TSE CEN ISO/TS 23406

TSE CEN ISO/TS 23406 addresses requirements for bodies that audit and certify quality management systems of organizations supplying products and services important to nuclear safety, in the context of ISO 19443. This technical specification focuses on the competence, impartiality and assessment practices of certification bodies operating in the nuclear sector, rather than on the products themselves.

Nuclear-sector context for certification bodies

In nuclear applications, quality management extends beyond routine business control and into activities that can affect nuclear safety. ISO 19443 sets quality management system requirements for organizations supplying products and services important to nuclear safety, while this technical specification complements ISO/IEC 17021-1 by giving additional guidance for the bodies that audit and certify those systems. In practical terms, it provides a common reference that can support accreditation, peer assessment or similar conformity assessment processes.

What this scope means in practice

• It is aimed at certification and audit bodies working in the nuclear safety context
• It relates to certification of quality management systems against ISO 19443
• It complements the existing requirements of ISO/IEC 17021-1
• It may be used as a criteria document for accreditation, peer assessment or other audit processes

As general technical context, such a document helps strengthen confidence in the supply chain for nuclear applications. The key distinction is that the assessed entity is not the plant or the equipment manufacturer itself, but the body that evaluates the supplier’s quality management system. The focus is therefore on the consistency and reliability of certification activity, not on product performance requirements.