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This section summarizes ISO 10013. It highlights the main points.
It does not present detail. If you need a detailed and complete interpretation
of the ISO 10013 standard, please consider purchasing our hardcopy version.

ISO prepared the ISO 10013 publication in order to explain how to develop a quality manual. However, the material below is based on an ISO discussion paper, not on the official "standard".

• Document your quality system. ISO suggests the following hierarchy:
  • Level A: Quality Manual.
  • Level B: Quality Procedures.
  • Level C: Detailed Quality Documents.

• Develop your quality manual. ISO distinguishes between three types:
  • Quality Management Manual.
  • Quality Assurance Manual.
  • Quality Manual.

• Clarify the purpose of your manual. Its purpose could be to:
  • Describe your quality policy and your quality system.
  • Serve as a stable definition of your policy and system.
  • Guide the implementation of your quality system.
  • Describe your quality system requirements.
  • Explain how quality system requirements will be met.
  • Define the quality system standards that will be used.
  • Control quality system work practices and activities.
  • Teach people about your quality system requirements.
  • Teach people about how all quality requirements will be met.
  • Demonstrate that your quality system meets all requirements.

• Organize your quality manual. Your quality manual can be organized any way you like as long as it fulfills its purpose.
  • Cross-reference each section of your manual to an ISO standard.
  • Cross-reference your quality manual to all relevant manuals, policies, procedures, standards, forms, publications, or other documents that might be helpful to your users.

• Select a quality manual development team. Assign the responsibility for developing your quality manual to a team.

• Develop your quality manual. Your quality manual should:
  • Have a title and a table of contents.
  • Specify the scope of the manual.
  • Provide an overview of the manual.
  • Introduce your organization.
  • Present your quality policy.
  • List your quality objectives.
  • Describe your organizational structure.
  • Define any terms that are used in a special way.
  • Describe the elements that make up your quality system.
  • Develop an index that can be used to look up specific topics.
  • Present quality system procedures or specify where they are.

• Introduce your quality manual. Your quality manual should have an introductory section that provides an overview of the manual.

• Introduce your organization. Introduce and describe your organization.

• Introduce your quality policy and objectives. Also, consider developing specific quality policy statements for each element or section.

• Describe your organizational structure. Your quality manual should describe the structure that governs and controls quality.

• Develop quality system procedures. Your quality manual should either contain your procedures or make reference to them. Either way, your procedures should all follow the same structure and format. These procedures are important because they will control your quality system.

• Develop work instructions. Quality system procedures should be distinguished from work instructions. Procedures are general in nature while instructions are usually more detailed and technical in nature. Instructions usually are not included in your quality manual.

• Describe your quality system elements. The great bulk of your quality manual should describe your quality system elements.

• Review and approve your quality manual. The final draft of your quality manual should be carefully reviewed and approved by:
  • Experts: those who have the knowledge and expertise needed to ensure that the content is accurate and complete.
  • Users: those who must make regular use of the quality manual and who are able to determine whether the manual is, in fact, usable.
  • Managers: those who are responsible for implementing the quality manual and who must formally authorize its use.

• Develop methods to control manual distribution. Develop methods to manage the distribution of controlled copies of your quality manual.

• Control quality manual changes. Develop methods to control how changes are initiated, developed, labeled, authorized, distributed, and incorporated. Also control how obsolete versions are handled.

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