Quality Management

The application of ISO standards in the quality management of VSB - Technical University of Ostrava is defended each year within the scope of re-certification audits.

Certified Quality Management System

In 2003 the management of VSB-TUO decided to modify the management system, so that the university would be able to respond to the changing conditions in the Czech Republic, mainly within the scope of growing competition among universities. Following the Bologna Declaration, which emphasises the importance of quality education, it was decided to implement the Quality Management (SMK abbreviation in Czech) System at VSB - Technical University of Ostrava, as an integral part of the university management.

From the existing concepts ISO 9001 was chosen. The reasons for this choice were as follows:

• The benefits of implementing the quality management system in accordance with the international standards.
• The benefits of ISO 9001 were proven many times during its implementation in a vast number of organizations, both in the production and in the non-production sectors.
• There are no essential reasons why these analogous benefits should not occur when they are introduced at universities.
• The Quality Management System according to ISO 9001 makes it clearly possible, by using a proper certificate, to communicate to the partners of VSB-TUO that our management system corresponds to internationally acknowledged standards.

The Quality Management System in accordance with ISO 9001 is based on the following principles:

• Focus on the Clients
  As organizations are dependent on their clients, they should understand what their current and future clients requirements are, meeting their requirements and trying to predict their expectations.
• Management and People Management
  The leading figures are enforcing the compliance of the purpose and the focus of the organization. They should create and maintain an internal environment in which people can fully employ themselves into the process of meeting the goals of their organization.
• Engaging People
  People on all levels are the foundation of the organization and their full employment enables utilizing their abilities to the benefit of the organization.
• The Process Approach
  The required targets shall be reached more efficiently when the activities and relevant sources are managed in the form of processes.
• A Systemic Approach to the Management
  A proper identification, understanding and management of related processes as a system contributes to the better efficiency and effectiveness of an organization in their attempt to achieve their goals.
• Continuous Improvement
  Continuous improvement of the overall organization performance is to be a permanent objective of an organization.
• Decision-Making Based on Facts
  Efficient decision-making is based on data and information analyses.
• Mutually Beneficial Supplier Relations
  Organizations and their suppliers are dependent on each other and their mutually beneficial relations increase their ability to create values.

Regarding the specific conditions at VSB - Technical University of Ostrava, it was decided to implement SMK gradually. The procedure of implementing SMK at VSB-TUO was provided as follows:

• The pilot project (2003-2004) – implementation of SMK including the certification at FEI. FEI obtained the ISO 9001 as the first academic workplace in the Czech Republic.
• Application projects (2005-2007)
  • 2005 – the introduction and subsequent certification of SMK at FS, FAST and HGF
  • 2006 – zthe introduction and subsequent certification of SMK at EkF, FMMI, and FBI
  • 2007 – implementation of SMK to university departments (vice-chancellor's office, university institutions, university departments and institutions) and subsequent certification of VSB-TUO as a whole.

As a certifying body the CQS – Quality System Certification Association was selected. The first ISO 9001 certificate at VSB-TUO as a whole with a validity till 31^st August 2010 was issued based on the certification audit, which took place from 16^th to 19^th July 2007.

On the basis of the re-certification audit, which took place from 18^th to 20^th April 2018 the validity of ISO 9001 certificate for VSB-TUO was extended till 12^th July 2018. During the time this certificate is valid the university is subject to an annual supervisory audit, which verifies that the Quality Management System is maintained in the adequate way.

The CQS certifying body is a member of the international certifying network of bodies IQNET, and thus Vysoká škola báňská – Technical University of Ostrava has received together with the certifcate ISO 9001 issued by CQS also the certificate ISO 9001 issued by IQNET.