- QCert Singapore shall be obliged to carry out the audit properly, with professional care and at the time agreed herein and shall guarantee its performance.
- QCert Singapore performs the audit independently and in its performance is bounded by the instructions of the Certified Client. From the Certified Client’s instructions may depart only if it is urgently necessary and it is in the interest of the Certified Client.
- The Certified Client is obliged to provide QCert Singapore all necessary information and give him the instructions and to allow the execution of the Subject Matter of Agreement and give him all the things to which the provision is committed. The Certified Client is obliged to ensure the active cooperation of its employees in carrying out the audit in a timely manner and to provide the necessary assistance.
- The Certified Client is obliged to observe the deadlines agreed in the Agreement and provide synergy to allow QCert Singapore compliance with the agreed deadlines. QCert Singapore is not in delay, if a delay occurs for reasons for the Certified Client, then QCert Singapore in this case is entitled to compensation for damage suffered.
- The Certified Client determines the person authorized to communicate with QCert Singapore, The Certified Client is obliged to ensure the designated person has sufficient authority to ensure uninterrupted performance of audit.
- The Certified Client is entitled to control auditing. If the Certified Client finds that QCert Singapore auditing is in conflict with their duties, Certified Client is entitled to demand that QCert Singapore eliminate defects caused by improper conduction of audit and that audit shall be conducted in an orderly manner.
- QCert Singapore shall notify Certified Client promptly on an inappropriate nature of things taken over from the Certified Client or on the inadequacy of the instructions given him to perform an audit, if QCert Singapore could find this inadequacy by making professional care.
- If inappropriate things, or instructions interfere with proper conduct of the audit, QCert Singapore is obliged to stop until the exchange of things, or change of instructions, or written notice from the Certified Client that insists on auditing by using of cast things, or the instructions given. During this period of interruption of the audit QCert Singapore is not in delay of the performance of this Treaty. QCert Singapore is not responsible for negative results, respectively the damage caused when these arose because the Subject Matter of Agreement was performed using things and instructions on which Certified Client insisted.
- 1. QCert Singapore will carry out the audit in the following stages:
- stage audit – it consists of management system open issues solving, review of management systems documentation, planning of 2. stage audit conduction
- stage audit – audit execution, review of management system documents implementation to use and its effectiveness, pointing out the strengths and opportunities for improvement.
QCert Singapore shall elaborate an audit report within 15 days from the day of the Certification audit conduction.
b) The first Surveillance Audit – shall be carried out by QCert Singapore for the purpose of optimizing the management system within one calendar year from the day of ending the conduction of Certification audit on site; in the first Surveillance Audit QCert Singapore shall assess effectiveness of the management system; QCert Singapore shall draw up an audit report within thirty days from the day of the first Surveillance Audit conduction.
c) The second Surveillance Audit – shall be carried out by QCert Singapore for the purpose of optimizing the management system within two calendar years from the day of ending the conduction of Certification audit on site; in the second Surveillance Audit QCert Singapore shall assess the effectiveness of the management system & shall draw up an audit report within thirty days from the day of the second Surveillance Audit conduction.
- If QCert Singapore, by following the procedures of this agreement, determines that status of management system of the Certified Client allows the registration and issuing of certificates, based on these documents QCert Singapore shall decide that certificate will be issued..
- In the event that discovered non-conformances documented in the audit report of one of the audits carried out here under do not permit the issue of the Certificate, the Certified Client shall be obliged to remedy the discovered non-conformances within an agreed period of time. Certified Client must inform QCert Singapore in writing about the way of elimination of non-conformances. After receiving written statement about the elimination of non-conformances QCert Singapore can conduct extraordinary audit by which there shall be elimination of discovered non-conformances audited.
- Formal change of certificate
a) By the formal change of certificate there is considered a change that is related to the data of Certified Client to whom there was a certificate issued (hereinafter referred to also as certified organization); for example: change of trading name and also such a change of scope that is only alternative definition of valid certified scope but the nature of valid certified scope remains unchanged (EA code).
b) For the formal change of certificate there is a written request needed - issued by Certified Client and addressed to QCert Singapore. QCert Singapore will review the request and consider if requested change is formal only or the change is considered as a new certification or just the extent/reduction of the valid scope.
c) The change of data of Certified Client (i.e., trade name) can be processed only after receiving the “extract of ACRA copy” of the certified organization that proves such a change.
d) Formal change of certificate is executed by issuing new certificate according to the procedure that is included in this agreement. Validity of new certificate remains the same as stated on previous certificate.
e) For arranging the execution of formal change of certificate there shall be flat amount paid to QCert Singapore for one set of changed certificates (i.e., ISO 9001). QCert Singapore shall send new set of certificates to certified organization after the payment execution of this flat amount.
