– In cases where an appeal is successful, no claim can be made against HORAS-Cert
to recover costs or any other losses incurred.
- 19. Complaints
– If anyone has reason to complain to HORAS-Cert, the complaint must be submitted in writing,
without delay, and addressed to the Director of Certification at HORAS-Cert. If the complaint is made against the Director of Certification itself, the letter of complaint must be addressed to the General Manager of HORAS-Cert
– The complaint must be acknowledged in writing after it has been received. The complaint will then be independently investigated by HORAS-Cert and closed when the investigation has been satisfactorily concluded. After closing, the complainant will be informed that the investigation has come to an end.
– HORAS-Cert reserves the right to add, delete or change these Codes of Practice without prior notice. Unless otherwise expressly agreed in writing, all services are carried out
in accordance with the General Conditions of System and Service Certification Services. In the event of a conflict with any other provision, the latter shall prevail.