The 80-year-old LEGO Group believes that “only the best is good enough,” according to its founder Kirk Christiansen. Consequently, it is registered in several key ISO standards, including ISO 9001 (quality management), ISO 14001 (environmental management), and ISO 8124 (toy safety).
When was the last time you opened a new LEGO kit and found that parts or instructions were missing or something less than satisfactory about the product and the total experience? The LEGO brand is vital to the LEGO Group and everyone knows how difficult it is to comfort children when their expectations have not been met. The LEGO Group cannot afford this. ISO 9001 provides the framework and guidelines necessary to stay in control while complying with internationally accepted best practices to run an effective quality management system.
LEGO is using ISO 9001 to hold its global suppliers and factories accountable for meeting its quality standards and customer expectations. This is one of the benefits of the standard. The ISO certified company can make the decisions when it comes to suppliers and pick the junk. In the end, the customer wins. The standard is also being used to help accelerate global expansion.
LEGO strictly adheres to Section 7.2.3 of the standard called “Customer Communication”. That is, LEGO is determining and implementing effective arrangements to communicate with the customer regarding:
1) product information
2) inquiries, contracts or order handling, including amendments, and
3) customer feedback, including customer complaints
The excerpt below is from ISO Focus + March 2010 issue of the magazines, volume 1, no. 3
Since 1991, the LEGO Group has implemented ISO 9001, which it considers the ideal framework to structure its global quality management system (QMS), with LEGO factories operating in countries that are well aware of its requirements. Using ISO 9001 is an effective way to implement the quality management system at new production sites. All ISO 9001 requirements will generally be familiar to quality management personnel at new sites, allowing the company to fully focus on specific internal requirements. For the consumer, the quality management system ensures that each LEGO box contains the correct quantity and type of building elements, which are crucial to delivering the promised LEGO building experience.