- QCert Singapore shall be obliged to keep in strict confidence all and any information regarding the subject matter of the present Agreement as well as facts that QCert Singapore discovers during its performance.
- QCert Singapore shall be obliged to protect and not to disclose any confidential information regarding the Certified Client that it acquires during the carrying out of the audit. Confidential information are above all any information and facts constituting trade secret, business plans and any other information and facts about the Certified Client that are not generally known.
- The Certified Client may revoke the non-disclosure obligation of QCert Singapore. The approval must be in writing.
- The non-disclosure obligation shall equally apply to
a) QCert Singapore employees,
b) Other persons whose services are used by QCert Singapore during the audit,
- The non-disclosure obligation shall not apply in the event that the purpose of disclosing such information is to prevent the commission of a crime imposed by law.
- The Certified Client shall be obliged not to disclose the content of the present Agreement and the facts that it discovers in connection with the acts by QCert Singapore during the performance of the subject matter hereof and which represent at the same time a trade secret, and facts that QCert Singapore expressly determines as facts that are not to be disclosed.
- The non-disclosure and confidential information protection obligation survives even after termination of the present Agreement until the moment when the information in question becomes generally known.
- QCert Singapore is entitled not to forward the certificate until Certified Client pays for carrying out the certification audit, respectively, to arrange the withdrawal with QCert Singapore of already awarded Certificate in case of failure to pay the price for carrying out the surveillance audit within the maturity of the payment.
- The Certificate may be awarded by QCert Singapore only if the Certified Client complies with the requirements of respective standard, and in the event that the Certified Client fails to comply with these requirements after the Certificate award, QCert Singapore shall be obliged to withdraw the Certificate.
- QCert Singapore shall be obliged to notify the Certified Client of changes in certification procedures that have a direct influence upon it and shall be entitled and obliged to maintain and disclose a list of certified companies together with the area where the Certificate is valid.
- Appeal against an act by QCert Singapore
a) In the event that QCert Singapore
- does not issue a Certificate to the Certified Client,
- withdraws the Certificate
the Certified Client shall be entitled, within 30 days from the day of delivery of a notification of such a fact, to serve a notice of appeal against such act to the Appeal committee of QCert Singapore.
What is decisive for the purpose of determining whether the notice of appeal was served on time is the date of an imprint of a stamp of the post office that received the notice for posting it, as opposed to the date of its delivery.
b) In the event that the Certified Client does not invoke its right to appeal against the act by QCert Singapore stated in a), it shall be considered that it agrees with that act.
c)The notice of appeal must be in writing and addressed to QCert Singapore. In the notice of appeal the Certified Client shall indicate the following:
- denomination "appeal"
- number and entering date of the Management System Certification Agreement
- act of QCert Singapore that it appeals against
- reasons why it considers the act by QCert Singapore to be incorrect
d) QCert Singapore appeal committee shall be obliged to consider each appeal served by the Certified Client directed to it, regardless of whether it contains all formal particulars stated in c).
e) In the event that the Certified Client serves a notice of appeal after the time limit stated in a), the appeal committee shall reject its appeal due to late submission. In serious cases deserving special consideration the appeal committee shall be entitled to ignore the fact that notice of appeal was not served on time.
f) The Certified Client shall be informed about its appeal in writing not later than 60 days from the day of delivery of the appeal to QCert Singapore. In the event that the appeal committee of QCert Singapore does not make a decision regarding the appeal within this period of time and does not send the decision on the appeal to the Certified Client, it shall be considered that the appeal by the Certified Client was acknowledged.
- The Certificate shall become valid on the day of its issue and shall remain valid for 3 years. In order to keep the Certificate valid during the three years, it is necessary to carry out the first and the second Surveillance Audit of the Certified Client at the time stipulated herein and with a result justifying validity of the Certificate. In justified cases QCert Singapore may order an Extraordinary Audit.
- Before the Certification Audit the Certified Client shall be obliged to carry out a complete internal audit of the company (all management system processes must be audited) and the management system review in the scope where the audit shall be carried out in compliance with required standard.
The Certified Client shall be obliged to enable the team of auditors of QCert Singapore to inspect the records regarding the area of validity of the management system, access to organizational divisions that the certification applies to, and to provide all necessary cooperation that QCert Singapore may ask for Cooperation provision by the Certified Client according to required standard is necessary condition for audit conducting and breaking of this duty is considered to be essential Agreement breach.
- The Certified Client shall be obliged to ensure the audit conduction at the place specified by QCert Singapore (in the registered office, operation or other working places outside the company). In a case of objective or subjective reasons of the Certified Client, the audit conducting on the place specified by QCert Singapore is not possible, the Certified Client shall be obligatory to inform QCert Singapore immediately. Possible additional costs, which can arose to QCert Singapore and are related to impossibility of agreed audit conducting at the term and place specified by QCert Singapore, the Certified Client is obligatory to pay.
