The whole story

The word Kitemark is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as “an official kite-shaped mark on goods which are approved by the British Standards Institution”. But this doesn’t tell the whole story.

Kitemark schemes may be developed for products, processes or services, based on publicly available specifications, such as British Standards, international standards or industry standards recognized nationally. TheKitemark is applied to more than 2,600 products under licence and has more recently been extended to cover services schemes including automotive garage services, vehicle body repair, print services, electrical installers, window installers and fire alarm installers.

Each Kitemark scheme involves an initial assessment of conformity to the relevant standard and an assessment of the quality management system operated bythe supplier. Successful Kitemark licensee is regularly audited and undergo surveillance visits to provide feedback and monitoring.

Internet: <www.bsi-global.com>.