CODE OF ETHICS OF SWISS APPROVAL PERSONNEL INVOLVED IN THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

1. Commitment: Endeavour to safeguard the welfare, health and safety of the community and its environment and give this priority before sectional or private interest.

2. Integrity: Evaluation and auditing personnel shall

3. Competence: Perform work only within their areas of competence, i.e. within their capability, qualifications, training and experience

4. Performance: Inspection and audit personnel skills and knowledge is guaranteed by the Top Management of Swiss Approval

5. No conflict of interest: To avoid potential conflict between the interests of clients, employers or the public and where this is unavoidable disclose forthwith the circumstances which may cause conflict.

6. Confidentiality: To ensure that confidential or copyright information or material obtained in the course of work, is transferred to other parties only with written authority from a duly authorised person.

7. Reporting: Inspection and audit personnel shall document reports and  objective evidences. 

8. Improvement: Inspection and audit personnel shall continue to improve their competence (knowledge and skill) to adequately follow standards updates and best practice in the certification activities.

IMPARTIALITY AND NON DESCRIMINATION DECLARATION

Swiss Approval International, its management, employees and external professionals acting by a contractual agreement as administration staff, auditors, inspectors, evaluators e.tc., have identified the importance and value of certification and related activities of the certification body, declare unequivocally their commitment to objective, reliable, independent and impartial certification services.

Swiss Approval Int is responsible for the impartiality of its certification activities and shall not allow commercial, financial or other pressures to compromise impartiality, safeguarding all conditions deriving from EN ISO17021, 17065 restrictions and related international standards for certification activities independency and impartiality.

All Swiss Approval personnel (either internal or external) or committees who could influence the certification activities, act impartially. Impartiality principles and preconditions are explicitly described in the contractual agreements and appointment documents of the staff/ external professionals being involved to the certification process stages.

All personnel involved in the certification process consists of experienced and adequately trained personnel, the adequacy of which is evaluated at regular intervals to ensure continuously that the requirements for the proper functioning of the certification process, is satisfied.

Swiss Approval International services are ensured to be accessible to all applicants whose activities fall within the scope of its certification operations maintaining non-discrimination conditions.

Swiss Approval Int takes action to respond to any risks to impartiality, arising from the actions of other persons, bodies or organizations, of which it becomes aware. All relevant measures are presented and further explained in the impartiality risks’ analysis study and action plan, which is a part of Swiss Approval Int quality management system.

Swiss Approval Int activities shall not be marketed or offered as linked with the activities of an organization that provides consultancy and prohibits any statement or implication that certification granting would be simpler, easier, faster or less expensive for any reason.

The Company's management determines and assigns the appropriate persons to the required jurisdiction and freedom of maneuver, so they are at any time able to solve problems related to the impartiality of the procedures regarding the certification activities. Meanwhile, Company's management proposes preventive and corrective actions, confirms corrective actions and finally evaluates the results thereof. 

CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA SECURITY DECLARATION

Swiss Approval International overbidding the importance of data security and confidentiality safeguard of the information handled, therein, as a result of the procedures and requirements of certification services, has adopted the present policy “Confidentiality and Data Security’.

The main objectives of Information and Data Security Policy are:

• the full satisfaction and safeguard of customers’ data confidentiality
• the compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements
• the Information security
• the assurance of security of the evaluation, inspection and certification documentation and related material, taking into account the following:
  • the locations of the materials (e.g. transportation, electronic delivery, disposal, storage,)
  • the nature of the materials (e.g. electronic, paper, testing equipment)
  • the steps in the certification process (e.g. application, review, coordination, results’ and evaluation reporting)
  • the threats arising from the certification process itself.

The Company's management determines and assigns to the IT manager and appropriate persons the required jurisdiction and maneuver so be able to address problems related to data and information security, to propose corrective activities to confirm that corrective actions and evaluate their results.

The Responsibility for monitoring of processes related to the impartiality issues, as well as Data Security and Confidentiality issues, is undertake by the Accreditation Committee of Swiss Approval International, who is also responsible of the issuance of relevant terms within the Policy of Impartiality and Confidentiality - Data Security, assisted by the Quality Manager or IT respectively.