The certification of ESOC to ISO 9001

On 30 November 1999, ESOC was awarded a certificate, confirming that it is compliant with the international quality standard, ISO 9001. ESA's Director General, Antonio Rodota accepted the certificate from National Quality Assurance (NQA), an independent third-party registrar accredited by UKAS (UK), RvA (NL) and RAB (USA). ESA thus became the first space agency in Europe to have one of its facilities certified to ISO 9001. This article describes the justification for certifying ESOC to ISO 9001, the activities leading up to the certification, the immediate consequences for ESOC and ESA, and concludes by describing the key lessons that were learned from this initiative.