ISO 19443 · Nuclear supply chain quality
ISO 19443 certification support for suppliers to the nuclear energy sector.
Nuclear customers need assurance that every product and service important to nuclear safety is controlled, and Sterling's expert and experienced consultants help you build an ISO 9001 based quality system that meets the extra demands of ISO 19443. We ensure successful certification for our clients.
- Fixed scope, one proposal: consulting, Effivity software, Sterling Academy access and internal auditor training, as applicable to your standard, in one proposal
- A team of expert and experienced quality consultants, advising on ISO 9001 based systems since 2003
- The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements. Sterling does not certify; an independent certification body audits and decides
8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries.
Client experience across sectors
What it is
What is ISO 19443?
ISO 19443 sets out specific requirements for applying ISO 9001:2015 in the supply chain of the nuclear energy sector, for organisations supplying products and services important to nuclear safety (ITNS). It is published by ISO and maintained by ISO/TC 85. ISO describes it as applying the principles of ISO 9001 to the nuclear sector, combining quality best practice with nuclear industry requirements, and notes it was developed working closely with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Its requirements complement, rather than replace, those of your customers and regulators, so the system has to carry both.
Current edition. ISO 19443:2018, first published in May 2018, amended in 2024 by Amendment 1 (climate action changes). ISO lists it as to be revised: ISO/CD 19443.2, the second edition, is a committee draft whose comment period closed on 30 May 2026. No publication date has been announced; build to the current edition and plan for the update.
Who it is for
Who needs ISO 19443 certification?
ISO 19443 is written for any organisation in the nuclear supply chain, whatever its type or size. Organisations come to Sterling from three starting points:
- A nuclear customer asks for it. A licensee, prime contractor or major supplier requires ISO 19443 from the suppliers of ITNS products and services.
- You already hold ISO 9001. Your quality system is sound, and it now needs the nuclear-specific requirements added and proved.
- You are entering the nuclear supply chain. Manufacturers, engineering firms and service providers moving into new build, operations or decommissioning work.
The benefit is a quality system that answers the nuclear buyer's questions before they are asked, with evidence to match.
Requirements
What are the main ISO 19443 requirements?
ISO 19443 keeps the ISO 9001:2015 structure and adds nuclear-sector requirements; the added clause detail is not listed because we have not verified it from ISO's summary, so the list shows what Sterling's work covers.
- ISO 9001:2015 quality management system: the full foundation, clauses 4 to 10, working in practice
- Products and services important to nuclear safety: identifying which of your outputs are ITNS and applying the added controls to them
- Customer and regulatory requirements: capturing and flowing down the nuclear customer's and regulator's requirements alongside the standard
- Supply chain control: extending the controls to your own suppliers and subcontractors of ITNS items
- Climate action changes: the context and interested-party considerations added by Amendment 1:2024
What does useful ISO 19443 evidence look like?
A list of ITNS products and services with the controls applied to each, customer requirement reviews, supplier evaluations and flow-down records, inspection and release records, nonconformity investigations and effective corrective actions. We keep these in Effivity, so the certification auditor and your nuclear customer see a system that runs.
Your engagement
What your ISO 19443 engagement includes
Your agreed scope brings together what a working system and a prepared team need, from one team under one all-inclusive proposal. Sterling does not certify; an independent certification body audits and decides.
Scope and gap assessment
Against ISO 9001:2015, ISO 19443 and your customers' requirements, with a plan and owners.
Processes and documentation
Built with your process owners, on your existing ISO 9001 system where you have one.
Effivity ISO & GRC software
Your QMS runs in Effivity, included with the engagement at no additional cost.
Training, internal audit and certification readiness
Internal auditor training, awareness for your people, internal audit, management review and support until the certificate is issued.
Certification decisions remain with the independent certification body.
Often combined with
Standards organisations pair with ISO 19443
- AIAG core toolsAutomotive core tools implementation and training: APQP, Control Plan, PPAP, FMEA, MSA and SPC applied on your live parts.
- API Spec Q1API Spec Q1 certification consulting for oil and gas suppliers: contract review, design, purchasing and release controlled, prepared for the APIQR audit.
- AQAP 2110AQAP 2110 compliance for defence suppliers: what the NATO contract requirement covers, AQAP 2105 quality plans, government quality assurance and an all-inclusive proposal.
- AS9100AS9100 certification consulting for aerospace and defence suppliers: ISO 9001 plus product safety, configuration and FAI, ready for an IAQG scheme audit.
- AS9110AS9110 certification for aviation maintenance organisations: the 9110 requirements, the IAQG audit route, cost and timeline factors, and Sterling's support.
