Falcon Quality ISO 9001, step by step
(925) 557-8570 Free gap analysis

You already have a quality system. Let's make it certifiable.

You inspect parts, you keep records, you handle complaints when they come in. ISO 9001 asks you to prove all of that in writing, in a form an auditor can follow, then correct the few things you might have missed. I spent forty years doing this work. This course lays out every step to get there, with the forms and procedures to go with it, for $997.

See where your system stands

A free 67-question gap analysis. Scored on screen in about thirty minutes.

Most ISO advice was written for a company that isn't yours.

It assumes a document controller, an internal audit team and a budget line for compliance. You have a shop floor, an office manager who also handles purchasing, and a customer waiting on parts.

The system has to fit the shop

A twelve-procedure manual nobody opens will pass an audit once and then rot. What survives is documentation your people actually use, which means less of it, written in the language they already speak.

You need to know what auditors ask

Registrars have patterns. Internal audits, calibration status, nonconforming material control and management review minutes account for a large share of findings in small shops, and each one is preventable.

Knowing what's required isn't knowing how

Most ISO courses tell you what each clause requires and what you need to produce. Very few tell you how to actually produce it, step-by-step. This course walks you through each clause, providing you with detailed instructions, procedures and forms needed to get you ready for ISO 9001 Registration

One person built all of this.

I'm Steve Kent. I've spent over forty years in quality management, most recently as a Quality Director, and with roughly twenty of those years on ISO 9001 and its derivatives — AS9100 in aerospace and ISO 13485 in medical devices.

I've built quality systems from nothing and rebuilt ones that had quietly stopped working. I've prepared companies for registrar audits and I've sat on the other side of the table during them. That second part matters more than it sounds, because knowing what an auditor is actually looking for is different from knowing what the clause says.

Falcon Quality is a one-person practice by choice. I wrote the course, the templates and the assessment myself, out of what I've watched work and fail in real shops. If you decide you want consulting time as well, you get me, not an account manager.

More about how I work
Steve Kent, Falcon Quality
40years in quality management
20years with ISO 9001, AS9100, ISO 13485
1person behind the course, templates and calls

How certification actually goes

Four stages. Most small shops starting from a reasonable base get through in four to six months, though that depends on your registrar's schedule and how fast your team can move. Anyone promising you a fixed number is guessing.

  1. Find the gaps

    A clause-by-clause review of what exists against what the standard requires. You can start this yourself, free, with the gap analysis.

  2. Build the system

    Procedures, forms and records written for how your shop runs. Lean enough to maintain, complete enough to pass.

  3. Train and run it

    Your people learn the system, you run a full internal audit cycle, and management review happens for real. Registrars want evidence the system has been operating, not just that it exists.

  4. Certification audit

    Stage 1 and Stage 2 preparation, mock audit, and support closing any findings the registrar raises.

Three ways to work together

Start wherever fits. Most people begin with the free assessment and decide from there.

Free

Gap analysis

Sixty-seven questions covering every clause, including the 2026 changes. Scored by section, with a written finding for every gap.

Start the assessment
$997

The implementation course

Eight modules taking you from gap analysis to certification audit, with the full forms and procedures package. Work at your own pace, keep the system afterwards.

See what's covered
From $600

Consulting calls

Blocks of one-to-one time for the parts you'd rather not work out alone. Five calls for $600, ten for $1,000.

How the calls work

Other standards

AS9100

Aerospace and defense. Everything in ISO 9001 plus configuration management, counterfeit parts control, product safety and first article inspection.

ISO 13485

Medical devices. Heavier documentation, design controls, sterilization and regulatory reporting obligations that ISO 9001 doesn't touch.

