Ethics

1. Operational excellence

• Provide our customers with services that meet their expectations, while complying with all requirements,
• Provide customers real certification engineering services to further their strategic thinking and offer new products,

2. Competencies

• Develop the skills of our employees, both internal and external, through mastered qualifications,
• Bring added value to our customers through effective audits and adapted deliverables,

3. Efficiency

• Promote the increase of Apave Group certification activities global performance through organized exchanges between Apave Certification Bodies and Local offices,
• React and adjust to changes and customer needs through our continuous improvement and prevention of malfunctions processes and by our ability to anticipate changes in the certification provision,

4. Confidence

• Strive to deserve the confidence of  our customers, of accreditation bodies and Apave Group,
• Ensure and guarantee  our certification activities objectivity,
• Control the risks,
• Provide in full transparency information related to certification audit and processes. 

• The management of our internal resources, in particular staff competence,
• The effective combination of the available external capabilities represented by our network of partners (committees), suppliers and subcontractors.

As certification bodies Directors, we are committed to take action and implement the human resources and resources needed to implement this policy.

Apave Certification keeps available information on the status of the certification of any organization/person (granting, extension, maintenance, renewal, suspension, reduction of the certified perimeter, withdrawal), on the page of certified customers.

Consult the management system process here

Consult the rules for using the mark Apave Certification here

Consult the rules for using the mark CbyApave here

Consult the General conditions for Certification here

Information Requests Handling Process

The Certification Body may receive requests for information through the following communication channels:

• Postal mail
• Email
• Telephone
• Fax
• Social networks (Twitter, LinkedIn)
• Online web form submissions (quote requests, contact forms)
• Face-to-face exchanges (e.g., during an audit, trade show, client meeting)

Requests relating to complaints are handled in accordance with the provisions of Section 9, and appeals in accordance with Section 10.
Other requests are answered by the recipient (or forwarded internally to the appropriate person), generally through the same communication channel and in a timely manner.
The Certification Body reserves the right not to respond to requests outside its scope of activity or to redirect them to another entity of the Apave Group. 

Complaints Handling Process

In accordance with the process below, a complaint may be lodged by an interested party with the Certification Body either:

• Against the Apave Certification Body for its actions;
• Against one of its certified clients. The complaint is then notified to the certified client in a timely manner, who must grant the Certification Body access to all information required to investigate the case during an audit or at any other time.

The scope of the complaint and its handling by the Certification Body are conducted according to the process below and communicated to the certified client.
In all cases, the Director may consult the relevant CPI or CoSA to review specific cases.
The Certification Body may decide, in agreement with the complainant and the certified client, whether to make the subject of the complaint and its resolution public.
A summary of claims and complaints is presented at the annual CPI meeting. The CPI ensures that the handling of complaints strictly complies with the applicable code of ethics, without discrimination, throughout the entire process.