- AS9120AS9120 certification for aerospace distributors and stockists: requirements, the IAQG audit route, OASIS listing, cost and timeline factors, with Sterling.
Effivity · ISO and GRC software, included in every engagement
How Effivity helps you fulfil, automate and simplify the requirements of ISO 19443.
Every Sterling ISO 19443 engagement includes Effivity, the ISO and GRC automation platform built by the Sterling group and used in 50+ countries. Your consultant configures the QMS workspace within the agreed scope, so documents, risks, supplier evaluations, inspections, nonconformities, audits and management review live in one place and the certification auditor reviews a live system. Sterling consulting clients get their Effivity subscription included with the engagement, at no additional cost.
Context, scope and interested parties
Scope, issues and interested parties, including climate considerations, reviewed on a schedule.
Policy, roles and objectives
Quality objectives with owners, measures and dates, reported from the system.
Risks and opportunities
A register with owners and actions, brought to management review.
Competence and documented information
Training records linked to Sterling Academy; controlled documents with approvals.
ITNS items, suppliers and release
ITNS identification, supplier evaluation, inspection and release records.
Internal audit and management review
Audit programmes, findings, KPIs and review decisions in one place.
Nonconformity and corrective action
Raised, investigated and closed with root cause and evidence of effectiveness.
Your own forms and reports
Workflows and reports shaped to your customers' requirements, without code.
What this means at the audit
The certification auditor and your nuclear customer ask for the same things: the ITNS list, supplier controls, inspection records, open nonconformities and the last management review. In Effivity each is a screen with dates, owners and evidence attached. After certification, Sustain™ runs in the same workspace.
In your engagement
- Subscription included with the engagement, at no additional cost
- Set up by your Sterling consultant within the agreed scope
- Existing records and registers migrated, not retyped
- Admin and user training for your team
- Modules for EMS, OHSMS, ISMS and more when you integrate other standards
Sterling Academy · ISO 19443 e-learning
Train every employee on quality, not just the quality team.
Sterling Academy delivers e-learning for the whole workforce and for the people who run the programme: video lessons with practice checkpoints, a final exam and a numbered Certificate of Completion for each learner, verifiable online. Sterling consulting clients benefit from preferential Sterling Academy course access and special pricing through their Sterling consultant, including complimentary awareness training for their people as part of the engagement.
- Quality awareness for every employee, with the evidence of competence the standard requires
- Practitioner courses for process owners and the quality lead
- Internal auditor training for the people who will audit the system, as applicable to your standard, as part of the engagement
- Learner progress by department and a training status report for the certification auditor
- New hires trained as they arrive, so evidence is current at every surveillance audit
Keep exploring
Explore more about ISO 19443
Why Sterling
Why choose Sterling for ISO 19443?
Nuclear buyers look past the certificate to the controls behind it. Sterling builds ISO 19443 on the quality system you already run, so one set of processes serves the standard, your customers and their regulators.
Quality systems in 60+ countries since 2003
8,100+ client engagements across sectors and every region we serve, with one engagement team accountable across your sites.
All-inclusive proposal
Consulting, Effivity, training and Academy access in one proposal, with certification-body fees identified separately.
A system your people can use
Controls placed where the ITNS work happens, so people adopt them rather than work around them.
Expert and experienced consultants
Consultants who have advised on ISO 9001 based quality systems across sectors since 2003 and build yours properly the first time.
The Sterling Promise
What our ISO 19443 certification success guarantee means
We stay with you until your agreed ISO 19443 certification outcome is achieved, supporting implementation, preparation and the resolution of audit findings. Clear explanations, practical delivery, included software and employee learning turn the investment into lasting capability.
The engagement identifies the standard, scope, outcome and responsibilities. Your organisation supplies accurate information and puts the agreed controls into use. The independent certification body assesses conformity and retains its certification decision. Our commitment concerns the agreed certification support, not a promise of any future contract award.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions about ISO 19443
What is the difference between ISO 9001 and ISO 19443?
ISO 19443 contains ISO 9001:2015 and adds requirements specific to the nuclear energy supply chain for products and services important to nuclear safety. An ISO 9001 system is the starting point, not the finish.
Is ISO 19443 being revised?
Yes. ISO lists ISO 19443:2018 as to be revised, and the second edition, ISO/CD 19443.2, is at committee draft stage with its comment period closed on 30 May 2026. No publication date has been announced.
Does Sterling issue ISO 19443 certificates?
No. Sterling provides consulting and hands-on support; an independent certification body audits and makes the certification decision. Check with your customer which certification bodies it accepts before you choose one.
Keep exploring
More on ISO 19443 and related standards
More in Automotive, aerospace, rail & defence
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