- After Certificate award the Certified Client shall be obliged to inform QCert Singapore about all substantial changes in legal, commercial, organisational status or ownership, organization and management (e.g., key managerial, decision making or technical staff), certified address, scope of operations under the certified management system, major changes to the management system and process, breach of legal obligations which can essentially influence the management system & it’s also obliged to inform QCert Singapore, without delay, of the occurrence of a serious incident or breach of regulation necessitating the involvement of the competent management system.
- The Certified Client shall be obliged to record and document to the auditor during the audit all complains regarding the management system and their solutions.
- For the purpose of QCert Singapore accreditation, the Certified Client agrees that in case of need it will cooperate in a witness assessment (i.e., participation of an accreditation body, QCert Singapore representative / observer, or a respective supervising authority at the Certification / Surveillance Audit) or enables accreditation body, within its supervision of QCert Singapore to examine records about the Certified Client. For this purpose the Certified Client agrees with the Publication of confidential information by the accreditation body is not considered to be the Agreement breach according to this Agreement.
- The Certified Client shall be obliged, after the awarding of the management system certificate, to comply with all requirements stated herein and in “conditions for usage of logo (QCERT-QP-12H-2)” here to as well as with requirements arising from respective standards.
- The requirements under point 12 of this article are mainly:
a) specification, establishing and maintenance of the management system,
b) monitoring the whole management system led by an authorized person for the management system; this person is authorized to give to the Certified Client definite expert instructions,
c) internal audits conduction in all facilities of the Certified Client.
Management system Certificate can be suspended to Certified Client following these facts:
a) Surveillance/short-notice surveillance audit results show that the Certified Client does not fulfill all requirements specified in this agreement.
b) Non-elimination of serious nonconformities within agreed term (max 60 days) discovered during surveillance/short-notice surveillance audit,
c) Non-allowance of surveillance audit performance within the term according to Certification Agreement,
d) Non-allowance of short-notice surveillance audit performance,
e) Breaking of information duty – in communication of changes, which essentially influence management system function, failure to report a serious incident or breach of regulation of the management system,
f) Misuse of QCert Singapore Certificate / audit documents or certification mark,
g) Non-performance of any obligation against QCert Singapore – not even within 30 days after the fulfilling term,
In a case of determination of some facts specified in above conditions. QCert Singapore shall issue “Decision on Certificate suspending”, where the reasons for Certificate suspending and requirements for Certificate renovation achievement are specified. This decision is delivered to the Certified Client and the information about certification suspending is published on QCert Singapore web page.
The Certified Client has no right to use QCert Singapore Certificate and certification mark nor to refer to certification during Certificate suspending. Maximum term for Certificate suspending is 60 days from the publishing of Certificate suspending information on QCert Singapore web page. If the reason for Certificate suspending continues also after the expiration of mentioned term, QCert Singapore shall be obliged to withdraw the Certificate definitely.
If requirements specified in Decision on Certificate suspending were fulfilled within appointed time, QCert Singapore shall issue “Decision on Certificate renovation”. This decision is delivered to the Certified Client and published on QCert Singapore web page.
Management system Certificate withdrawal can be executed following these facts:
a) The reason for Certificate suspending was not eliminated within appointed time 60 days,
b) Determination that the Certified Client uses Certificate or refers to it during the Certificate suspending time,
c) Assets of customer is in bankrupt, or the bankruptcy proceeding was rejected or stopped because of lack of assets or a petition for bankruptcy was not filed propter the assets is insufficient for the payment of preliminary administrator expenses,
d) The Certified Client request.
In a case of determination of some facts specified in above conditions. QCert Singapore shall issue “Decision on Certificate withdrawal”, in which the reasons for Certificate withdrawal are specified. This decision is delivered to the Certified Client and the information about Certificate withdrawal is published on QCert Singapore web page.
The Certified Client has no right to use QCert Singapore Certificate and certification mark nor to refer to certification after withdrawn of certificate.
- The parties undertake that the decision by the Court of the Singapore shall be considered final and binding and that they shall comply with the obligations imposed by the court decision at such time and manner as if it were a decision of a regular court.
- The parties declare and undertake that all certification disputes arising out of the present Agreement and related to QCert Singapore are governed by the regulations of law of Singapore.
- This Agreement has been made in two copies, one copy for each party.
- Principles of using QCert Singapore Certification Mark by the Certified Client and certain provisions on the use of the management system certificate are constituted in “Usage of Logo’s (QCERT-QP-12H-1)” here to which becomes binding on both parties on the day when the present Agreement becomes effective.
- The Parties declare this agreement is governed by the Singapore law, as amended.
- All modifications and supplementations hereto shall have a form of written amendments signed by authorized people of both parties.
Form nr: QCERT-QP-12H-1, Rev 00 dated 24 Feb 2023
