This document establishes the fundamental concepts and principles of quality management which are universally applicable to the following:

• organizations seeking sustained success through the implementation of a quality management system (QMS);
• customers seeking confidence in an organization’s ability to consistently provide products and services conforming to their requirements;
• organizations seeking confidence in their supply chain that product and service requirements will be met;
• organizations and interested parties seeking to improve communication through a common understanding of the vocabulary used in quality management;
• organizations performing conformity assessments against the requirements of ISO 9001;
• providers of training, assessment or advice in quality management;
• developers of related standards.

This document defines terms that apply to all quality management documents and QMS standards developed by ISO/TC 176.

This document is applicable to all organizations, regardless of size, complexity or business model.