Yorkshire firm among first in country to secure revised quality standard

A Yorkshire-based vehicle hire firm is one of just a handful of businesses to have successfully secured a revised quality management standard.

Huddersfield-based Arrow Self Drive, formed in 1988, has completed the rigorous process over a year to gain the revised ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems Standard.

Over a million organisations across the world have already obtained certification to the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management Standard, with businesses reporting benefits including increased growth, productivity, and significantly higher customer satisfaction and retention.

The Standard is based on a number of quality management principles including strong customer focus, the motivation and implication of top management and the process approach and continual improvement. Using ISO 9001:2008 helps ensure that customers get consistent, good quality products and services, which in turn brings many business benefits including winning and retaining business, reducing mistakes, increasing efficiency, improving productivity and ultimately driving up profits.

In 2014, Arrow Self Drive, an independent family run business, invested substantial time and resources into overhauling its business practices to meet the existing ISO 9001:2008 Standard.

In 2015 the standard was revised and the new standard, ISO 9001:2015 emerged. This represents the latest best practice in how to manage and monitor quality across business operations.

Some of the key updates in ISO 9001:2015 include the introduction of new terminology, restructuring some of the information, an emphasis on risk-based thinking to enhance the application of the process approach, improved applicability for services, and increased leadership requirements.

Companies who already hold a ISO 9001:2008 certificate are expected to migrate to the new 2015 standard and have been given a three-year period to undertake the transition.

Having completed the process, Arrow Self Drive are ahead of the game, and are amongst the small percentage (less than 10%) of British companies to already hold certification to the new standard.

James Hill, Managing Director of Arrow Self Drive said:

“Since we implemented ISO 9001:2008 just over a year ago we have undertaken rigorous checks every three months to ensure that the new practices are being maintained internally. This has definitely eased the transition to the new 2015 Standard. Being one of the first companies to obtain accredited certification to 9001:2015 is a credit to our team and the certification has elevated us to align with some of the most professional companies in the UK today. Being a Yorkshire, family run business we are especially proud of this achievement and what it says about our operational standards. My team have wholeheartedly embraced the changes necessary to reach this point and as we approach our thirtieth anniversary we anticipate a period of steady growth well into the future with better processes and an improved level of service for all our customers.”


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About Arrow Self Drive

Arrow Self Drive started in Huddersfield in 1988 and is a family run business with the aim of becoming the No 1 provider of vehicle hire in Yorkshire. From its humble beginnings the company has continued to steadily grow and today boasts a fleet of almost 2,000 rental vehicles with eight branches across Yorkshire and close to 100 staff on team. The success of Arrow Self Drive is due to the firm’s straightforward approach, personal service and focus on customer service excellence. The senior management team continue to steer the organisation and ensure that the business stays true to its Yorkshire values and maintain a personal approach as they expand into the future. For more information visit https://www.arrowselfdrive.com.