Common questions

How long does certification take?
Four to six months is typical for a small shop with reasonable processes already running. It can take longer if you're starting from nothing, and it depends heavily on your registrar's availability. Registrars need to see a full internal audit cycle and at least one management review before they'll certify, and that sets a floor no consultant can shorten.
Should I wait for ISO 9001:2026?
No. The sixth edition was published on 16 September 2026, and it refines the 2015 framework rather than replacing it. Four clause areas change: climate in your context analysis, quality culture and ethics at top management, risks and opportunities separated in clause 6, and ethics awareness across the workforce. Certified companies have until September 2029 to transition. If you're certifying for the first time, build against the new version now.
What does certification cost, all in?
The registrar's fee is separate from anything I charge and usually runs several thousand dollars for a small shop, covering the Stage 1 and Stage 2 audits plus annual surveillance. Get quotes from two or three accredited registrars early, because their pricing varies more than people expect. If you need help, I can provide several good registrars to call.
We're a machine shop working to customer prints. Does all of this apply?
Not all of it. If you don't design product, clause 8.3 on design and development is a legitimate scope exclusion. If your material arrives on consignment and you buy nothing, parts of clause 8.4 may not apply either — though outside processing like heat treat, plating or calibration does count as purchasing, and most shops send something out.
Can I do this without a consultant?
Many shops can, and the course exists for exactly that reason. What people usually underestimate is the internal audit programme and the evidence trail, which is where most first-time certification attempts stall. If you'd rather work through it yourself and only call when you're stuck, that's what the consulting blocks are for.
Do you work remotely?
Yes, and most of this work is done remotely regardless of where you are. I'm based in Danville, California, so on-site work is straightforward in the Bay Area and possible elsewhere.
Free · 30 minutes · No obligation

Book a call with me.

Thirty minutes on the phone or on video, at no charge. Tell me what you make, who's asking you to get certified and what shape your quality system is in, and I'll tell you what the work actually involves — including whether you need to hire anyone at all. I've spent forty years doing this, and a short conversation usually saves people months.

Pick a time that works

Choose a slot below and you'll get a confirmation with the details straight away. If nothing on the calendar suits you, send me a note and we'll find something.

Calendar loading. If nothing appears here within a few seconds, you can book directly on my contact page or call (925) 557-8570.

What happens

  1. You book a slot

    Pick a time above. You'll get a confirmation with the joining details and a short note about what to have in front of you.

  2. We talk for thirty minutes

    You describe your situation, I ask questions, and we work out where you actually stand. Bring the problem you're stuck on — that's a better use of the time than a general overview.

  3. I tell you what I think

    A straight read on your readiness, the parts that will take longest, and the order I'd tackle them in. If the honest answer is that you can do this yourself, I'll say so.

  4. You get it in writing

    A follow-up email with what we covered and the next steps as I see them, so you have something to take to whoever else needs convincing.

Worth doing before we talk

Run the free gap analysis first. It takes 30 to 45 minutes and scores your system section by section, so instead of spending our half hour establishing where you are, we can spend it on what to do about it. People who arrive with their results get noticeably more out of the call.

Not essential. Book either way — but if you have time beforehand, this is the thing to do.

Start the gap analysis

What this call is and isn't

I will follow up

You'll get the recap email, and after that the occasional note from me — what changed in the standards, what I'm seeing in other shops, when something new is available. Unsubscribe in one click whenever you've had enough.

It isn't a free audit

Thirty minutes is enough to give you a clear read and a sensible order of work. It isn't enough to review your documentation or work through your processes in detail — that's what paid consulting time is for.

It might end with me saying no

If your situation needs a registrar, a regulatory specialist, or somebody local who can be on your floor weekly, I'll tell you that rather than take the work. You'd find out eventually anyway.

Common questions

Is it really free?
Yes. No card, no deposit, no trial that turns into a subscription. I'm not pretending it's charity either — it's how I find the people I can help, and if one of my courses or some consulting time is the right answer for you, I'll say so before we hang up. A fair number of these calls end with someone deciding to do it themselves instead, which is also a good outcome. Either way you get a straight read on where you stand for the price of half an hour.
Phone or video?
Either. The calendar will send you a video link, and if you'd rather just talk on the phone, say so when you book and we'll do that instead. For a first conversation it genuinely makes no difference.
What if I need more than thirty minutes?
The call still ends at thirty minutes, because I book them back to back. That's usually enough to tell you what the whole job looks like, even when it isn't enough to work through it. From there you can take it away and do it yourself — buy the course which gives you the procedures and forms already written — or buy consulting time in blocks, five calls for $600 or ten for $1,000, and we carry on from where we stopped.
I'm not ready to certify yet. Should I still book?
Yes, and these are often the most useful calls. Knowing what certification will demand before you commit to a timeline is worth more than finding out halfway through. If the answer is that you should wait six months and do three specific things first, that's a good outcome.
Who will I actually be speaking to?
Me. Falcon Quality is a one-person practice by choice — there's no account manager and no junior consultant taking the first call. Forty years in quality management, twenty of them on ISO 9001 and its derivatives, most recently as a Quality Director.
What if I need to reschedule?
The confirmation email has a link to move or cancel it. No need to explain, and rescheduling costs you nothing — I'd rather you moved it than turned up distracted or not show up at all.